Milwaukee Tool showed off their latest and greatest new cordless outdoor power tools this week, at a special Pipeline 2022 media event.
We spent half a day outside, checking out the new cordless OPE tools. Following is a first-look, with more details and information to come!
The new tools are expected to launch as early as Q4 2022, and into Spring 2023.
We also got a closer look at several recently-launched tools that are available now, and I’ll talk about those tools separately.
Milwaukee M18 Fuel Hatchet 8″ Pruning Saw (3004-20)
Milwaukee Tool took their popular M12 Fuel Hatchet cordless chainsaw, which launched last year, and created a larger and more powerful M18 Fuel Hatchet.
The M18 Fuel Hatchet is an 8-inch pruning saw, whereas the M12 is a 6-inch saw.
The new model is said to deliver increased control and access, has the power to cut hardwoods, and is the fastest cutting pruning saw on the market.
The chainsaw weighs less than 5 lbs (without battery), and can maintain speed under heavy loads without bogging down.
Milwaukee says that the M18 Fuel Hatchet can reach full speed in under 1 second, and cuts faster than a 25cc gas engine chainsaw.
Price: $279 (tool-only)
ETA: October 2022
Milwaukee M18 Fuel Top Handle Chainsaws – 12″ & 14″ (2826)
There will be a new M18 Fuel top-handle cordless chainsaw available in two configurations – 12″ and 14″.
Milwaukee says that the new cordless chainsaw cuts faster than 35cc gas saws, delivers the power to cut hardwoods, and eliminates the headaches associated with gas engines.
The saw reach full throttle in under 1 second, and can maintain cutting speed without bogging down. With an XC HO 8Ah battery, the saw can deliver 150 cuts per charge in 4″ x 4″ cedar.
It was designed with professional arborists, power utility linemen, and landscape maintenance professionals in mind, and has a more compact size compared to rear-handle chainsaws.
Purchasing Options
- 12″ chainsaw (tool-only) – 2826-20C
- 14″ chainsaw (tool-only) – 2826-20T
- 14″ chainsaw kit – 2826-21T
Should users’ needs change, the top-handle chainsaw is compatible with 12″ and 14″ bars and chains, which will be available separately. In other words, you can easily convert the 12″ saw to a 14″ saw, and the 14″ saw to a 12″ saw.
The kit comes with an M18 XC High Output 8Ah battery and a Rapid Charger.
Price: $339 for the 12″ (tool-only), $479 for the 14″ kit
ETA: January 2023
Milwaukee M12 Brushless Pruning Shears (2534)
Milwaukee showed off a new M12 brushless pruning shear, which has the power to cut through branches up to 1-1/4″ thick.
The new cordless pruning shear has an inline design and is said to reduce muscle effort by 75% compared to manual solutions.
Not only can it handle larger branches, it has a smaller branch-cutting mode that increases application speed by 40%. The smaller branch-cutting mode limits the opening width of the shear blades, which means faster cutting times.
It can deliver over 1,000 cuts per charge in 1/2″ branches.
A Trigger Tracking feature allows the blade movement to follow the trigger action, which Milwaukee says provides more control over the cut capacity in application.
The pruning shears will be sold in tool-only (2534-20) and kit (2534-21) configurations. The kit will come with an M12 CP 2.0Ah battery and an M12 charger.
ETA: Spring 2023
Milwaukee M12 Handheld Sprayer – 1 & 2 Gallon (2528)
Milwaukee will be coming out with a new cordless handheld sprayer that is available in 1 and 2 gallon configurations.
They say it delivers the best pressure control and does not require any manual pumping, to provide users with instant, constant, and adjustable pressure up to 80 PSI and a 17-foot vertical spray distance.
It features a 3-mode pressure adjustment knob, for 20-80 PSI.
The sprayer can deliver 80 gallons of spraying with a fully charged 2.0Ah battery.
It also features an onboard measuring cup, a strainer that filters debris from entering the tank, and both vertical and horizontal wand storage.
Configurations
- 1-gallon – 2528-21G1
- 2-gallon – 2528-21G2
1 and 2-gallon tanks will be available separately.
Price: $189 for 1-gallon, $199 for 2-gallon
ETA: November 2022
Milwaukee M18 Fuel Dual Battery Blower (2824-20)
Milwaukee showed off their latest M18 Fuel dual battery blower, which I recently posted about here.
They say this new blower delivers the highest constant power on the market, reaches full throttle in under 1 second, and provides the best clearing control.
The new blower can deliver 600 CFM max air volume and 145 MPH max air speed. It comes with tapered and flat nozzle attachments.
The saw had far better balance than I had anticipated, making good on Milwaukee’s claims of a balanced and downwards-leaning geometry, at least when paired with M18 XC High Output 8Ah batteries.
The ambidextrous speed control was impressive, and while requiring a little more thumb-reach than a dial, it felt more controllable. The variable speed trigger can also be used for controlling the power and speed output.
Price: $299 (tool-only)
ETA: August 2022
Read More: New Milwaukee M18 Fuel Dual Battery Blower
Discussion
These new tools are a small but significant expansion of Milwaukee’s cordless outdoor power equipment lineups.
Milwaukee also showed off several other recently-launched cordless OPE tools – 3 new Quik-Lok attachments, a smaller M18 Fuel hedge trimmer, an M12 Fuel hedge trimmer, and their new M18 Fuel dual battery lawn mower, which we reviewed here. I’ll discuss these tools separately.
All of the new tools are sure to please users. For instance, the M18 Fuel Hatchet was designed to meet user requests. The M12 Fuel Hatchet has been a strong seller, but users have also been asking for a slightly larger saw that’s compatible with Milwaukee’s M18 battery platform. This is exactly what they delivered.
The top-handle chainsaws looked to perform well, especially compared to the clunky and noisy gas engine saws that demonstrators had difficulty starting at the event.
So far, it’s looking like all of Milwaukee’s cordless vs. gas engines are entirely spot-on. These tools do the job – often if not always better – and with lower noise, zero fumes, and less hassle.
My favorite of the tools is the M12 brushless pruning shears, as it will absolutely save me a ton of manual effort on storm cleanup and manual pruning tasks. My only request to the team was that they also make a pole-attached version that provides greater overhead reach.
It’s such a simple idea, to limit the shearing blades’ opening width for repetitive cutting of smaller branches, but one with significant implications. This tool will dramatically speed up my storm cleanup tasks, where I usually use a reciprocating saw and hand pruner to break down fallen branches into bundles for the town to pick up.
Milwaukee Tool has been slowly but steadily increasing their cordless outdoor power tool offerings. For instance, with these new tools, they have – by my count – 6 different chainsaw sizes, plus a pole saw.
After seeing these new tools, and talking with Milwaukee’s cordless OPE product managers and engineers, it’s clear they’ve upped their game.
All of the new tools have thoughtful designs, and I had at least one “oh, that’s clever and useful!” moment about each of them.
A couple of years ago, it was fair to think “what does Milwaukee Tool know about outdoor power tools?” Now, it’s clear they know a lot. Some of their team members brought knowledge and insights with them, and others have been building new understanding from the ground up.
Are there any other cordless outdoor power tools you wish Milwaukee Tool would come out with? We know that a cordless snow blower is on the way. What else is on everyone’s wishlist?
