10 Craftsman Yard Tools To Add To Your Outdoor Power Equipment Collection

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If you're looking for some outdoor tools, or any power tools for that matter, you could do a lot worse than Craftsman. And if you're looking for Craftsman battery-powered tools, the format you need to look at is the V20. While the name references 20-volt batteries, those tools are actually on par with the 18-volt battery lines of Makita, Ryobi, and others. Craftsman is one of the most popular brands for outdoor tools, and the V20 range encompasses cordless hedge trimmers, pruners, lawnmowers, and much more. It's also quite affordable, at least most of the time, and when compared to more powerful alternatives.

Still, Craftsman's selection of yard tools is quite expansive, enough to include some standout quality tools at a reasonable price. And if you don't have extremely high standards or you don't need a particularly powerful or versatile tool, some of those options will allow you to save quite a bit of money. Just remember that when you start buying into a battery system for power tools, you start having incentives to remain in that system, so you can use the same (expensive) batteries on more tools. That means that if you have, for example, some Ryobi batteries that still work fine, it makes more sense to get Ryobi yard tools over the competition.

However, if you are looking to get started in a battery ecosystem, Craftsman is an excellent option. And if you already have some Craftsman tools and want to add to your collection, we can help!

Getting ready for some heavy spring cleaning, but you're worried that work would be too hard on you? Then the Craftsman Cordless 2-in-1 Scrubber was made for you. As some reviewers mention, this isn't the kind of scrubber where a clean surface relies on how hard you can push down or how far you can reach with your arm. Whether you're trying to clean tall windows or the walls of a patio, with the 60.5" telescopic pole, you don't need to get all the way up a stepladder to clean those hard-to-reach surfaces. Of course, the Craftsman isn't the only scrubber with a telescopic pole, but its maximum extension is a little higher than most.

The Craftsman Cordless 2-in-1 Scrubber can run for over two hours with the included 2Ah/20V battery, though that's only two hours of no-load runtime. It's hard to say for sure how long it will last in practice. Some user reviews report 45 minutes of continuous use, while others claim the battery lasts a long time and charges quickly. You can get the Craftsman scrubber as a standalone tool or in a kit with a 2Ah/20V battery and a charger, at the suggested retail price of $179.00. Since the 2-in-1 Scrubber is part of Craftsman's V20 series, it's compatible with a variety of 20V batteries.

A fan dedicated to outdoor use, the Cordless Jobsite Fan sounds more appealing the closer we get to summer, as the idea of taking on any DIY project in a non-air-conditioned room (or indeed, outside your house) becomes more and more daunting. A standout functionality of this tool that might sound out of place at first is that this fan can be used with or without a cord. Without it, it relies on a Craftsman 20V battery; Corded, it takes AC power from an outlet. It might seem like this versatility is secondary when shopping for cordless power tools, but if you can get some more use out of an expensive purchase, why wouldn't you?

You might not need to ever rely on a cable if you don't want to. This powerful fan can run for eight consecutive hours on its high setting, and remains functional for an entire day on low settings. Not a workday, not the light part of a day, we're talking about a whole 24 hours of circulating air on a single charge. If you live where the night's heat isn't any more forgiving than the day's, you'll appreciate the long-lasting battery. At the same time, some users find the maximum 650 CFM of movement to not be enough, at least in some conditions, and note that the airflow isn't as strong as some of the competitor jobsite fans like those from Ridgid and Ryobi. To be fair, the Craftsman is a lot cheaper than those, at $61.95 for the bare tool.

Leaf blowers need a lot of energy to be efficient. If you have a large garden or need your blower to take on an especially arduous task, you need a big battery, which can be expensive. Alternatively, you'd need a gas-powered blower and a decent amount of fuel. That's what makes this brushless blower such a good deal: at $159.00 from Craftsman for the (brushless!) tool plus a 20V battery and a charger, the Craftsman's Brushless RP Blower is a great deal. Craftsman might not be one of the major leaf blower brands, but this model could be the cheapest way to get a powerful electric leaf blower. It's half as expensive as a comparable Makita 18V model, without mentioning the brushless motor.

Craftsman doesn't give us a lot of data about the power and runtime of this tool, only that it runs comparatively longer than the gas model from the same company and the non-brushless electric motor version. However, while users are generally positive on this tool, many mention that the battery life isn't great, and that it shouldn't be used for very large work areas. However, as others point out, the solution can be as simple as buying another Craftsman V20 battery. The best part is that the more Craftsman tools you buy, the more useful those extra batteries become.

If there's one gardening hand tool that you should rush to stick a battery to, it's a hand pruner. That might sound silly to you. It's just a pruner, after all. What's next, a power plier? The truth is that the kind of repetitive, straining, uncomfortable motion required to use a regular pruner is conducive to developing tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and trigger fingers. Pruning can be hard work. Not all shrubs are made of thin, green branches. And that's ignoring the risk of cutting yourself, which is probably higher when you're under the physical stress caused by prolonged use of a hand tool.

So, you decide to pick up a power pruner. Why should you get the Craftsman Cordless Pruner instead of one of the many alternatives, like the Ryobi's 18V Pruning Shears? For one, the Craftsman is cheaper, and it can be available for as low as $99.00. That gets you the whole Steel Pruning Saw kit, which includes batteries, a charger, and the tool itself, while that price only covers the cost of Ryobi's bare tool. But that doesn't mean the Craftsman isn't a capable tool. It features a cutting speed of about one branch per second, as long as the branches aren't wider than 1.25", and can complete 900 cuts per battery charge. In case it wasn't obvious, that's a lot of cutting for a pruner. Lastly, the blades are easy to replace, and replacements are cheap (about $17.00) and easy to find.

The Brushless RP Cold Water Pressure Washer is extremely powerful. Take care if you end up getting this machine, because a simple mistake while pressure washing could ruin your car. According to Craftsman, it can reach a pressure of 1,500 PSI and goes through 1.2 gallons of fresh water per minute. It can be connected to a garden hose or draw fresh water from any source, like a lake, pool, or a simple bucket, though, of course, a bucket is hardly the ideal solution, considering how fast this machine goes through water. The unit is protected from potential damage caused by moisture, something you'd expect to see, given its function. However, the manufacturer's website notes that the same protection is not guaranteed for the batteries.

This pressure washer is quite a heavy tool, coming in at 32.5 pounds. Thankfully, it comes with wheels and a handle for easy transportation. The suggested retail price is $592.99, which is nothing to scoff at. We ranked Craftsman as one of the best among major brands of pressure washers, but it's hard not to notice that this tool is costly. Both Ryobi and Harbor Freight offer similar (if not more powerful) pressure washers for quite a bit less. That said, the $592.99 includes two 20V/9Ah batteries, which are really powerful and quite expensive on their own. Plus, you can often find a good deal on the Craftsman Pressure Washer on Amazon or from other sellers.

Electrifying a self-propelled mower can't be an easy task, but with the power of two massive 20V/9Ah batteries, everything is possible. Okay, maybe not everything. Don't expect more than 70 minutes of runtime, for one, even with a full charge and without the grass putting up much of a challenge. Still, 70 minutes is plenty of time for many lawns, so if you're not living on acreage, this could be a great alternative to a gas mower. According to Craftsman's website, it's ideal for lawns up to half an acre. If you need to cut an even larger surface, then you might want to look at a different tool. Alternatively, prepare to pay extra (and to pay a lot) for two more 20V/9Ah batteries.

Thankfully, two of those large batteries are included in the price. As to whether you'll be thankful for the cost on Amazon of $699.95, that's a different story. The Brushless RP 21" Rear Wheel Driver Mower is, as the name suggests, brushless, meaning it will likely last longer. Two blades power this lawnmower's cutting system. It has different settings for grass height, and it's self-propelling, meaning it doesn't really need to be pushed, just steered. It has three distinct modes for cutting, too. It can bag the cut grass for easy disposal, discharge it laterally, or produce a finely cut mulch which can be used as fertilizer. Even if you don't especially need mulch, it's probably the cleanest and least wasteful way to get rid of grass.

A chainsaw is another traditionally gas-powered tool that is hard to fully replace with a battery-powered one. That's especially true if you need to cover a lot of ground on a single charge or are often faced with cutting a whole tree into manageable chunks. The problem isn't power alone, but the tool's autonomy. As users point out, spare batteries are really expensive. In the case of Craftsman, a couple of large 20V/6Ah batteries cost almost as much as the Brushless RP 12" Chainsaw itself. Power capacity aside, battery-powered chainsaws are usually slightly slower than gas-powered ones. However, that's unlikely to save you much time, unless you spend hours every day chopping wood.

The Craftsman's brushless 12" might not be the most powerful electric chainsaw, but the brand promises "up to 105 cuts per charge" of 4x4 pressure-treated pine, though how that translates to other materials is hard to say. More immediately impressive is the claim that this electric chainsaw (and accompanying battery!) is 40% lighter than a similar gas model with a full tank. This is the larger and more powerful battery-powered chainsaw from Craftsman, the smaller model being the 10" non-brushless cordless chainsaw. According to the brand, the first is 80% more powerful than its smaller sibling. The brushless 12" chainsaw comes with a 20V/5Ah battery and costs $219.00.

Another gardening essential, a string trimmer, is the kind of tool that has no business being powered by gas. The main exception is if you need to treat an area of many acres in a single session and with just the string trimmer. Unless that's what you need, an electric string trimmer like the Craftsman Brushless RP String Trimmer presents so many benefits as to make the alternative unattractive. When powered by a battery, this tool is quieter, easier to operate, and requires almost no maintenance. Plus, partly because there's no way to mess up during maintenance, an electric motor is generally less likely to develop problems than a gas engine.

According to Craftsman, the Brushless RP String Trimmer can run for 75 minutes uninterrupted on a single charge. Though that time is not measured in work conditions (it's based on zero load and while the machine is running at the lowest speed), that's probably enough to trim the edges of your garden. Users overwhelmingly report having no issue with the battery life. Even if that was the case, you can always bring a spare battery. The Brushless RP String Trimmer comes in a kit that includes a 20V/5Ah battery and a charger. The price of $159.00 might seem a little steep for such a simple tool, but it's important to remember that the battery alone is quite expensive. This string trimmer features adjustable speed and swath size.

Even if you have a light chainsaw and plenty of confidence in your tree-climbing abilities, a pole saw is often the safest way to trim far-off branches. Of course, that doesn't clear you from having to wear all the essential safety equipment. Adopting multiple safety measures at once is just good practice when working on any DIY project, including caring for an outdoor area. Of course, a pole saw won't get rid of every branch, since it's ultimately a tiny chainsaw on a stick, but Craftsman promises a cut capacity of 6 inches on its Brushless RP 8" Pole Saw. Not bad for such a small tool.

Even then, this battery-powered pole saw isn't nearly as powerful as the Craftsman's Brushless RP 12" Chainsaw. In fact, according to the brand, it cuts through half as much material in about the same amount of time. That's hardly a surprise. On the upside, this tool comes with a 10-foot pole, and it's quite light at about 12 pounds. And while it's pretty long, it folds easily for more convenient storage. This self-oiling, brushless motor tool is sold in a kit with a 20V/2Ah battery and a charger for $200.00. If that's more than what you were looking to pay, you're in luck. Craftsman makes some cheaper pole saws as well.

When does a cordless pole pruner become overkill? That's a weirdly specific question, but one that you'll have to answer when confronted with the Craftsman Cordless Pole Pruner Kit. That is, unless you have no qualms about spending $259.00 on this tool and the accompanying battery and charger. And at just 20V/2Ah, the battery isn't even that large. If you already have a Craftsman V20 and would like to save a few dollars, the bare tool is available on Amazon for $199.00. Still, there's no way around it. Craftsman's pole pruner is really expensive, more than the brand's larger, brushless model of chainsaw, and over twice as much as the non-pole electric pruner.

Speaking of that $99.00 pruner, the two machines seem to be pretty much the same. They're both capable of exercising 900 cuts on branches no larger than 1.25" and are suggested for use with Craftsman V20/2Ah batteries. It seems hard to justify the extra $150.00 with the small addition of a foldable pole, even if it is VersaTrack compatible and features a unique seven-position pivoting head. However, if you do have literally dozens of trees with tens of small branches to cut and are looking forward to doing all of that work in one day, this is the tool for you. That's bound to be a small market, but maybe that's why this tool is so expensive.