CAT has launched a new line of 60V cordless outdoors power tools and equipment, starting with blowers, chainsaws, hedge trimmers, mowers, and string trimmers.
The new CAT cordless tools will be sold at Amazon, Lowe’s, Tractor Supply Co. Amazon has most of the new line already in-stock and shipping.
CAT has partnered with Positec to manufacture the new line of tools. Positec, which owns Rockwell and Worx tool brands, manufactures CAT 18V cordless power tools, which will also soon be launching at USA retailers.
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The new CAT 60V cordless OPE are be powered by 2.5Ah and 5Ah batteries. All of the tools in the lineup are engineered with high-efficiency brushless motors for “more torque, quiet operation, and longer life.”
The batteries feature “an intelligent management system that monitors charging and discharging, voltage, temperature reporting, and current state of health.”
Each Li-ion battery cell is encapsulated in a high density thermoplastic to “dissipate heat to maintain cooling while increasing efficiency and runtime.” The fully-enclosed cells also provide “vibration and impact resistance, and thermal overload protection.”
CAT says that their OPE tools are “specifically designed for professional users, as well as serious do-it-yourselfers who demand more power, advanced engineering, and longer runtime.” They are especially targeted professional landscapers, botanical gardens, gardeners, and home landscapers.
The tools will be covered by a 5-year limited warranty, and 3-years for the batteries and chargers.
The initial launch of 60V brushless tools will include:
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- 15″ string trimmer (2.5Ah kit and tool-only)
- 16″ chainsaw (2.5Ah kit)
- 18″ chainsaw (5Ah kit, tool-only)
- 21″ lawn mower (5Ah kit, tool-only)
- 21″ self-propelled lawn mower (5Ah kit, tool-only)
- 25″ backpack hedge trimmer (2.5Ah kit, tool-only)
- 700 CFM 135 mph blower (2.5Ah kit, tool-only)
- 800 CFM 170 mph blower (5Ah kit, tool-only)
The cordless outdoor power equipment market has been growing steadily, especially with the increase in noise ordinances and gas engine restrictions.
CAT is a household name, and Positec is a seasoned cordless power tool manufacturer. It will be interesting to see how well the new line performs against competitive offerings – with respect to both user applications and retail sales.
Jason
Tough time to be introducing a new battery platform. It’s tough to see an advantage over outdoor brands like Ego and Greenworks, and lacks cordless tool compatibility like M18 and Flexvolt.
That being said, I like the backpack hedge trimmer. Wish more companies were doing the backpack battery with a cord to a lighter tool, really the only way to get landscaper runtimes with todays battery tech. Stihl’s is way too expensive for most and Ego’s is a unicorn to find.
Big Richard
Makita has a couple options like that, too. One runs off of 4x 18v LXT batteries – https://www.makitatools.com/products/details/PDC01
While the other has a built in 1200Wh battery – https://www.makitatools.com/ope/connectx
I think every brand could benefit from something like these though.
Bonnie
Depending on their target market I could see CAT having a benefit from the heavy equipment association, versus homeowner brands like EGO and Greenworks. A lot of landscaping crews are going to have to start switching to battery power in the coming years.
That said while Positec may be “seasoned” I don’t really associate them with high-end tools.
fred
Amen.
I associate them with taking a defunct brand-named (Rockwell – as in the giant but now defunct US Aerospace conglomerate that helped put men on the moon) that used to be associated with Delta and Porter Cable in those brand’s heydays ad applying it to a batch of DIY tools sold at Lowes etc. I guess they did OK with their Jawhorse and Sonicrafter lines trading on the Rockwell name for brand recognition. That may also be their motivation with the CAT branding.
AP
Love my EGO backpack, Jason. After a long day it’s nice to put a 7.5 Ah on the backpack and just connect to a trimmer, edger, blower, etc.
MM
Agreed, I think this is going to be a hard sell when there are already well established battery systems in both the OPE world and also crossing over into other tools like M18, Flexvolt, etc.
Yes there will be some name recognition for “CAT”, but I feel that the value of that brand has already been diluted a lot and this is another example of it. These days there is all sorts of merchandise hawked under the CAT brand and frankly a lot of it is crap. Even if you look at Caterpillar’s main forte, heavy equipment, some of that is rebadged from 3rd parties as well. So I don’t think many professionals are going to think that this OPE is built to the same standard as a 1970’s bulldozer. Positec has experience making cordless tools but I don’t view them with the same level of quality as the equipment which lead to CAT’s reputation today. This feels like a me-too product to me.
Joellikestools
I just don’t think I would choose a a Positec product over Chervon.
Robert
If these CAT OPE are indeed sold at Lowes, what does that mean for Lowes’ relationship with Ego? Cat’s out of the mulcher bag perhaps.
Stuart
PR materials say “Lowes.com” and so it’s unlikely CAT will get any shelf space, at least not initially.
Jared
This seems like something that would be for sale as a special in a Costco warehouse. Not because there’s anything wrong with them mind you, just because it’s a big project to launch a completely new line of cordless tools and I don’t think they’re targeting “pro grade” competition.
Those batteries also look HUGE. Maybe just the optics of their squared-off design?
Chris
It’s hard for me to even consider buying into these new OPE platforms when the company that’s selling it only has a 30 day return policy before wiping their hands clean. At least Home depot has a 90 day return policy (1 year with their credit card).
CAT is not a well known/reputable power tool manufacturer, so is their warranty/customer service going to make me regret the initial purchase?
It would be different if I bought a backhoe because I can find a dealer/rep/service center, but I doubt there will be one for this equipment.
I’m skeptical of the build quality. It looks like a WORX or Greenworks rebadge. Typically you end up paying more per tool for a name, but I don’t see why I would pay for the name CAT if it is a rebadge.
Joe S
Seems the tool market just gets more and more crowded, I felt like their 18v tools were going to be a tough sell. The OPE market is getting crowded as well, but as more and more consumers choose electric over gas (and many professionals needing to make that switch in the near future), might be a good time to get into the OPE market. They do have some name recognition with the CAT name, so if the tools are decent, they may have a chance to take a piece of the OPE pie.
Jared
I wonder if there’s any difference in people’s propensity to purchase “one-off” outdoor power tools vs. regular cordless tools?
E.g. might someone be more willing to buy a cordless string trimmer or blower kit knowing it might be the only tool they buy from the brand?
On the other hand, I bet there’s lots of non-tool folk who just own a drill and no other cordless tools.
Bonnie
I was in that boat. Had Makita power tools, but I didn’t like their string trimmer at the time and ended up with DeWalt OPE.
Jamie Lee Davis
What ever happened to the graphene batteries? Am I having a false memory? It seems like it was implied that Positec was going to use this as a differentiator,no?
Mateo
I feel like it was used in marketing the 18v stuff for sure.
Stuart
They have that for the 18V batteries, maybe it’s coming later to 60V.
Joe H
So maybe Tractor Supply is going to drop Porter Cable completely and run the CAT line of cordless tools instead?
Stuart
Porter Cable doesn’t offer any cordless outdoor power tools.
Joe H
I wasn’t specifically talking about OPE. I was talking the CAT line in general. So Tractor Supply will carry CAT’s OPE but won’t carry their general construction cordless tools?
Stuart
All they say is that the 18V tools will be available at “Lowes.com and TractorSupply.com.”
Being available in-store at TSC (or Lowe’s) would mean very different things than just being available online.
Mike (the other one)
Oh good, I was getting worried that there were not enough brands.
Jayne Defranco
This is exciting and I’m going to watch this closely and see how it does this coming season. Cat is a tough brand name. I am interested to see how these will hold up.
Franco
On the one hand, it wasn’t too long ago that anyone gave Flex any chance at getting into an already crowded cordless tool market, and they are doing pretty good.
On the other hand, the backpack idea for OPE (or other tools also) is a great idea, that Makita already has and I think EGO also does. Problem is that the hedge trimmer looks like it is wired to the backpack, which defeats the great idea if it cannot be used with other tools.
Also, the backpack would be super if they were develop a 7.5 or 10 ah battery down the road….of course, this is only good if it can be interchanged with any other 60v tool.