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The lighting in my shop sucks. It’s easy to understand why I’ve taken up a bit of an infatuation with work lights. Now, don’t get me wrong, the real solution is to install some good permanent lighting in there. Maybe add a few fixtures and upgrade to LEDs. That’s a bit of a long-term plan, though. It’ll also require what little brains have left, which are currently dedicated to building a dream machine. So, I have to work around the issue in the meantime. Luckily, this disposition makes me the perfect candidate to test out some of the latest in portable lighting solutions. Today, I’m taking a look at Milwaukee’s M18 magnetic extendable boom light.
Even if I had the best lighting in the world in my shop, I’d still need more of it. That’s just how it goes when you’re working on machinery of any kind. Anything with an engine in it serves up plenty of dark spaces your shop lights can’t illuminate. Unless you want to hold a cruddy pen light that’s been everywhere the sun doesn’t shine in your mouth, you’re going to want some sort of work light to help you out. Milwaukee’s M18 magnetic extendable boom light aims to provide solutions that many others can’t.
Aside from being a mouthful, the name tells you everything you need to know about this tool. If you work on cars, you know that’s a great combination of features to have in a work light. In fact, you’re already brainstorming all the situations where this would prove to be pretty much the ultimate solution. After using it for a few jobs, I can confirm that those thoughts are right on the money. It’s definitely worth grabbing if you’ve already got M18 batteries at your disposal.
A Closer Look at Milwaukee’s M18 Magnetic Extendable Boom Light
The business end of the Milwaukee M18 magnetic extendable boom light is a 4-panel LED head on an extendable, swiveling boom affixed to a strong magnetic base. The swiveling boom provides up to 900 degrees of vertical rotation and 890 degrees of horizontal rotation. This design allows you to mount the light on any Ferrus surface and adjust it to any position you need to see whatever it is you’re working on.
Milwaukee claims this light can produce up to 2500 lumens of TRUEVIEW™ high-definition output on the high setting. More than just being bright, the beam pattern is very broad, further bolstering the effectiveness of this light. Milwaukee says it can provide 4.5 hours of runtime on an M18 XC5.0 battery. Bumping down to the low setting yields up to 12 hours of runtime. Of course, upgrading to bigger M18 batteries will yield longer operational times.
An IP54 rating protects the internals of Milwaukee’s M18 extendable boom light from dust and water. It can survive up to a 6.5-foot drop and is resistant to corrosion and chemicals typically found in a garage. If that’s not enough protection, a five year tool warranty and limited lifetime warranty on the LEDs should provide peace of mind.
The Milwaukee M18 magnetic extendable boom light retails for $279.00. That is the tool-only version. Tacking on an M18 XC5.0 battery and charger requires an additional $199.99.
Harnessing The Power
The Milwaukee M18 extendable boom light proved to be everything I thought it’d be within the first two minutes of playing with it. And though I’ve only had it for a short period of time, I can say with certainty it’s going to be one of the most-used tools in any shop it’s introduced to. It’s a fantastic design that just works. It does everything you need it to but isn’t so overly complicated that breaking it out is more trouble than it’s worth.
For starters, this thing’s stupid-bright. Even on the low setting, you’re casting more than enough light to see anything under the hood or tucked up under the belly of your car. I also really like that you can set it up however you need to so that you’re not getting in the way of the light. I feel like any time I’m using a work light, I’m always having to crunch myself up into awkward positions so I don’t get in the way of the light but still have a line of sight to whatever I’m working on. The boom and base combo provides a ton of workarounds that really snuff that issue.
In my particular case, I’m able to set the light on the underside of my NewAge Products tool boxes sitting overtop my workbench and extend the boom out to see under the hood of my ‘69 Charger. I can also use it as a “permanent” light fixture over there as well when the M18 magnetic extendable boom light is fully collapsed. I do want to point out that overhead mounting isn’t your only option, even if that’s a particular strong point of this design. It’s easy to set up for work under a car as well. However, the M12 underbody light is something to read into if you want solution specifically for those situations.
Another place I really foresee this coming in handy is on the tailgate of a truck. Obviously, it’s great for underbody and underhood use. Especially in instances where fiberglass hoods, like mine, aren’t present. However, if you work outside of the shop often, your tailgate doubles as a work bench. Being able to set this up on the bed really improves that work area. That doesn’t exactly make this a revolutionary design, but it’s another great example of one of many situations where this setup will really come in handy.
I really dig how strong the magnetic base is. I’ve seen clips of folks supporting their bodyweight with this thing. I can say for certain those aren’t fake videos. That kind of grip is great for repositioning the light as you work as there’s no risk of suddenly yanking the thing free. Thankfully, Milwaukee added a quick-release switch to allow you to easily cut magnetic pull when you do need to move the light. Milwaukee also includes a boot to protect the magnetic base when the light is in storage. It doesn’t recommend using this boot when mounting the light, but I’ve been using it as a barrier between body panels so I don’t scratch things up. It does really kill the magnetic grip, though.
Another really handy feature of the Milwaukee M18 magnetic extendable boom light is the inclusion of two power switches. WIth one on the head and the base, you can easily flip this thing on and off as needed. That isn’t the case for the brightness selection switch, however, with only one being present the head.
As for real gripes with this tool, I’ve only got two. The first is that there’s no built-in way to run this on an AC outlet. Being cordless really adds to the versatility of this tool, but it takes an M18 battery out of rotation whenever it’s in use. That brings me to the other issue, which is the price. Now, for $279.00, it’s not the most unreasonably priced work light, especially not considering all it can do. Still, it is pricey, and using expensive batteries doesn’t soften the blow.
My Verdict on Milwaukee’s M18 Magnetic Extendable Boom Light
The Milwaukee M18 magnetic extendable boom light is a killer addition to Milwaukee’s lineup. It’s a well-thought, perfectly executed design that’s going to improve the workflow of anyone using it. It doesn’t take much imagination to see all of the situations this thing will be great for. It’s one of those cases where a tool will work exactly as well as you think it will every time. It’s super versatile and I know anyone will get a ton of use out of it. It’ll prove invaluable to professionals, and I do see DIYers really standing to benefit from this design as well. It’s just a universally good tool.
All of that being said, it is expensive. There’s no getting around the fact that the price is going to keep it out of many shops. That’s especially true when cheap work lights are so readily available. If you don’t already have M18 tools, there’s absolutely no way you’re going to consider buying this light. But if you do run Milwaukee in your garage, I don’t really think the price is a big issue. Some of the more budget-friendly work lights in my personal collection were roughly $100 less than this one when I bought them. Those lights aren’t nearly as versatile, and they rely solely on AC outlets. I think, if you’ve already got M18 batteries, it’s well worth spending the extra $100 on this, considering it’ll do everything they will and more.
| | Milwaukee M18 Magnetic Extendable Boom Light |
|---|---|
| Value | 7/10 |
| Quality | 9/10 |
| Versatility | 8/10 |
| Brightness | 9/10 |
| Overall | 8/10 |