As the weather turns progressively colder and the daylight hours become shorter, it’s inevitable that we’ll all be spending more time inside. So long, Adirondack chair on the porch, hello old sofa in the basement. Right about now would be a great time to give our indoor living spaces a bit of a deep cleaning ahead of the winter months. What to best clean with, though? Good question. Perhaps Milwaukee has the answer with its latest release of 3 new vacuum solutions, which we’ll hear about in this installment of Tool News Nirvana. We’ll also learn about some new laser solutions from Milwaukee as well, plus tools from WORX and Keysmart, and also an announcement from Bosch. Let’s get right down to it!
Clean More With Milwaukee
Milwaukee recently released three new vacuum options: a 12V, 1.6 gallon (#096020), an 18V, 2.5 gallon (#0970-20), and an 18V, compact & modular model (#0940-20). These are on the ever-growing M12 Fuel and M18 Fuel platforms, respectively. The #0970-20 is perhaps the most interesting, because, in addition to being cordless it’s also fully compatible with the Packout storage system. This means that users have a nice, self-contained way to transport their tools while also bringing along a way to clean everything up when the job’s complete. As a parent, this Tool News Nirvana writer is almost salivating at the possibilities here – pack all the snacks and toys that will fit in the Packout boxes, then clean up after your kid with the vacuum! It’s parenting 2.0, really. These three vacuums are available for pre-order right now.
Big Red (Milwaukee) Goes Green
So, you’re sitting in your freshly vacuumed and cleaned den. You’ve got a TV and a Netflix subscription, but you’ve already blasted through Cobra Kai twice and are now bored. What’s next? I’ll tell you what’s next. Laser light dance parties, that’s what. First, though, you’ll need some lasers. All kidding aside – with the slew of new green light laser level solutions from Milwaukee, you should have plenty of options. They’re powered either by an internal rechargeable REDLITHIUM battery or by an M12 FUEL battery. In addition to the battery options, they’re also available with different line types: 3-Plane, Cross Line & Plumb Points or plain Cross Line. Check out the press release here for the expanded details. They’re available now for pre-order.
WORX Works…For Makers
The newest release from WORX is something truly innovative. It’s a line of compact power tools called MakerX that are all built to use a common power source, the 20V Power Hub. The initial release includes 5 tools – a rotary tool, an angle grinder, a mini heat gun, a wood + metal crafting tool (aka soldering iron + wood burning tool), and an airbrush. The tools don’t have onboard batteries, so they’re exceptionally light and easy to work with. They connect to the power hub via a small cable, thus providing them with power. These are geared toward the benchtop/small project/crafter crowd who maybe don’t need gobs of power, but value compact size and ease-of-use. By that measurement, they hit the mark quite well.
Always Essential From Bosch
https://youtu.be/DgGrzdNn6bU
German tool mainstay, Bosch, wants to recognize and honor the thousands of workers who have continued reporting to the job site, despite the pandemic. Their new “Always Essential” program will field a team that will visit job sites in the near future and present workers with giveaways and gear. This is a neat idea – Bosch actually going out to show appreciation in person. Many readers of this site, heck, even this writer, have continued going to work and getting the job done since the pandemic got started. It certainly hasn’t always been easy, but our world won’t build or maintain itself. Someone has to get their hands dirty and do the work, and to those people, we (and Bosch!) say “Thank You”!
A Stop to Foggy Glasses from KeySmart
Keysmart is a niche company that manufactures innovative keychains (think: swiss army tool, but containing your keys instead of a knife and corkscrew), bags, tools, and accessories. Like many of us who wear masks and glasses at the same time, they noticed the issue of glasses fogging upon exhale. With their new FogBlock spray though, fogging is a thing of the past. Safe on all types of lenses, fog block is easy to apply – just spray on. There’s no wiping required, and an application will last for upwards of 24 hours. Now, we’ll have to get KeySmart to send some of this stuff to every NFL referee so they can no longer use “well, my glasses were fogged” as an excuse for making a bad call!
Stay tuned for our next episode of Tool News Nirvana, where we bring you the latest and greatest tools, industry news, tool giveaways and more! Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to catch all the news along with tool reviews, how-to’s, cool home products, sweet gear, and build projects!
