Use of impact wrenches and impact sockets

Industrial tools hold a very important place in industries and are used by workers extensively for many tasks. One of the major tools used in almost every industry is wrenches. Wrenches are widely used in industries and are important for carrying out bolting operations. There are basically two types of wrenches that are used in industries that are impact wrenches and torque wrenches. Torque wrenches are used for very precise and accurate operations as they are provided with a means of measuring the force applied. In this way, you will know how much force has been applied on the fastener and when to stop applying the force.

Impact wrenches
Unlike the torque wrenches, the impact wrenches do not provide you any means of measuring the force applied and hence are used for operations where very low accuracy is needed. The impact wrenches exert a very high force on the fasteners to rotate them and tighten them. This causes a heavy impact on the nuts and the fasteners; hence it is given the name of impact wrench.

The major industries that use impact wrenches are automotive industry, heavy equipment maintenance, construction industry, pipelines, and product assembly plants. The impact wrenches are available in three types that are electric, pneumatic and hydraulic impact wrenches. Most widely used impact wrenches are pneumatic impact wrenches, which are powered by compressed air.

Impact sockets
Many people make the mistake of using ordinary sockets with impact wrenches, which is not right. The usual sockets are not designed to bear such heavy impacts that are exerted on them during operation. These sockets can easily deform and shatter under heavy forces. When they shatter, they send debris to the work environment, which is a great safety hazard. 

For use with impact wrenches, specially designed impact sockets are used that are made from soft and malleable materials that can easily absorb the heavy force exerted on the sockets during operation. This does not mean that the impact sockets will never deform or shatter, but they can be used for a long time and when they deform, they will not shatter and not create any safety hazard.

The reason due to which people use normal sockets instead of impact sockets are the cost of impact sockets is higher than the normal sockets. Another reason why technicians use normal sockets is that they are not aware of the type of sockets they are using with their impact wrenches.

The cost of impact sockets may be high, but in the long run as standard sockets may be convenient for use but when they shatter, they can cause serious harm to the property and life of people working around which can cost more than the initial cost of the impact sockets. With proper impact sockets, you can not only perform the tasks well, but also you can maintain higher levels of safety at your workplace.