I've been running the 24v line for about a year. Originally planned to go red, but figured with the 12-month "no hassle" guarantee, it was worth a shot.
I started out with the 1/2" impact, drill driver, and 1/4 impact. Most of last spring/summer was used re-building an old race car. I used both impacts heavily. The 1/2 impact ripped rusted spindle bolts and such with impunity. With a set of socket adapters the 1/4 impact was fairly decent for small bolts.
The drill was decent. I had to warranty it once due to a bad chuck. Unfortunately, I cannot speak to the warranty procedure as my dad works for Lowe's in commercial sales and took care of it for me. Since then, I've had zero issues.
As I eventually bought a house and started rehabbing my garage, I've picked up the palm sander and some of the cordless work lights. Both the drills and 1/4 impact have gotten significantly more use and have held up well. I picked up a tripod for the lights and have been using them everywhere (house, wrenching in driveway at night, lighting my pit stall, camping, etc.). Of all things, a "cordless" work light is the one thing that I never knew I needed..
I was holding out on the circular saw, 3/8 impact, and ratchet. I've been considering "turning in" my current drill and impacts to go for the XTR stuff if it turns out to be that much better. My main concern when buying in was long-term support, but multiple people have assured me that the 24v line isn't going anywhere and is going to be one of the few areas where they plan to continually push the Kobalt brand.
At least from my perspective, there are a few drawbacks:
- Long-Term support - Although they've said things to the contrary, this is Kobalt/Lowe's, so who knows.
- Warranty - Related to above. The stores are cracking down on returns outside of the 30-day window. This might add a layer of hassle to the warranty process (the tools, I will add, have a great return/warranty policy). With items being discontinued (even if replaced by XTR), I am not sure how warranty will be handled.
- Small Details - The ratchet is huge, like the IR ratchet. Not sure how well it will be in real-world situations. The impact guns could use a boot, IMO. Small things like that. They aren't deal breakers, but they're annoying.
As it stands, I have no real reason to turn these in come June and replace with Milwaukee. While I would like the better "details" (different ratchet/protective boots), I am not sure if it is worth paying 2x as more for batteries and buying into a second battery platform (M12). Granted, I could simply pick up the M12 ratchet and screwdriver, but that's something I need to figure out on my own.
Based upon my experience, however, I can say that these things do hold up well in mechanical work. Keep in mind that I'm not a tech, but I grew up in auto parts and heavy truck yards so I appreciate quality tools. While some of the details above bother me, the battery prices more than make up for it.
My only question is what will the XTR line look like. The stuff is appearing in some stores, but I have yet to see any pricing. If the new XTR impacts and batteries are priced closer to Milwaukee, that value proposition definitely will take a hit.
