THIS WEEK, we’ve got 6 new Milwaukee tools, 9 new EGO. RIDGID’s secret new battery platform, Jobsite table saws, and a railgun. THIS is your power tool week in review!
Milwaukee PIPELINE 2022
Welcome back power tool fans, and we’re starting this week in Wisconsin, where Milwaukee launched a bunch of new outdoor power equipment, and opened a new facility where they’ll be making tools here in the USA.
They started the second event in their PIPELINE series by recapping recent launches in the OPE space, including their new M18 FUEL 21” Mower, Their baby hedge Trimmer, a few Quik Lok attachments and the new dual battery blower. But then they brought out several new tools including two top handle chainsaws, a couple of M12 sprayers, new M12 Pruning Shears and most importantly, an honest to God M18 BABY CHAINSAW! We covered each of these in detail right here on Belts and Boxes, which we’ll link to below.
They also announced the opening of a new 95,000 square-foot state-of-the-art research, design, and manufacturing facility in West Bend, WI, where they’re building a new line of Milwaukee Cutting Pliers and Screwdrivers, all covered by a Milwaukee® Lifetime Guarantee. Unfortunately, Rob and I were sick this week and didn’t get to see the new facility, but we’re working on getting a first-hand account from someone who was there.
EGO NEW Products for 2023
But Milwaukee wasn’t the only one with OPE news this week, as EGO surprised us by announcing their entire new line of outdoor power equipment for 2023.
They showed off no less than 4 new push mowers, including a new flagship model with a self propel tech called Speed IQ, which no joke, monitors your stride to automatically match the speed of the mower to the speed you walk. Really want to try that. They also announced a new 16” String Trimmer for their Multi-Head system, a new 670CFM blower, a new 10” pole saw, 26” hedge trimmer, and an updated EGO Power + Nexus Escape 400W inverter that can not only charge your electronic devices with an EGO battery but also use a reversible USB-C PD port along with a wall adapter, to charge the EGO battery itself. We cover each of these in a video we published a few days ago right here on Belts And Boxes. Go check it out.
Pro Tool Reviews | Jobsite Saws
The PTR crew is back with another big head 2 head, this time taking on jobsite saws.
The lineup includes a wide variety including DIY examples from SKIL and Ryobi, and pro saws from the likes of Skilsaw, Milwaukee, Bosch, DeWALT, RIDGID and even a unique corded, and cordless 36V hybrid saw from Metabo HPT. They cover Accuracy, stability, portability, dust collection and several power and cutting categories. Each saw is put through it’s paces and all of the data is organized into easy to read charts that help you identify the winners in the categories that mean the most to you. Perhaps the best part… they choose an overall winner! And with a diverse group, we were surprised to find out just how old the winner is. To see if they picked your favorite, head over to Pro tool Reviews.
RIDGID | New Battery Platform
You’re right Clint, we do hate it when you don’t pick a winner. Thank you for that! While we didn’t receive any official press release yet from RIDGID, a few influencers that attended their Ridgid Experience, shared footage of a previously unannounced battery platform.
Ridgid hosts “Ridgid Experience” every year and typically we do see some new products or updates but nothing like this. Ridgid is apparently launching a whole new 60v battery platform this year starting with the 760 FXP cordless version of their “Power Pony” threader using the same 12-R dies we’ve seen from their industry standard 700 corded model.
Based on what we saw, there are several key upgrades beyond being cordless, including dies that lock in place, extra room to put your hand so you don’t need to touch a spinning object designed to cut metal, an LED light, and of course an auto stop that will keep the tool from spinning and taking the user for a ride. We have seen similar upgrades from DeWalt and Milwaukee who both launched their own cordless threaders over the last 2 years. Price point is estimated at $2100 with 2 of the 4.0 ah batteries and will no doubt be very popular when it launches this fall. But the most interesting question is what other tools might RIDGID have planned for this new battery platform, especially considering we saw those huge 8ah batteries. We’ve reached out to RIDGID for answers, and we’ll have more information for you soon.
Mechanical Hub | Plumbers Accessories
With all of the new Milwaukee Tools flooding the market, we sometimes forget that it’s often the accessories that can make the biggest difference on the job.
To help illustrate this point, our buddy Eric from Mechanical hub took a break from clearing the literal and philosophical sludge from our pipes, to highlight 5 Milwaukee accessory kits that could change the game for your local plumber. He covers the Milwaukee Switchblade self feed bits, a few hole dozer and big hawg hole saw kits, and some specialty drill bits that he finds the most useful. He puts them all to use in a variety of materials and makes some suggestions that would be valuable for any tool user. While you’re over at Mechanical Hub be sure to check out his recent video about recruiting youth into the trades.
Torque Test Channel | Rail Gun
Time to check in with Tool Torque testers at the Torque Test Channel. This week, if for some reason you haven’t click the notification bell on their channel. Then you’re actually in for a treat. Why?
Because once again they’ve strayed from the typical impact wrenches you find in the isles of your home improvement store, and went looking for something special. And they found it. That is a Racine 910071, gas powered impact wrench, designed specifically for railway work. YES PLEASE. And while yes, it sports some really good numbers, it’s hindered by it’s focus on a very specific job. The torque testing team runs it through their standard torque testing, putting it up against the likes of the Milwaukee 1” d-handle, and of course their own gas-powered frankentorquer. In the end, they’re impressed with the build and gear box, but the engine leaves room for improvement, so they’re asking their viewers exactly what kind of motor they should swap out. Head over to Torque Test Channel and share any ideas you might have.
DeWALT Breaking News
Speaking of High Torque Impact Wrenches, DeWALT just announced the new 20v MAX XR ½” High Torque Impact Wrench, model DCF900, which comes with a hog ring anvil, and claims 47% more torque over their DCF899. Looks like a single model number can make a big difference.
Specifically, they claim it will deliver 1030 foot-pounds of max fastening torque and 1400 foot-pounds of max breakaway torque. They say it’ll be ideal for fastening large pipe flanges, grooved couplings, wheel lugs, concrete anchor bolt setting, and other commercial applications.
They mentioned several other innovations including the Precision Wrench mode which is designed to help prevent over-tightening in forwards and run-off in reverse. It also has 4 speed modes and a variable speed trigger. It also comes equipped with an on-tool work light with multiple brightness levels, and Batteryguard technology, a shock-absorbing battery-to-tool connection that helps reduce wear and tear on the battery while you work. We’re already seeing it show up in stores for as low as $349, but it’s still listed as out of stock for now.
Outro!
Sarah and I were both sick on Monday this week, so we missed our normal Live show with our Production Crew, but we’ll be here next Monday, and we’ll be discussing which tools will fill our empty shelf for this month’s $2000 giveaway. If you’d like to learn more about our channel membership program, click join next to the subscribe button.
Special thanks to FLEX and Spyder for sponsoring this episode, we couldn’t do it without you. And thank you to our hundreds of channel members who want me to remind to you, if you can, do something kind for someone else this weekend, and we’ll see you next week.
