Customer Reviews

Fiskars 9668 Long Handle Digging Shovel

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I saw the Fiskars shovel described as "The Perfect Shovel" in Mother Earth News. On that basis I tracked one down at the local hardware superstore.

Just came in from using it yet again and I can say that it is the best shovel I have ever used, a superior tool in every way. The built-in (wide and textured) stomp edge makes it easy to stand upon for penetration, the one-piece handle has no rough/pinch points, and the shape of the blade is a good balance between penetration and load capacity. The blade makes short work of roots -- I have many times easily gone through roots over 2 inches, roots which previously would have seen me resorting to another tool. (The first time I sliced through a thick root with it my jaw actually dropped, and I checked to see if the root was rotten.) I have also used the shovel in situations where I really should have gone to get a prybar, with no sign of stress on the shovel.

I've had this shovel for going on 2 years now, and the only signs of wear are the powder-coating is worn off back from the tip a few inches and scratched off the back of the handle. That's it -- no nicks, bends, or tip wear in the blade, no bends in the handle. And as I write this I realize this is the first shovel that I have never had to sharpen. There has been no tendency to rust.

The shovel comes with a plastic sleeve starting at the blade and going about a foot up the handle. During one heavy session this sleeve sliced on a sharp rock and peeled back from the handle. But this had no effect on comfort in using the shovel -- the handle is smooth and well-shaped anyway. (The shape of the handle makes for less hand fatigue than a round handle.)

This shovel has seen steady use around our property. We have riverbed soils here, which means mixed sand, gravel, pockets of clay, and the occasional head-sized rock. The Fiskars shovel handles all of them equally well.

The shovel is a bit heavier than a wooden-handled one, but no heavier than some "industrial-strength" models I have used. I think the extra weight is far offset by the efficiency in digging, and the way it handles roots. (The ease of cutting roots would alone make this an ideal shovel for many people.)

I do a lot of digging, and have used (and used up) many shovels over the years. After trying the Fiskars shovel, I can't see ever using anything else -- a good thing, since I am likely to have this one for life, the way it is holding up. Casual users might not want to deal with the extra weight, but I think any farmer, rancher, laborer, serious gardener, or homesteader would instantly recognize its superior qualities once it was in their hands and would value having one.

This shovel is definitely not a toy. It's big and it's heavy, but it's strong and looks like it will last many years. I've used it for normal gardening and landscaping. It's got a curve and a point so it's not great for edging, but it will turn up clay and move plenty of dirt. The shaft is shaped like a teardrop so it's comfortable, but I'm a tall guy and I'm not sure how it will fit in smaller hands.

This entire Fiskars binge began with a hoe [incredible product] and then a rake [excllent] and eventually have replaced nearly entire outdoor garden tool set with Fiskars.

My husband said we didn't need another shovel but I was so happy with the other garden tools that I bought this for myself...I've not been able to use it once because he immediately adopted it. According to him it 'digs itself". I'm not exactly sure what that means but he brags about the weight and balance - says it makes it so much easier. The same applies for the square shovel. Super nice weight, well balanced, Comfortable.

While it might initially seem counter-intuitive to buy a heavy shovel...it actually is much easier to work with than a light weight shovel. The weight allows maximum efficiency so you don't need to strain and struggle to break the earth - it does the work for you. He has a tendency to have lower back pain when working (age related) and within an hour this became his new favorite shovel....he quickly insisted on buying the square head equivalent (every bit as good).

The other major difference is the long handle. It seems more and more tools are trying to scrimp by on less material - this is a very solid, very heavy item with an extra nice long handle that is perfect for those who are a bit on the tall side. It also has the rolled edge to keep the foot from slipping...lots of nice little extra's that set this apart from the rest.

Very pleased with the Fiskars line of garden tools - either buy two or don't let your husband borrow it...you won't get it back

After having broken maybe 6 wooden or fiberglass-handle shovels, I have acquired the "wisdom" that you get what you pay for. I admit, I used it to pry out a tree stump, so it's my fault, but this product first bent along the shaft, and then ultimately sheared and broke near the weld. That said, it has been the best shovel I've owned, and even if it didn't come with a warranty, I would probably go back and buy the same thing. Now for the amazing part...

I called up their customer service, and within 3 minutes, they had my shipping information and told me they are sending me a brand new one! They didn't even want the old one back. Wow! I am now a huge fan of this brand and will be replacing my other tools with Fiskars, which all seem to be well-designed, built, and come with a lifetime warranty.

My yard is full of hard clay and lots of rocks. For simple gardening, I can usually get by with a wood- or fiberglass-handle shovel. But if I need to dig down a ways, or pry out a rotted fence pole, or dig out one of the many stumps we have in the mulched area, ordinary shovels break. I went through 2 or 3 a year, even trying to go easy on them. Then I saw this all-steel shovel, for the same price as the others, and tried it. Here's what I found after a couple good work-outs:
- It's not unbreakable, but it will take a lot of hard use. I tried to lever out a medium-sized stump, and could feel the handle start to give as I put my full weight (250 lbs) on it. So it won't replace a 6' steel bar for the big jobs. But it easily dug out many rocks, and a couple of smaller stumps, without a problem.
- It's heavy. No, really, it's heavy! Spend a couple of hours digging with this puppy, and your shoulders will ache like never before. You'll get a lot more done than you could have with other shovels, but you sure are going to feel it.
Bottom line: If you have an ordinary shovel now, and have never broken it, you probably don't need this one. And if you are only going to buy one shovel, don't get this. But if you already have a regular shovel for the day-to-day chores, and need a "nuclear option" for the really ugly jobs, do yourself a favour and buy one of these, before you break any more handles. Very highly recommended.

I'm an archeologist and our job is to dig...period. On some survey jobs our crews can dig over 1000 or more shovel tests (holes to 4' deep) and when you dig that many holes the choice of what shovel to use is serious business. I've used both wooden and plastic shovels over the years and almost always end up breaking them sometimes after only one day of use. This shovel is metal and very sturdy with some nice weight to it. It's like the perfect tool for digging. Due to this shovel, I no longer have to hold back and dig gingerly on the job or worry whether or not the dumb shovel will break thus upsetting the boss. If you put a good edge on it the thing will cut thru 5" roots like butter. Nice.

This shovel looks like it will hold up very well. The only problem is that it is very heavy. It's hard to use for situations where you have to lift it up very high. But for digging, this shovel works great!

The is by far the best shovel ever. It will chew through the toughest soil, destroy any roots in the way and upheave most stones that would give inferior shovels a problem. But like all tools, it's not indestructable. I made the mistake of leveraging it against concrete and applying my 200+ pound frame on the other side in an attempt to uproot a tree for transplanting. Thinking my best friend in the garden was indestructable was a miscalculation and I ended up bending it at the leverage point. Oops! So now I'm off to buy 2 more now that I'm a bit smarter (next time I'll go grab the prybar) and I know exactly what my shovel can handle. BTW, any other shovel would have been utterly destroyed in this situation, my bent heavy duty shovel is still capable of turning soil but it's transplanting days are over. The other reviews have it right. When you grab for this shovel, you know it was designed for work.

After having gone through four lesser quality long handled shovels in as many years, this shovel is far and away the best shovel of its type that I've ever owned.

The design and construction of this shovel is great! The blade is very solidly attached to the handle. Instead of a molded socket for the handle that's made by folding the steel and securing it with a metal collar or bolt, the metal handle is welded solidly and directly to the blade. This makes for a very strong shovel that will allow for a lot more leverage when trying to dig or pry something heavy out of the ground. I have heavy clay soil with lots of rocks in it, so digging up a large plant or prying an obstructing rock out of the soil was a difficult task with a standard shovel. I've broken wood and fiberglass shovel handles over the years, and I've lost count of the number of shovels I've had to jury-rig a new collar for or replace the busted bolts that secure the blade to the handle. I've had metal handle shovels too, but up until this point they're all had the separate blade/handle design and they've all eventually failed. Yes, I'm hard on my shovels! LOL I've always thought the design of most shovels is faulty though, the socket/collar/bolt arrangement is weak by its very nature.

The Fiskars 9668 Long Handle Shovel has some weight to it, but it's not overly heavy in my opinion. The weight is enough to give it some heft without making it cumbersome. In my experience a shovel that is too light doesn't usually cut through heavy soil, sod, or roots very well and actually tires me out more because of the extra energy it requires. If you were to take a cross section of the metal handle of this shovel, it is slightly teardrop-shaped which makes for a much better grip and less fatigue. I've used shovels with a completely round metal handle and they're really hard on the hands and tired them out quickly.

If you're looking for a very well built, strong, well-balanced and durable long handled shovel you should definitely give this one a try. The price on Amazon was the best I could find at the time, and I did shop around both online and at my local Sears store and retail nurseries. For under thirty-five dollars, this is a really great bargain!

This shovel is a pleasure to use, and both the handle and the blade seem to be unbreakable. The weak point is the weld between them. There is a long weld between the very end of the handle and the curve of the blade, and a short weld between the handle and the step. The quality of this weld varies from shovel to shovel, and on mine, it was unusually small. After a couple years of heavy use, I was prying a piece of buried wood and it snapped. The shovel kept working fine for another two years, and then, when I was prying some roots, the long weld started to break. And yet, if I'm careful, the shovel still digs! If you want to pass this tool on to your grandchildren, my advice is to never pull UP on the handle while the blade is wedged under something.