Document and Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2012	Dec. 31, 2012
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Nov. 30, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Trading Symbol	ATU
Entity Registrant Name	ACTUANT CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000006955
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--08-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		72,941,967