• Forum server maintanace Friday night.(around 7PM Centeral time)
    Website will be off line for a short while.

    You may need to log out, log back in after we're back online.

A good inexpensive trowel

You can buy an original Hori-Hori for about ten dollars less on Amazon.



Any particular one you'd suggest?

Currently I have a kellyco "clone" of the lesche....I don't like how I can't scoop out dirt with it readily...I'd like to have something I can really dig with
 
I also have a gator by kellyco. I have never used it. It is the dullest digger that I have ever had. A Hori-Hori has a slight concave to it so you can dig with it through almost any ground. I have never cared for the stepped design of the lesche.
 
I also have a gator by kellyco. I have never used it. It is the dullest digger that I have ever had. A Hori-Hori has a slight concave to it so you can dig with it through almost any ground. I have never cared for the stepped design of the lesche.


I don't like the offset designs either.
 
I bought one from watching him use it in his videos. You have to have the right dirt for it, pretty much soft aerated loose type dirt. Otherwise the sharp end is so wide that you can't get any penetration. I also nicknamed it the knuckle buster, because the handle is really thin and the rubber slippery, so trying to get penetration I slipped off the handle and thrashed my knuckles more than once. I ended up selling or trading it here, it just didn't work for me around Maryland.

For some reason I bought the Little Mac, which is a T handle version of the same head design, and that didn't work out great either. My White's Digmaster is still king over anything I tried for hand diggers, including the Lesche. https://www.predatortools.com/products/model-little-mac

For an inexpensive digger, Fiskars just started making a full tang Hori Hori. Home Depot seems to exclusively carry them locally, haven't seen them elsewhere. I've been putting one through it's paces and I'm impressed, it cuts through the soil easier than others and I haven't bent it yet, and I'm pretty hard on diggers. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Fiskars...-Handle-Gardening-Knife-370880-1001/300374030

Picked up that Fiskars. Nice tool. Sharp and strong!
Thanks for the post.
 
I've been using this on the past couple hunts. I must have given it to Dad at some point (probably got it as a freebie) and ran-across it recently, and it's sat in the shed since. I got it out for a spare, and after actually looking at it, thought I'd give it a try.

I used it 2 days in the cow pasture, and I'll tell you, I've never dug in dirt so hard (on day 1, it rained that night), I wore blisters on my hand from forcing it into the dirt. I know for a fact I'd have broken my Lesche, as well as my Fiskars, or Lowes brand, seriously.

I could put all my weight on it (prying), and it never even thought about flexing/bending. It's one piece, with the handle being rolled from the same piece as the blade. Not sure what gauge stainless they used, but it's hefty.

If you're in the market for an inexpensive digger you'll never break, take a look at this one, even as a spare.

I snagged the pic off Amazon, and think the price there was $15. Couldn't tell you if that's low, high, or the goin' rate. I do know I won't be letting go of this one.

ETA: In event you can't make out the engraving, it's a Garrett.

this is a wilcox digging tool! made in iowa!..been around forever!..fantastic digger!..unbelievably rugged!..i have a smaller one for sidewalk easements! tough,tough,tough!..and cheap too!..good luck with it!

(h.h.!)
j.t.
 
Gator diggers do a great job. I always liked them better than the Lesche. But to be honest a Sampson digger is all I use. Why use upper body when you can use your foot? Save your hands and shoulders. And don't give me that shovel perception !!!! argument. I cut a nice plug with Sampson. It can also be used to defend yourself against anything hostile from snakes, dogs, or, thugs. The Lesche is over rated. Nothing but a coin scratcher and blister maker.
 
I thought there was nothing better than a Lesche hand trowel.... so so strong.

Has anyone seen this digger? It is used by a detectorist on youtube goes by the name of DirtFishin.

I don't know how strong it is but he seems to dig out a ton of dirt in one scoop which is the down side to a Lesche, which takes out small scoops due to the narrow blade at the tip.

View attachment 393451

View attachment 393452

I recently watched a vid with a guy using this kind of digger. Only good in soft, rootless soil; as mentioned earlier. That guy was making a big mess too. No careful plug handling at all. It was uncomfortable just to watch.
 
Cow Pasture

:shock: A couple clothes pins , and your choice, picks below, unless you want to kneel down to smell the treasure :laughing: howboutit :?:
 

Attachments

  • 20110613_1.JPG
    20110613_1.JPG
    82.2 KB · Views: 195
I recently watched a vid with a guy using this kind of digger. Only good in soft, rootless soil; as mentioned earlier. That guy was making a big mess too. No careful plug handling at all. It was uncomfortable just to watch.


I'm with you, every video I'm seeing of this digger from day one, really shows the person really working this tool back and forth to get it deep. This curve blade, does make scooping better, but the initial insertion looks like much more energy. I have shoulder issues and just watching the videos make my shoulder hurt.
 
You can buy an original Hori-Hori for about ten dollars less on Amazon.



You can find one for $10 less (not sure about original, as far as I can tell there is no "original" hori hori, but my Google-Fu could be off), but the Fiskars has a lifetime warranty. Bend or snap it, take a pic, and Fiskars sends you a replacement. Also, most of the Hori Hori on Amazon under $20 aren't a full tang.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Back
Top Bottom