Lowe's/Kobalt 80 volt battery tool system: a cautionary tale.

[Jstpssng]

I've had good luck with off brand replacement batteries for my Dewalt tools. They are a lot cheaper and generally work ok. That's another reason to stick with the better known tool makers - it's more likely you can get off brand replacements.

I bought (2) 6 aH knockoffs for my DeWalt tools in 2020. I didn't even realize they were from a Chinese vendor until I saw the preapproval on PayPal. Funny thing is, that was the only thing I saw from them. No shipping notice... and no actual payment withdrawal. I've been using them for 4 years, one has started giving me problems so I just ordered 2 more from a different vendor, which supposedly are genuine DeWalt's. We'll see when they get here.

 

[klm]

I just had a 12 year old Ridgid battery replaced, no questions asked.

 

[olenjohn]

Those battery tools are ok for 3 to 5 years then the batteries crap out. Wife has a string trimmer. Batteries discontinued. I see battery drills, saws, grinders, spot lights etc. at yard sales for $5. Nobody buys them. Be forewarned…… electric cars and trucks will be the same way. My 40 year old corded tools just keep working. Bet they won’t be restoring Chevy Volts 25 years from now to take to the classic car shows.

 

[Fixastuff]

They did me like that with the Greenworks. Bought some there and month later they stopped selling them.

 

[KennyG]

Those battery tools are ok for 3 to 5 years then the batteries crap out. Wife has a string trimmer. Batteries discontinued. I see battery drills, saws, grinders, spot lights etc. at yard sales for $5. Nobody buys them. Be forewarned…… electric cars and trucks will be the same way. My 40 year old corded tools just keep working. Bet they won’t be restoring Chevy Volts 25 years from now to take to the classic car shows.

This may be true for the old NiCd batteries. The current Lithium Ion batteries are more likely to last 10 to 15 years. I have a number of Dewalt 20 volt batteries that are over 10 years old. A construction professional may not get that life from them but for the homeowner, life is pretty good. Battery life for electric cars seems to be in line with engine life - 250K to 300K.

 

[newbury]

DeWalt with some Milwaukee here.
About 4K investment in DeWalt, long list of tools, bought since 2012 on. No failures of tools yet, about 3 failures on the first batteries I had bought.
Have steered away from other platforms except HF Lynxx. Got 2 pole saws and a 40V chainsaw, good tools but discontinued.

 

[Mudfarmer]

The price for name brand batteries is surprisingly inflated. A 20V 5 AMP hour Dewalt battery at Coastal Farm and Ranch is priced around $120, but when I got a Dewalt pole saw there, marked down on sale for around $100, that battery was tossed in "free." I stick to Dewalt specifically to have interchangeability. I have bought 3rd party, probably Chinese batteries (20v 6 and 7 amp Hour) on Amazon for as little as $20 a piece. I can't tell the difference except for color. In fact the only battery to date I've had to recycle was a Dewalt brand name. I suppose I better stock up on Chinese knock-offs before tariffs go into effect!

As for car batteries. I traded my Honda 2003 Civic Hybrid in for a new Honda Insight hybrid in 2010 for fear the batteries in the Civic would wear out. Fourteen years later the Insight which my son now has is still going strong.

MF

 

[WranglerX]

Late to the party but this is why I stay away from "store brands" and stay with "national brands".....

 

[kenmbz]

I had so many issues with Kobalt tools, bits etc. breaking that I just avoid.
I have not broken any Milwaukee or Makita brand tools in normal use.
I have M12 Milwaukee batteries that are at least 10 years old and some M18 that are 3-5 and all work fine.
The Makita has to be 20 years old, and I bought third party batteries so I have a spare drill and small circular saw in my second garage.

Happy with both lines so far on the Milwaukee.

 

[Gregster613]

They did me like that with the Greenworks. Bought some there and month later they stopped selling them.

Surprised to hear this! I own several Greenworks tools and while I do have multiple batteries on hand, I never thought that they'd quit making the heart of the beast! Guess I'm lucky then that I haven't yet had/tried to replace a battery. I'm going to be upset when/if I ever need a replacement and can't find/get one. Sorry for your experience but my Greenworks machines have been superb so far.

 

[Fixastuff]

Surprised to hear this! I own several Greenworks tools and while I do have multiple batteries on hand, I never thought that they'd quit making the heart of the beast! Guess I'm lucky then that I haven't yet had/tried to replace a battery. I'm going to be upset when/if I ever need a replacement and can't find/get one. Sorry for your experience but my Greenworks machines have been superb so far.

Greenworks is still in business. Lowe’s just stopped selling them.

 

[Gregster613]

Greenworks is still in business. Lowe’s just stopped selling them.

Thanks for the answer Fixastuff. Lowes is the faulty player here. I'm quite relieved to here that!

 

[garry1p]

Lowe's put out a statement awhile back they were phasing out Kobalt tools.
I have probably well over $1000 invested in Kobalt power tools.

They are moving to Craftsman and there is an adapter to use Kobalt batteries in Craftsman tools.

I am one unhappy camper and will stay away from Lowe's after this bait and switch.

 

[ultrarunner]

Do Lowes Kobalt hand tools have life time warranty???

 

[jmc]

Lowe's put out a statement awhile back they were phasing out Kobalt tools.
I have probably well over $1000 invested in Kobalt power tools.

They are moving to Craftsman and there is an adapter to use Kobalt batteries in Craftsman tools.

I am one unhappy camper and will stay away from Lowe's after this bait and switch.

Ugh.

What we need is an adapter to fit Craftsmen batteries to Kobalt tools...

They did me like that with the Greenworks. Bought some there and month later they stopped selling them.

While looking for affordable 80 v Kobalt batteries, I searched Greenworks in hopes that Greenworks was manufacturing Kobalt's line. IIRC, they didn't have any 80v batteries except rebuilds, which I took as a bad sign.

 

[RayIN]

I have the 80 volt Kobalt tools also.
Chainsaw Trimmer Blower.
I have two 2 amp and one 2.5 amp batteries.
They are starting to show some weakness on the chainsaw but run the other tools just fine. I will probably just rebuild the batteries when they finally die.

BatteriesPlus/Interstate battery, can rebuild your old batteries.

 

[Oaktree]

Have steered away from other platforms except HF Lynxx. Got 2 pole saws and a 40V chainsaw, good tools but discontinued.

Was waiting for someone to mention Lynxx. Have the same 2 saws you have, 6 months after I bought them they were discontinued, instant orphans. Makes me very hesitant to buy store brand battery tools in the future.

Lowe's put out a statement awhile back they were phasing out Kobalt tools.
I have probably well over $1000 invested in Kobalt power tools.

They are moving to Craftsman and there is an adapter to use Kobalt batteries in Craftsman tools.

I am one unhappy camper and will stay away from Lowe's after this bait and switch.

Not sure I'd call this a bait & switch, more like they were discontinuing a house brand and replacing it with a national one that at least once upon a time had a good reputation.

Lowes does seem quick to discontinue items, hand tools too. A few years ago they made a file handle to use with their own files that had 1/4" locking hex tangs. Thought it was a great idea, have never had good experiences with traditional file handles. Of course, they were discontinued too.

You do have to register your tools but why wouldn't you? Only takes a few minutes

Uh, maybe because guaranteed you will get inundated with spam emails, not just from them but from everybody they sell your name to.
I'm of the belief that you shouldn't need to "register" a tool in order to get warranty coverage.

 

[Oaktree]

Be forewarned…… electric cars and trucks will be the same way. My 40 year old corded tools just keep working. Bet they won’t be restoring Chevy Volts 25 years from now to take to the classic car shows.

Not just EVs, but most anything made in the last 30 years or so. Too much proprietary electronics that all need to be programmed for that specific VIN in order to work.
I don't see many vehicles much newer than the mid-70s at any classic car shows I've been to. Something changed in the 70s, and cars got boring, even ones that may offer decent performance.

 

[Oaktree]

I have bought 3rd party, probably Chinese batteries (20v 6 and 7 amp Hour) on Amazon for as little as $20 a piece. I can't tell the difference except for color. In fact the only battery to date I've had to recycle was a Dewalt brand name. I suppose I better stock up on Chinese knock-offs before tariffs go into effect!

I can't speak for Chinese knockoff power tool batteries, but lotsa luck finding a decent replacement laptop battery. Pretty much all you can find are these weird, unpronounceable Chinese brands, often as not sold by 3rd party vendors you've never heard of. Bought one for my laptop last June, maybe lasted 2 months then wouldn't even take a charge anymore. Of course it waited until it was outside the return window.

 

[KennyG]

Uh, maybe because guaranteed you will get inundated with spam emails, not just from them but from everybody they sell your name to.
I'm of the belief that you shouldn't need to "register" a tool in order to get warranty coverage.

If I remember correctly, you don't have to register to get coverage on anything. The text may indicate that registration will make warranty claims quicker and easier, but I think the law requires warranties to be honored as long as you have the sales documentation.