40V OPE discontinued?

[Sarbatche]

Are the 40V tools being phased out already?  The Dewalt website looks like it’s removed the product line. 

[Jronman]

With other brands like Ego, Echo, Stihl, etc. that focus only on ope I don't think DeWALT ever had much of a chance in the professional ope market. People who buy DeWLT ope generally don't buy into DeWALT just for their ope. They generally buy DeWALT ope if they already have other DeWALT tools.

[RickyMcGrath]

I just Went into a service center to have my 40v blower repaired and they’re are switching around some model numbers and changing some things. They had a hard time ordering a replacement due to this. 

 

https://www.dewalt.com/products/power-tools/shop-by-cordless-platform/40v

[framer]

whats the point of keeping 40v now, when 60v are out?

[DewaltLandlord]

20 minutes ago, framer said:

whats the point of keeping 40v now, when 60v are out?

I have been wondering the same thing, why wouldn't you just go with the 60V versions of the blowers/weed whackers, lawn mowers etc?

[Sarbatche]

6 hours ago, DewaltLandlord said:

I have been wondering the same thing, why wouldn't you just go with the 60V versions of the blowers/weed whackers, lawn mowers etc?

That’s fine... and I would have gone full blown 60V, except they released 40V a few months before Flexvolt was announced. 🤷‍♂️

[DewaltLandlord]

13 hours ago, Sarbatche said:

That’s fine... and I would have gone full blown 60V, except they released 40V a few months before Flexvolt was announced. 🤷‍♂️

Yeah, I was talking about what way I would go today, ie I Would only buy either felxvolt or 20v tools.

 

Its tough luck to have bought into the 40V and then Dewalt comes back with the Flexvolt.

[Jronman]

40v has longer runtimes.

[DewaltLandlord]

12 hours ago, Jronman said:

40v has longer runtimes.

 

All things being equal a 60v tool  would have a longer run time than a 40v tool.

[Sarbatche]

11 hours ago, DewaltLandlord said:

 

All things being equal a 60v tool  would have a longer run time than a 40v tool.

Not so. Even with a high amp hour 60v pack, just look at the size of a 40v battery. It simply holds more cells. Maybe if you compared a 12ah 60v to the 4ah 40v it would be comparable...

[DewaltLandlord]

14 hours ago, Sarbatche said:

Not so. Even with a high amp hour 60v pack, just look at the size of a 40v battery. It simply holds more cells. Maybe if you compared a 12ah 60v to the 4ah 40v it would be comparable...

No a 4 AH 60V battery would be able to do more work than a 4AH 40V battery because Power is a function of the square of the voltage.  P=(V^2)/R, and Work is the integral of power delivered over time.  So equal AH batteries, hence all else being equal, higher voltages will last longer/do more work than lower voltages.

[Sarbatche]

21 hours ago, DewaltLandlord said:

No a 4 AH 60V battery would be able to do more work than a 4AH 40V battery because Power is a function of the square of the voltage.  P=(V^2)/R, and Work is the integral of power delivered over time.  So equal AH batteries, hence all else being equal, higher voltages will last longer/do more work than lower voltages.

Well, yes. But the point is that all things are not equal. The batteries are vastly different sizes.

[OldDominionDIYer]

DeWalt is killing off the 40V system to make way for a single OPE system based on the newer FlexVolt platform.  Yet another dead battery platform for them and I can't see how the consumer could be happy about this.  DeWalt claimed the 40V system was their top OPE gear and now that they have archived the system consumers are forced into the FlexVolt system which DeWalt has already said was inferior to their 40V line. Strange but not unexpected for a company that seems to continually change their battery platform about every 5 years.  Keeps the consumer in the store buying the latest equipment which has got to be good for their corporate bottom line despite being a burden to the consumer. Some really good information is located here:

https://toolguyd.com/dewalt-40v-max-cordless-outdoor-power-tools-discontinued/ 

[The.Handyman]

DeWalt is killing off the 40V system to make way for a single OPE system based on the newer FlexVolt platform.  Yet another dead battery platform for them and I can't see how the consumer could be happy about this.  DeWalt claimed the 40V system was their top OPE gear and now that they have archived the system consumers are forced into the FlexVolt system which DeWalt has already said was inferior to their 40V line. Strange but not unexpected for a company that seems to continually change their battery platform about every 5 years.  Keeps the consumer in the store buying the latest equipment which has got to be good for their corporate bottom line despite being a burden to the consumer. Some really good information is located here:
https://toolguyd.com/dewalt-40v-max-cordless-outdoor-power-tools-discontinued/ 

You act like DeWalt has done this time and time again. 18V xrp is still supported and sold but no new tools are being developed. There's also an adapter now to run the newer better lithium ion batteries.

20V is going nowhere has the slide packs are much better than the post packs. Flexvolt 60v is around 4 high demand tools but not necessary for people to purchase into. The batteries can still be used on the 20v tools.

40v came about well before flexvolt 60v technology existed. Now that technology is proven better put the larger higher amp power packs becoming available with the new cells. DeWalt has chosen the smart move here. It does unfortunately effect of the user's invested the technology is moving rapidly and this happens. DeWalt will still be supporting those tools and selling batteries for the coming years.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

[OldDominionDIYer]

So let's be clear.  DeWalt 18V XRP is 20V (they just call them 20V) but when they moved from lithium Ion they made the corporate decision to change everything else, many companies just upgraded the battery internals and chargers since peak and nominal voltages didn't change. The 40V system came out 4.5 years ago, the technology already existed for the FlexVolt system, in fact I bet it was already in development. The problem with the FlexVolt system is the low Amp hours of the batteries when they're being used in the 60V mode (A 12Ah FlexVolt is only actually 4Ah when in 60V mode), which was the whole reason they said the 40V system was for professionals and the FlexVolt was intended for prosumers.  And I'm aware that you can buy an adaptor for the older 18V system but again the cost and obligation is on the consumer.  No other major tool company at this level has changed battery platforms more rapidly than DeWalt, take that for what it's worth but it seems a bit to often.  Not to mention that they let their 12V stuff die out almost completely before making the decision to re-invest, no doubt many consumers got tired of waiting and moved on to other brand 12V tools out of impatience.  It just seems like DeWalt (or SB&D) doesn't really think of the consumer side of their decisions very often, they just assume folks will open up their wallets and buy again. I'm not knocking the tools but I do question some of the corporate decision making. I think DeWalt makes excellent tools but is straddled with out of touch corporate leaders.

[BigJack]

On 8/1/2019 at 9:34 PM, DewaltLandlord said:

No a 4 AH 60V battery would be able to do more work than a 4AH 40V battery because Power is a function of the square of the voltage.  P=(V^2)/R, and Work is the integral of power delivered over time.  So equal AH batteries, hence all else being equal, higher voltages will last longer/do more work than lower voltages.

I'm not certain you understand how Flexvolt batteries are rated.  Those Ah ratings on Flexvolt batteries are at their 20V equivalent. A 12Ah Flexvolt battery at 20V is only 4AH at 60V.  The battery's capacity should be measured in Wh (and indeed they are if you read the little label on the bottom, not just the marketing label on the side.  12Ah*20V=240Wh   4Ah*60V=240Wh  Same same.

 

The 40V line went up to a 7.5Ah battery. 40V*7.5Ah=300Wh   That's more stored energy than the biggest Flexvolt.  Due to their larger ampacity, those 40V tools can draw power at lower C ratings, which is more efficient and gives the batteries more usable cycles. Additionally, the 40V OPE tools put out more power than their 60V equivalents, again measured in Watts, not Volts.

 

40V sales hurt 60V sales, and they need the 60V sales because that battery platform is used in a lot more than just OPE.  60V tools cost less to produce than 40V because they can use thinner gauge wiring and smaller electronics to produce the same motor output.  Simplifying their lineup also decreases manufacturing and distribution overhead.  Ditching the 40V line is a pure marketing decision for dewalt.  It sucks for those who bought into the 40V line expecting DeWalt to continue that platform for more than a few years.