When Kobalt Tools got into the lithium-ion cordless power tool business back in 2011, I initially raised my eyebrows. I was curious, and they made a rather grand entrance, with end cap displays all over Loweโs and tons of fanfare and media attention. When I got my hands on their tools, my eyebrows raised even further โ this time in amazement. Run-time was stellar and these inexpensive tools were doing very well in the general tasks for which they were made. Getting back to the present, Kobalt isnโt done innovating, and has managed to beat several other manufacturers (who shall remain shamefully unnamed) to the punch with new 2.0 Ah and 4.0 Ah batteries and some next-gen tools. I figured the best way to go over the new tools was to get my hands on theย Kobalt 4 Tool Combo Kit. It had all the new tools and it also included the new batteries (one of each type) as well as a universal charger. This review can be read as more of an โupdateโ on what to expect with the new tools. Hopefully, by the end of the review, youโll know whether or not you want to get the new batteries, grab a new tool or two, or upgrade the whole kit.
The Kobalt 4 Tool Combo Kit: 20Vย vs. 18V
The biggest differences between the 18V combo kit we reviewed several years back and this Kobalt 4-Tool Combo Kit (20V)ย are summed up by the new 20V batteries and one other thing: Kobalt opted to offer an impact driver in place of the cordless circular saw that came with the 18V kit. This makes sense on a number of levels. For one, people are really starting to take to impact drivers. Theyโre loud, but who cares when you can get so much torque out of a tool that doesnโt try to wrench your wrist out of its socket while sinking a 3/8-inch lag bolt or hole-sawing through a couple of 2x4s. Those who still want a cordless circular saw can pick up the old K18NC-06AB (tool-only) for around $60. The only caveat is that itโs quickly going out of stock, making us wonder if Kobalt is readying a 20V replacement.
The other difference, of course, is the use of 20V batteries. These new batteries donโt just slap on a โ20Vโ label to take advantage of the peak voltage at the start of a cycle, they also offer 2.0 Ah and 4.0 Ah run-time. That means they use the new larger-capacity cells that give you more juice without taking up any extra space or weight. The charger is also new and can charge any 20V or 18V Li-ion battery as well as any of Kobalt Toolsโ legacy NiCd packs. Thatโs really cool considering most manufacturers donโt offer that kind of backwards compatibility.
In terms of what Kobalt is currently offering (though we canโt speak to how long these kits will stay on the market), there are currently four different Kobalt 4 tool combo kits that range in features and price:
Kobalt K18-NC1000A
This is a first-gen 18V NiCd battery-based 4-tool combo kit that comes complete with a 6-1/2โณ circular saw, reciprocating saw, drill/driver and a non-LED lamp. This kit is almost ridiculously priced at just $169. While weโre not big fans of NiCd batteries, at this price the kit is almost disposable. That kit can be found on Loweโs website by clicking here.
Kobalt K18-LC2006A
This 4-tool combo kit steps up the tools to use the companyโs new Li-ion batteries, and also includes a reciprocating saw, 6-1/2โณ circular saw, 1/2โณ drill/driver and an improved LED lamp for just $199. This is a noticeable step up, though it continues to use the older drill/driver and a second-generation reciprocating saw design that still doesnโt take into account the newer toolโs design. It also only comes with two slim 1.5 Ah batteries, which really donโt allow either the circular saw or reciprocating saw to shine as well as they might. Click here to view this kit.
Kobalt K18-LC2000A
As I mentioned earlier, we reviewed Kobaltโs latest 18V 4-tool combo kit and it includes tools very similar to what is in the current kit with the exceptions noted above. The 18V reciprocating saw, updated 6-1/2โณ circular saw, 1/2โณ drill/driver, and LED lamp retails for only $40 more than the prior 18V kit. Given the updated tools, itโs a no-brainer if youโre making the jump to Li-ionโparticularly since this kit also adds a 3.0 Ah battery into the mix instead of simply using two slim packs. For $239, this was the bargain kit to grab, but unfortunately it is no longer available on Loweโs website. The site makes no mention of whether or not there are a few left in stores though.
This latest 20V kit (K20-LC4000A) Iโm reviewing now retails for $299, and for that you get the updated 2.0 Ah and 4.0 Ah batteries plus the impact driver in lieu of the circular saw. Itโs the current premium offering, but at under $300 itโs hard to not continue to appreciate the value of the kit, provided you need all of the tools included.
The ToolsโOne by One
Going through each tool one by one seemed like the next best thing to do in a review like this. I wonโt spend as much time on tools that havenโt changed all that much, like the 20V recip saw and the LED lightโtwo tools which seem to have been given only minor or even cosmetic upgrades. Most of the tools have had slight tweaks in their specs, leading us to think Kobalt did more than just slap a new label on the tools, but none of the changes are as significant as the battery upgrade or the impact driver insertion.
Kobalt 20V Lithium-ion Drill/Driver (K20LD-26A)
One of the things I immediately noticed about this drill was that Kobalt had upgraded the chuck. And, aside from this one change, the other primary visible components of the drill remain the same, from the LED light to the textured grip on the handle (which, again, are oddly reminiscent of Ridgidโs Hex Grip system). The new chuck ratchets quite nicely, and itโs super easy to get a solid grip on both smooth 1/2-inch drill bit shanks as well as smaller 1/4-inch hex driver bits. The clutch control remains simple to operate, the 2-speed gear switch flipped back and forth easily enough with my thumb, and I found the drill to be comfortable to useโthe balance is near-perfect.
An LED, which is trigger-activated (and still does not stay on after you let go of the trigger), sits just under the clutch and does a decent job of lighting up the work area. You do get a dramatic shadow at and above the point of contact due to the presence of the chuck, but I didnโt have any problems finding my fasteners or holes. Kobalt also seems to have lessened the dramatic angle of the tool this go-around, reducing the tilt so that the 20V drill is a bit more parallel to the surface when you stand it up on the battery. The old K18LD-16A was more old-school, similar to many NiCd drills back in the day.
I tested the 20V Kobalt K20LD-26A drill on several projects and also with a variety of fasteners, including some Outlaw screws and even some 3/8โณ lag screws that I turned into pressured treated 4ร4. The Kobalt has plenty of power, though it does tend to wind down a bit as the lags get closer to bottoming out in the wood. The spec on this drill says 455 in-lbs of torque, which is a reasonable, but not class-leading amount of power for a drill of this size. On the bench it came reasonably close to spec, around 435 in-lbs, or within 5% of the manufacturerโs stated number. If only cordless impact drivers were as easy to measure!
Specs:
- Chuck: 1/2โณ ratcheting
- 2-speed gear box
- Speed: 0-450/1,600 RPM
- Torque: 455 in-lbs
Kobalt 20V 1/4-inch Impact Driver (K20ID-26A)
A couple things are great to note about this impact driver. First off, the 18V model was the fourth-highest ranked in our torque tests when we did our infamous 18V Cordless Li-ion Impact Driver Round Up. Our comment back then was that run-time suffered. Now, with the maximum speed goosed up slightly to 2500 rpm and the torque upped to 1,550 in-lbs, this tool is even more suited for getting the job done. Add to that a 4.0 Ah battery, and run-time is helped as well. We also lamented the fact that you used to only be able pick up this tool by itself (without a battery or charger). Now, Kobalt has created a 20V kit option, so you can pick up this impact driver for your favorite dad, uncle, or grandfatherโthis is one present you wonโt see getting returned!
The Kobalt impact driver was tested on several job sites and we found it was able to sink a 6โณ x 1/2โณ lag to 90% into our stacked laminated 3/4โณ sub-flooring test material. This tool has some serious horsepower for something that is bundled. On its own, this driver costs $149โnot bad given the fact that it comes with a 2.0 Ah battery.
Specs:
- Chuck: 1/4โณ hex
- Speed: 0-2,500 RPM
- IPM: 0-3,300
- Torque: 1,550 in-lbs
Kobalt 20V Orbital Reciprocating Saw (K20LR-26A)
Kobaltโa 20V Lithium-ion Reciprocating Saw doesnโt change much from their 18V model. It continues to serve out a 1-1/8โณ stroke and an orbital mode, but they tweaked it to deliver a slightly higher 3100 strokes per minuteย (SPM). We still love the adjustable shoe, but weโre still missing a front-mounted LED work light that would really improve the use of this saw in demo situations where you donโt have a ton of light (just about every situation Iโve found myself in this year). The saw is still pretty rough during use, and thereโs not a lot of attention spent on vibration reductionโsave for the rubberized overmold. We threw a couple of high-quality Diablo blades on this tool and it sliced through nail-embedded 2x4s with much success (though our arms took a bit of a beating in the process!)
Specs:
- Blade stroke: 1-1/8 in.
- Speed: 0-3,100 SPM
- Orbital action (on/off)
- Adjustable shoe
Kobalt 20V LED Work Light (K20LL-26A)
I couldnโt determine any real significant differences in the 20V LED work light provided in this kit. It still uses 24 LEDs , but it will now run seemingly forever on the new 2.0 Ah battery (and if you REALLY wanted longevity you could slap the 4.0 Ah battery on this thing and run it for over 24 hours). While the LED light is incredibly versatile, weโre surprised Kobalt still hasnโt added a hook so you could suspend it from a rafter or hang it on a framing nail.
Kobalt 20V/18V Lithium-ion/NiCd Battery Charger
Kobalt enhanced its new battery charger to make it fully compatible with the new 20V batteries, but it also made sure not to remove functionality that makes it also able to handle older 18V Li-ion and even 18V NiCd batteries. It doesnโt look much different than the former charger we reviewed a couple years ago, but it does bear one very significant change. It now seems to be a lot โsmarterโ, charging partially-depleted batteries in only a fraction of the time. We used the 20V drill driver to drill several holes in 2ร4 material to run CAT6 cabling and found that it had only dropped a single bar. Popping the 2.0 Ah on the charger, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it would only take 11 minutes to top off the battery. This is a huge upgrade from the former charger, which seemed to always require a full recharge cycle.
Conclusion
With this new kit youโre paying $300 for the latest battery technology and three great tools (plus an LED work light) that will be warrantied for 5 years. Even the batteries will be covered for 3 years. At this price, however, Kobalt is pricing itself to incur more competition from manufacturers like Porter-Cable and Ryobi, who offer their own kits in various configurations. The difference is, unlike manufacturers like Porter-Cable, theย Kobalt 4 Tool combo kitย offers 4.0 Ah battery life and power. What Kobalt needs next is to expand its offerings. Perhaps a hammer drill, jig saw, and possibly a 20V 6-1/2โณ circular saw upgrade or replacement is on the horizon. Now that Kobalt is on the new battery platform, who knows what might be next?
