What is going on over at the Ridgid labs? I’m pretty sure someone switched out the decaf with espresso considering what their team is producing. We’re used to seeing Ridgid come out with new tools in the general contractor’s kit roughly once a year or so. Nailers? Those are anyone’s guess.
So when we got our hands on the Ridgid Gen5X 5-Tool Kit a while back, we didn’t expect to see much more for a while. Before you know it, we’ve got the Gen5X Random Orbit Sander, Brushless Nailers, and Stealth Force Oil Pulse Driver. Now we have another first from the guys and gals in orange – the Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Compact Hammer Drill and Impact Driver. Clearly, Ridgid Gen5X team members have some serious motivation.
Check out our best hydraulic impact driver and best impact driver articles to see how these tools matched up.
Ridgid Gen5X Brushless 2-Tool Kit on Paper
Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Compact Hammer Drill Specifications
- Model: R86116K
- Power Source: 18V HyperLithium Battery
- No Load Speed: 0 – 550/0 – 2100 RPM
- Hammering Speed: 0 – 7,150/0 – 27,300 BPM
- Maximum Torque: 700 inch-pounds
- Weight (bare): 3.14 pounds
- Weight (w/4.0 amp hour battery): 4.70 pounds
- Price: $94.85 (bare tool), $139.95 (kit)
Key Features
- 2-speed Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Motor
- Hex-Grip rubber overmold
- Micro clutch with over 100 settings
- Die-cast gear box
- 3 mode selection – drilling, screw driving, hammer drilling
Ridgid Gen5X Brushless 3-Speed Impact Driver Specifications
- Model: R86037
- Power Source: 18V HyperLithium Battery
- Shank Compatibility: 1/4″ Hex
- No Load Speed: 0 – 1100/0 – 2100/0 – 2750 RPM
- Maximum Torque: 500/1200/2250 Inch-Pounds
- Weight (bare): 2.44 pounds
- Weight (w/4.0 amp hour battery): 4.00 pounds
Key Features
- Kit Model: R9205
- 3-speed Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Motor
- Hex-Grip rubber overmold
- Tri-Beam LED
- One-Handed Quick Bit Loader
- Class leading 2,250 inch pounds of torque
- Price:
Kit Features
- Price:
- Warranty: Ridgid Lifetime Service Agreement
Performance Testing
Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Compact Hammer Drill
We put Ridgid’s brushless hammer drill through tests that include drilling 1/4″ holes, driving 3/8″ x 3-1/2″ lag bolts, boring with a 1″ spade bit, and hole cutting with a 3″ hole saw. For complete details of the setup, be sure to check out our best cordless drill article.
Ridgid blew away the field when it came to drilling 1/4″ holes despite the fact it didn’t carry the highest torque. In fact, it had the lowest of the drills we tested (but really high for a compact model). 2100 RPM in high speed left the other participants in the dust.
When it came to driving the lag bolts, the compact hammer drill was on the cusp of competing with 3 other drills that each had more than 1000 inch-pounds of torque. It was just 1/100 of a second behind the Milwaukee M18 Fuel hammer drill—a 1200 inch-pound beast!
Times got a little tougher in the spade bit and hole saw tests with the Gen5X falling behind to 7th out of 8 in both tests. For high-speed, low-stress applications, the Ridgid Gen5X Compact Hammer Drill is going to outperform models that have a much higher price tag and bigger numbers on their spec sheets.
While it’s not surprising the higher stress tasks began to limit the 700 inch-pounds of torque, keep in mind that this is a lot of torque for a compact model. Most other drills in this class run anywhere from 350 – 600 inch-pounds, though a couple of models do exceed the 700 mark.
Thanks to the new brushless motor, the drill going to run for a very long time as well. As a compact hammer drill, it’s going to be a high performer that should keep up with anyone else’s model in the same class.
- Speed Under Load: 3.6
- Torque: 3.1
- Feature Set: 4.3
- Weight: 3.7
- Footprint: 4.4
- Overall: 3.8 out of 5.0
Ridgid Gen5X Brushless 3-Speed Impact Driver
In getting ready to put a large group of 18V impact drivers to the test, warming up with Ridgid’s new brushless impact driver gave me the chance to run through the applications early. Sticking with the major uses of impact drivers on the jobsite, going with screw driving and driving lag bolts was a no-brainer.
I had to temper back my expectations having played with Ridgid’s Stealth Force Oil Pulse Driver recently both in driving speed and noise. Fortunately, I’d also been working with a couple of other impacts helping out Kenny, so I got my feet back on the ground. Driving 3-1/2″ drywall screws into stacked plywood was no problem as I expected. It took an average of just 2.6 seconds.
The raw power of this impact driver made it very easy to sink the screws beyond the surface. If you’re looking to drive flush with your work surface, you may want to drop the speed down to 2 and take a little more time to get it done.
Before driving the 3/8″ x 3-1/2″ lag bolts, I used Milwaukee Titanium Red Helix Shockwave Bits to drill 1/4″ pilot holes. I drilled 20 holes and the impact mechanism didn’t even engage on most of them. There’s a lot of power in this impact driver.
Driving the lag bolts was also not much of an issue, averaging 8.3 seconds. Just for kicks, I wanted to see if I could drive a 1/2″ x 5″ lag bolt into the same stacked plywood without a pilot hole. While it was a stressful test (and slow), the Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Impact Driver just kept plugging along without threatening to give up. Did I mention there’s a lot of power in this tool?
- Speed Under Load: 2.9
- Torque: 3.8
- Feature Set: 4.5
- Weight: 3.5
- Footprint: 3.7
- Overall: 3.9 out of 5.0
Conclusions
The Ridgid Gen5X Brushless 2-Tool Kit comes in with an excellent price point of $279. There are others in the ballpark with compact hammer drills, but you won’t find anything near the power packed in the impact driver. Coming in with 2,250 inch-pounds of torque is impressive considering I haven’t seen anything else exceed 2,000 yet.
I’m a fan of Ridgid’s Hex-Grip overmold in the grip department. Ergonomics in both tools are solid when it comes to grip and balance. They’re not the lightest models on the market, but they’re not cumbersome either.
Pros needing a drill for high-speed work will find this kit will handle almost everything you need. Professionals that do a lot of boring with hole saws or auger bits may want to wait and see if Ridgid announces a heavy-duty Gen5X brushless option to supplement the compact model. You can only grab the impact driver as part of the kit at the moment. If you’re looking for a 2-tool kit with a compact drill, grab the Ridgid Gen5X Brushless Kit for a little less than the other guys but with a much more powerful impact driver.
Nice tool to use, but warranty let me down.
My impact driver had driven about 50 screws, then with the smell of burnt plastic, dead. That happens sometimes, but after four months of parts requests the service dealer still cannot get the parts to fix this.
Their warranty department is frozen : buy at your own risk.
Be careful on your expectations as the LSA was not honored for me, and the batteries are unstable, all my tools are dead. I have purchased 3 sets of Ridgid tools over the last several years. Registered my last set and sent my receipts accordingly to qualify for the lifetime warranty. All my batteries are dead and Ridgid is not honoring the LSA as they state that they never got my receipts, even though I made sure to send them on time. NO LONGER A CUSTOMER OF RIDGID and all my tools are now dead
I had a chance to try the R86037 impact. The speed setting is not a real transmission gear ratio change. Imagine it like a Go-Kart that only has one gear of 3rd gear equivalent. It changes the speed range on the variable speed trigger. What the speed switch does is comparable to adjusting the stop screw on the throttle linkage to limit the opening when the throttle is fully applied. The “1” speed setting does not always impact. It is perhaps meant to be used as a driver for tiny tiny screws. It is not meant to be used to… Read more »
Looking at some recommend Ridgis Genx5 others love milwaukee if you were to buy any of the top rated models what would you buy
Which impact driver(or other tool) does best removing stuck screws without slipping out of the slot?