Erbauer impact driver review
When my trusty Bosch impact driver decided to call it a day after only 3 years I needed to find something more reliable within a reasonable price range. When searching for suitable options I kept seeing Erbauer’s range of power tools but instantly dismissing them because it’s not a brand I’m overly familiar with. Like most people, I’m more familiar with brands such as DeWalt, Makita, Bosch Professional and the like but these consistently proved to be out of budget.
After days of searching I finally decided to look into Erbauer to see what they were all about. The last thing I wanted to do was risk buying a cheap impact driver that wouldn’t see the year out so I was prepared to do my research!
What is an impact driver?
This might seem amateurish but the first thing I actually researched was what an impact driver is actually best used for. I’ve used an impact driver for years, basically employing it to work whenever I need a bit of force to get the job done. I recently used it to plasterboard a ceiling where the joists were absolutely solid, but it was extremely difficult to control and I ended up popping more than my fair share of screws in the boards.
An impact driver is a dedicated driver for use with bolts, nuts and screws. It has the highest torque of all drivers (160Nm, which is the measure of the rotational force) and drills and it has a hammer action which is perpendicular to the bit, which is the most important point.
The impact driver is a step up from the combi drill (and as mentioned, the mechanics are different) and is suitable if you’ve got a lot of repetitive screwing to do, such as putting up stud walls or putting down decking.
Erbauer combi drill and impact driver set
I actually bought this Erbauer impact driver as part of a twin set that included a combi drill and the total came to £149.99. That also included one charging unit and two chargers.
Whats the Erbauer EXT li ion battery like?
The 4 amp li ion battery life is very, very good, especially compared to my old Bosch.
I was laying plywood over some floorboards in a big lounge and after 5 hours I was expecting the drill to start losing power, but it never did. I even managed to put up a small stud wall the following morning before it showed signs of needing a charge.
The li ion battery also extremely fast charging. Charging time is advertised as 50 minutes and that seems about right.
As mentioned, the main issue with the new Erbauer EXT batteries is that they’re not backwards compatible.
Is Erbauer a good brand?
Erbauer was launched over 10 years ago by ScrewFix and was positioned as a low end, low cost option for diy and trade alike. Whilst very affordable, they didn’t have the best reputation for reliability and performance and it didn’t take me long to find old forum posts from people advising to steer clear. The main gripe being that the products were poorly made in China, which transferred to poor usability and inconsistent reliability.
Fast forward to today however and Erbauer have significantly enhanced their reputation by significantly improving the quality of their products. In 2018, Kingfisher (the ScrewFix parent company) decided to re-launch the brand as a very competitively priced premium tool brand for trade.
Who is Erbauer made by?
Although it’s not instantly obvious where Erbauer tools are manufactured, they used to be manufactured in China and Taiwan by Positec Power Tools and branded Erbauer for ScrewFix. Positec Power Tools manufacture brands such as Bauker and WORX and we believe they are also still producing Erbauer. Not all of their tools are manufactured by the same company, that have various manufacturers but all based in China and Taiwan.
Who makes the better power tools, Ryobi or Erbauer?
This is a common question and the answer depends on what you need the tools for. If you’re in the trade you need something that’s tried and tested so you know it won’t let you down. Although Erbauer is now aimed at tradesmen and the feedback has been good, you might be better advised to stick to DeWalt or Makita. Plus, some people think tradesmen who show up on site with cheaper work tools suggests poor workmanship! I think a poor workman is a poor workman whatever tool he or she is using.
If you’re a DIYer who won’t be giving the tools as much of a pounding, you’re more likely to be considering Ryobi or Erbauer which is a more sensible choice. In terms of reliability and quality, Erbauer probably now edges it, but there’s not much in it. One of the main considerations is the battery life and charging time. One thing to note with Erbauer is they have a new erbauer EXT battery range which is incompatible with some earlier tools. This is hugely frustrating for some people. With DeWalt, you can still get a replacement battery for a 10 year old impact driver.
Who makes the best impact driver?
Probably DeWalt or Makita. If we ran a poll (which we will), 80%+ respondents would probably go for one of these two brands.