As you know Milwaukee already has a 12v Thermal Imager available, it’s the 2260. Now they introduced their new Milwaukee Thermal Imager, model 2258. So what is the difference? Sure there are some spec differences, but the biggest difference is price. The 2260 retails for about $2,500, which makes this a little expensive for most contractors. Now with the 2258, they have a thermal imager that is in the price range for most. This one retails for about $500, a big difference.
Thermal imagers are an invaluable tool for a bunch of different professionals. Imagine an electrician being able to pin point a bad fuse, this would be a huge time saver. What about an interior decorator making the case for a new door. Not only can they talk about style, but they can show the homeowner the true difference. What about a maintenance personal showing his boss why they need to invest in a new HVAC system. This is only a fraction of people who can use this technology. The real point to a thermal imager is being able to save time and money, it’s like having a handheld sixth sense. Personally I think Milwaukee did a great job with their new imager.
When you first look at the Milwaukee Thermal Imager, you will probably notice the large black plastic top. Don’t worry, even though this can survive a 6′ drop, it still comes with a nice protective cover. Under this cover you will notice a 2.4″ high resolution screen with a display resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. Just under the screen is a well laid out push button panel. This will allow the user to power up and down the unit. You can also use this to activate an LED light, scroll through pictures and use menu functions. On the side of the thermal, there is a slot for a provided SD card to store your pictures. You can store these files in either .png or.dat. Speaking of images, with the Milwaukee software you will have the ability to create and customize reports. This is a great feature as it allows you to present these to your customers.
In regards to the internal workings of this tool, the Milwaukee Thermal Imager didn’t leave anything off the drawing board. The tool has a distance to spot ratio of 81:1. The temperature range is from 14°F to 626°F and has a thermal sensitivity of .1°C at 30°C. A user is easily able to set the viewing for rainbow, grayscale or ironbow depending upon your work and preference. The unit also has a targeting system of dual lasers with automatic ranging.
Bottom line, this is a great tool that won’t break the bank. With a runtime of 10 hours and backed by the Milwaukee 5 year warranty, it’s hard to beat. While the reporting feature is great and makes life much easier, the true genius to this tool is located inside the unit. The easy to use front panel makes it a snap to operate.
Thank you @toolsinaction and @milwaukeetool for this nice m12 imager. I’ll be putting that on my next to get list. #tiacrew
I work with High pressure pumps, this would be a great tool for preventative measures and diagnosing pinpoint locations for wear on all those mechanical surfaces. May have to look into getting one of these. #TIACREW
Awesome tool and awesome review! #TIACREW
I honestly have wanted a thermal imager for years…but the more you guys review them the more I want one. You guys are going to cost me a lot of money!
I don’t know much about thermal imagers, but I know they are cool. As much as I want one of these things it is not at the top of my list, there are a lot of other thing that benifit me more than a thermal imager.
Milwaukee tools…..purveyors of high priced, China Hong Kong tools, marketed to idiots with the belief that they are “professionals” who care about their work by purchasing high priced, hong kong tools.