Dropped my 1/2" drive impact wrench off a 12ft ladder... and it still works!

So I was up on a ladder yesterday doing some ductwork in a commercial space, had my trusty Milwaukee 1/2" impact hanging from my belt. Ladder slipped on some condensation, I caught myself but the wrench took a dive straight onto concrete from about 12 feet. Heart sank - thought I just killed a $300 tool. Picked it up, chuck was a bit scuffed but no cracks. Fired it up and it runs like nothing happened! Anyone else have tools that survived stupid drops? Makes me wonder about paying for the 'pro' grade stuff sometimes.

Hank, that's nothing lol. Last summer I left my Estwing framing hammer on a scaffold overnight. Thunderstorm rolled through, hammer got soaked then baked in sun all next day. Handle didn't swell or crack at all. Good tools can take abuse. But I've also seen cheap chineseium wrenches snap from a 3ft drop onto mud. You get what you pay for.

Milwaukee's brushless impacts are tanks. I've submerged mine in coolant by accident during a truck repair, dried it out with compressed air and it's still my daily driver 2 years later. The aluminum housings have some give unlike cheaper plastic. DemoDave - you landscape guys must abuse tools worse than anyone with all that mud and rock work.

Greg you ain't kidding! My Stihl concrete saw fell off the trailer once going 40mph. Housing cracked but motor still ran. Fixed it with epoxy and zip ties - been running 3 seasons since lol. But my cheapo torque wrench from Harbor Freight? Dropped it once and it wouldn't click anymore. Sometimes you gotta spend on the critical tools.

Good points all around. Dave that Stihl story is wild! I guess it's like my old journeyman said: 'Buy once, cry once.' Still amazed my impact survived though - gonna check the anvil for hairline cracks tonight just in case. Thanks for the stories guys!