Thumbs down and zero stars to Oregon electric tools.

[Coloshaver]

I've bought an Oregon Electric Pole Saw, a Leaf Blower and a Hedge Trimmer in the Oregon 40V Max line. I have almost $800 into the three tools and I really liked them. I recently had a battery die. I looked for a replacement and discovered the company has discontinued the product line INCLUDING THE BATTERIES.

I called the company and got a nice lady who said, "The product line has been discontinued." I asked what am I supposed to do the the three premium price tools I own that require those batteries? "I'm sorry, but there are no substitutes." I'll definitely be babying the one I have left.

You'd expect this from off brands on Amazon or HF, but Oregon? I'll definitely be looking for alternatives for my chainsaw chains.

 

[JradM]

It ***** when that happens. I've got some Craftsman V60 tools myself.

There may be a battery adapter on the market for you, or third-party battery packs. If all else fails, your local battery retailer might rebuild or repair a defective pack for you.

 

[robert6715]

Take the battery apart & replace the bad cells. They are usually 18650's in series.
Or send it off for repair.

 

[KenB]

I have the same problem (and frustration)! I found possible replacement batteries on Ali express (search for Oregon 36v battery), but nowhere among uhhh safer sources. I agree it’s a shame that a once great brand like Oregon has sunk so low.

 

[PCustoms]

I've bought an Oregon Electric Pole Saw, a Leaf Blower and a Hedge Trimmer in the Oregon 40V Max line. I have almost $800 into the three tools and I really liked them. I recently had a battery die. I looked for a replacement and discovered the company has discontinued the product line INCLUDING THE BATTERIES.

How many years did you get out of the batteries?

I have a different brand I bought cheap on a whim, hesitant to by more tools for the same issue you found.

 

[MileHighRover]

Take the battery apart & replace the bad cells. They are usually 18650's in series.
Or send it off for repair.

This is the correct response. Buy a cheapy battery from China and you'll end up with a paperweight in short time. Rebuild it or have someone else do it with quality cells.

 

[larry_g]

Can you give us a part number for the battery and a model number for the tools it fits?

 

[Beerhippie]

This is the correct response. Buy a cheapy battery from China and you'll end up with a paperweight in short time. Rebuild it or have someone else do it with quality cells.

That, or a long-lasting bonfire.

 

[Leon bee]

That predicament would piss me off.

 

[Leon bee]

I'm down to only asian batteries for my old Dewalt 12v drills. Got three or four of those, still my favorite model, damn near 30 years old now........But those batteries- what a **** shoot that is. They're so cheap you can buy two hoping for one good one. I've swapped out the battery guts before, putting the cells in a little bit better plastic case so it doesn't fall out and hit my foot. I'm getting to about where it's time to bone up on those electronic repairs.

 

[dnschmidt]

That's why you buy MIlwaukee, Makita or DeWalt.

 

[neophyte]

Do

That's why you buy MIlwaukee, Makita or DeWalt.

Milwaukee has discontinued at least half a dozen battery systems over the years.
Maybe more.

 

[Beerhippie]

Do

Milwaukee has discontinued at least half a dozen battery systems over the years.
Maybe more.

When the M18 lithium line came out, it WAS reverse-compatible with the previous 18V NiCad tools--one of the reasons I initially got invested in the red.

 

[rancherbill]

You'd expect this from off brands on Amazon or HF, but Oregon? I'll definitely be looking for alternatives for my chainsaw chains.

Look at it this way, the CEO of Oregon kept profits high so he could get a big bonus.

Give him a call and see if he'll give you some money to buy another system. hahaha

 

[American Locomotive]

Looks like Oregon discontinued essentially all of their battery powered tools in 2021-2022. They were bought out by a private equity company in 2021. So I'm guessing any marginal business unit was just shutdown and purged.

 

[tarbellb]

Bummer. Good suggestions above, rebuild or find generic

Also funny that this thread caught some traction recently, interestingly... Oregon never made the list

 

[zendriver]

Honestly, I thought I knew everything and I didn’t recall that Oregon even made cordless yard tools.

70 year old company probably has a hard time competing against high tech startups like EGO, well known yard to companies like Stihl and the endless number of inexpensive imports.

Maybe it’s like the number of people who purchase Studebaker automobiles

**** happens

 

[shanker]

I'd blame the venture (vulture) capital firm that purchased oregon tools and leveraged the name & legacy to drive sales.

Oregon Chain Acquired by Platinum Equity

Just saw this. Oregon ownership has been transferred a few times over the past several years. https://labusinessjournal.com/news/2021/jul/14/platinum-equity-acquires-oregon-tool/ 'Beverly Hills-based private equity firm Platinum Equity has acquired Oregon Tool, a Portland, Ore.-based maker of...

www.arboristsite.com

 

[zendriver]

I'd blame the venture (vulture) capital firm that purchased oregon tools and leveraged the name & legacy to drive sales.

Oregon Chain Acquired by Platinum Equity

Just saw this. Oregon ownership has been transferred a few times over the past several years. https://labusinessjournal.com/news/2021/jul/14/platinum-equity-acquires-oregon-tool/ 'Beverly Hills-based private equity firm Platinum Equity has acquired Oregon Tool, a Portland, Ore.-based maker of...

www.arboristsite.com

Ironically, the company was already owned by a PE firm

Maybe they are just taking turns milking out whatever’s left in an old cow

People don’t use chainsaws as much as they used to and there’s that whole competing with import thing

 

[sparky 1971]

I said the same thing, but didn't put it online, when my V series Milwaukee tools became obsolete. Now, here I am fully vested in both the M12 and M18 lines. It happens.

 

[Beerhippie]

I'd blame the venture (vulture) capital firm that purchased oregon tools and leveraged the name & legacy to drive sales.

Oregon Chain Acquired by Platinum Equity

Just saw this. Oregon ownership has been transferred a few times over the past several years. https://labusinessjournal.com/news/2021/jul/14/platinum-equity-acquires-oregon-tool/ 'Beverly Hills-based private equity firm Platinum Equity has acquired Oregon Tool, a Portland, Ore.-based maker of...

www.arboristsite.com

****. Another "hometown" business ruined. They were once renowned for their chains and bars.

The factory was a couple of miles from where I grew up. My brother worked there a couple of summers back in the late '70s.

 

[robert6715]

Something that I didn't know until recently is that Oregon has a massive line of power equipment parts. Saw chain & bars is what they're known for but just a fraction of what they do.

 

[zendriver]

Support an American company and this is how you are rewarded

 

[dnschmidt]

Do

Milwaukee has discontinued at least half a dozen battery systems over the years.
Maybe more.

Not true in this case. Yes when Milwaukee went from NiCd to NMH and then Li-Ion they played musical battery platforms. However, at that time they were strictly a power tool company and not into anything resembling Outdoor Power Equipment. Once they started the OPE stuff they were completely M18 and M12 so for this particular case you're wrong. For the power tool case you're right.

 

[zendriver]

IMO, kind of unfair to expect any company to support obsolete battery platforms forever.

In this case however it seems, with relatively expensive equipment, it's simply "we're done" - for good. No batteries, no nothing.

$800 went to the company and get bent to the customer.

 

[shanker]

I've strangely become chainsaw nerd and have a bunch of vintage saws that I've hoarded, fixed whatever was wrong with them, and use the heck out of them clearing mesquite around the ranch. I *had* a Remington Ranger II pole saw that I purchased at Northern Tool 5 years back. I have absolutely abused it, even fell off the tractor and got ran over in road gear, I JB welded it up and kept using it. Well it finally quit taking the abuse as the ring gear teeth got wore down enough to where the electric motor wouldn't spin it anymore, I thought about shimming it up and trying to make it run a tad longer but decided to let it go as it's been a great $100 tool and had a good run.

So in shopping for pole saw's, I've been looking at corded units such as the Oregon one, and noticed that it's the same as every other brand on the market with terrible reviews. These PE companies taking the names of what were once giant's across different industries, and using those names on the same tool appears to have destroyed the ability for competitors to make a better quality saw, as the race to the bottom MSRP wise, effectively destroyed the market.

For pole saws I like having an electric one as it's easy to use around my house up on the roof or ladder as well as at the ranch. There really doesn't seem to be any good quality electric corded pole saws on the market.

The FarmerTec pole saw looks like what I may be buying, which is a knock-off of a 10 year old stihl design. I would much rather not support an imported knock-off product, but I almost feel like there's no choice and 1K for a new one is out of my spending range.

 

[neophyte]

Not true in this case. Yes when Milwaukee went from NiCd to NMH and then Li-Ion they played musical battery platforms. However, at that time they were strictly a power tool company and not into anything resembling Outdoor Power Equipment. Once they started the OPE stuff they were completely M18 and M12 so for this particular case you're wrong. For the power tool case you're right.

“Industrial” power tool companies, which is what Milwaukee was, made their power tools with the expectation that some customers might use, and repair or pay someone to repair, a power tool, for 20 years or longer.
Porter Cable and Black & Decker (the Professional/Industrial line), literally had power tool models that only had slight tweaks done to the design over 30 or 40 years.
Battery Power tool models tended to be more ephemeral, since battery technology kept getting upgraded, but simply because a “Power Tool” brand started making Outdoor Power Equipment, hardly means the company cares about keeping a battery line around.

 

[rust in the eye]

Since you like the tools just get the packs re-built with new cells.
Long ago I had some Ryobi cordless tools that I liked but the batteries were ****, when they died I had them re-built with better cells and they then performed better than new.
My $.02

 

[jblnut]

My brand new Ryobi batteries fit into my old blue tools. Ryobi gets overlooked as cheap junk but I’ve never had to switch battery platforms and have only destroyed two sawzalls. They met their demise in a muddy grave doing field tile work so not really their fault they didn’t hold up to running underwater and packed with mud. I’ve got OPE stuff and shop tools and even a stick vac in the house. All the same batteries.

 

[MiteyF]

This is why I rarely buy cordless tools, and NEVER cordless yard tools. My $20 weedeater I bought (used) a decade ago gets a new diaphragm occasionally, but always runs great. The tattered old Honda mower gets a oil change every other year, and a blade sharpening, mostly just for fun.

 

[BillK]

Give these guys a call or send them an e-mail. I have had them rebuild a couple of weird packs and they were great:

Professional Battery Assembly, Rebuilding, and Repair - MTO Battery

Get high-quality service on battery rebuilds, battery repairs, and battery reconditioning on Segway, Power Tools, and specialty batteries. We specialize in batteries from Fluke, 3M, Fitel, Fujikura, Snap-On, EGO, DeWalt, Milwaukee, Akron, Trilithic, JDSU, Trimble, Sokkia, Leica, Cleco, Profoto...

www.mtobattery.com

 

[NitroExpress]

Give these guys a call or send them an e-mail. I have had them rebuild a couple of weird packs and they were great:

Professional Battery Assembly, Rebuilding, and Repair - MTO Battery

Get high-quality service on battery rebuilds, battery repairs, and battery reconditioning on Segway, Power Tools, and specialty batteries. We specialize in batteries from Fluke, 3M, Fitel, Fujikura, Snap-On, EGO, DeWalt, Milwaukee, Akron, Trilithic, JDSU, Trimble, Sokkia, Leica, Cleco, Profoto...

www.mtobattery.com

Dammit - just tossed a Milwaukee M12 that died 2 months out of warranty.

Thanks for the link, will give them a go next time.

 

[rancherbill]

So I'm guessing any marginal business unit was just shutdown and purged.

.. and the remaining ones will get mortgaged to the hilt, so the investors make a quick buck. In my opinion, they will be bankrupt in 5 years and liquidated.

 

[Coloshaver]

Follow up:

The symptoms were: 1) No lights when I pushed the button to check the charge level and 2) When I put it on the charger, it went immediately to the blinking red LED indicating the battery was bad.

Following my DIY Motto (It's broken. If I take it apart, the worst that can happen is I can't fix it.) I took the battery pack apart. It had water inside. I had loaned it to my SIL, but he doesn't know how that could have happened. I also found a surprisingly complex charge controller board that had moisture on it. I dried everything out for 48 hours, put it it back together and IT WORKS!

As long as the PCB is OK, I can potentially replace the cells.

 

[PCustoms]

I took the battery pack apart. It had water inside. I had loaned it to my SIL, but he doesn't know how that could have happened. I also found a surprisingly complex charge controller board that had moisture on it. I dried everything out for 48 hours, put it it back together and IT WORKS!

As long as the PCB is OK, I can potentially replace the cells.

Huh, so this really shouldn't have been about Oregon Tool ******* you over?

 

[zendriver]

Huh, so this really shouldn't have been about Oregon Tool ******* you over?

Doesn't make any difference. The the battery was non functional. It could have been burnt up inside

The OP didn't claim it was junk. He was miffed because they abruptly pulled the plug on a relatively expensive line of tools, he spent a lot of his money on.

You'd be fine with their decision?

 

[PCustoms]

You'd be fine with their decision?

Yes.

Afaik they weren't really on the tool market anyway.

Battery tech and tools are rapidly evolving. How long is a company supposed to support a line?

 

[MiteyF]

Doesn't make any difference. The the battery was non functional. It could have been burnt up inside

The OP didn't claim it was junk. He was miffed because they abruptly pulled the plug on a relatively expensive line of tools, he spent a lot of his money on.

You'd be fine with their decision?

To be fair, that's kind of like a Ford not producing parts for a 2002 Taurus any more. Would you be angry about that too?

This isn't a manufacturer problem, this is a problem with cordless tools in general. New technology renders them obsolete, and it doesn't make financial sense to keep producing them.

If you don't like having to deal with finding new batteries, buy a liquid fuel tool.

 

[tarbellb]

Not like buying a Ford ... like buying a
Suzuki vehicle and expecting long term support

DeWalt would be like buying a Ford, better chances of long term support

The complaint is still valid, just not surprising

 

[Beerhippie]

To be fair, that's kind of like a Ford not producing parts for a 2002 Taurus any more. Would you be angry about that too?

This isn't a manufacturer problem, this is a problem with cordless tools in general. New technology renders them obsolete, and it doesn't make financial sense to keep producing them.

If you don't like having to deal with finding new batteries, buy a liquid fuel tool.

We was used ta' having these tools with wayres on 'em. PITA, sure, but the battery weren't never dyin' on ya.