Customer Reviews

Gerber 22-41578 Gorge Folding Shovel

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

For what it is, this shovel is very good. My only real complaint is that it is very dull; the "digging edge" could stand to be much sharper, as it is, it is not even rounded off. That's nothing that can't be fixed with an angle grinder, though :)

As far as construction, it's extremely solid, rugged, and well made, pretty much what you'd expect from Gerber.

What you should be aware of before you buy, though, is that it is *very* small. This isn't comparable to the GI "trenching tools", or the Coleman camp shovels you're probably familiar with. It is closer to a garden spade. Folded, it will literally almost fit into your pocket, actually will fit into a larger ski jacket pocket. The blade is smaller than my (adult male) hand, including fingers. I bought this to put in my trunk for digging my car out in an emergency ... it is just barely big enough to be useful for that purpose.

So, if the size is appropriate for your needs, this is a great shovel.

While i'm certainly sensitive and empathehetic to the needs of of any US service personnel serving in the gulf (my thanks to you all)....just because amazon can't ship the shovel somewhere - -it shouldn't get a bad review in my opinion. For the price it absolutely can't be beat. If you want full blown 'survival" shovel like a pro climber would use -- then count on spending $100 or more......I just had to dig my car tires out of the snow the other day (I bought the shovel to leave in my trunk) and it was perfect for the job.

I bought this shovel to carry on my mountain bike and use to build trails. It's light and compact and comes with a handy bag. The quality of shovel is superb. I have used it a few weeks now and the metal has not shown any signs of fatigue. You can set the shovel blade at a right angle to the handle to use as a pick. The handle length is a little short to get great leverage though. The handle extends and locks in place with a spring loaded button. Unfortunately the button and spring were broken on my shovel when I got it. Not sure if that happened during shipping but it wasn't a big enough issue to be worth returning it.

I would recommend this shovel for anyone looking for a quality compact shovel.

This is a pretty good collapsing shovel. The handle has a telescoping joint, so it fold down into a very compact shape. The handle is made out of the standard fiberglass-nylon plastic material that Gerber is fond of using. It isn't very big when expanded out, but what do you expect for a fairly durable folding shovel.

The first time I put this brand new shovel to work it was broken before I finished putting up my tent. Yes, digging out a couple small, rough rocks and pounding in tent stakes was too much for it to handle. Somewhere in its normal use, the main nut jumped its threads and got bound up. When I got back from my weekend trip I put some tools and leverage to the nut, but could not free it up. It is now a shovel that will not fold.

I came across this Gerber shovel in my Amazon recommendations recently. I own the very same model that I bought at the LL Bean store in Freeport, Maine 2 years ago. I was not as much of an Amazon shopper back then as I am today. But I wish now that I was. I paid $32 at LL Beans for this model, and that was 2 years ago. At the time I remember them not having much of a selection, but this shovel seemed very well made, rugged, and easy to use. I figured I could do a lot worse for the price. As it turns out, I could have done a lot better. Forgetting the shellacking I took on the price of this shovel, I highly recommend you not only buy this model if you are in the market for one, but I also suggest you forget the shopping around and just buy it here. This is probably the best quality folding shovel you will ever find for the price they are asking. Especially, if you buy it as part of a package deal and get the free shipping thrown in. If you are one that has ever visited hiking or outdoor gear stores than you know how expensive any survival type equipment can be. They have a fool proof way of drawing you into spending as many bucks as you can on whatever it is they are offering by hammering home the point that it's your life and family you are talking about here. The real truth is that a lot of people buy equipment that is far more expensive than they will ever have a reason to need, or even use at all. As anyone that is an avid outdoor enthusiast knows, a folding camp shovel has lots of uses along on a camping or hiking trip. Digging, prospecting, hammering, climbing, self defense, and even sometimes actual shoveling are all included on the list. Most folding shovels offered in retail outlets are not just expensive, but often time just too big. This one folds down very compactly, and can be easily toted along with little room taken, or inconvenience met. This Gerber model is in my opinion the perfect size and quality that most of us would ever have a reason to need along on a wilderness adventure. Its solid, very rugged, a snap to extend and compact, and after two years of owning it, it is still going strong for me with little show for the wear. I highly recommend the Gerber for your outdoor needs. It is in my opinion all the shovel you should ever need, at the best price you will find...

took this little guy out camping last weekend, and it worked great. it was much smaller than i thought it would be, the spade is about the size of my hand. it was perfect for hammering the tent stakes into the ground, and moving coals around in the firepit. you really can't beat the price for such a small, durable, and compact shovel.

The size was a bit smaller than I expected (I should have looked more closely at the specs). It's approximately 16 inch fully opened and the blade has about 7 inch x 5 inch It's a well built little shovel, feels sturdy even at the 90 degree setting chopping into frozen dirt. Toss in the trunk, good for space-saving, car camping etc. but I doubt it would meet the weight-versus-usefulness standards of backpackers at 1.7 lbs.

It did the job fine. Heat wasn't an issue as I was able to shovel hot coals around with it. What kept my review from being more favorable is the relative flimsyness of the handle (specifically the mechanism that allows it to extend). Another concern is that it is too short to have any real leverage. Like I said in the title, it's better than nothing, it's cheap and it's very compact so it may be worthwhile for you.

This is a great and useful pack shovel and I've been really happy with it. It packs down extremely small and comes with a nice, heavy bag with drawstring and cord lock. You could easily stow this thing under the seat of your car or truck. The folded dimension is approx. 4.75" wide X 8" long. Unfolded, it becomes 15.75" long, so it really is a small tool and the handle gives you limited leverage. It is heavy for its size and is well made. Though the handle is plastic, it seems durable enough. The blade is stout and is not likely to deform from use. (anything is possible, of course!)

The blade is not sharpened, but I prefer this anyway; the edge of the blade can easily take an edge from a large metal file, grinder, or grinding wheel, if that's your preference, but I find it just dulls too quickly anyway and makes it unnecessarily dangerous. The dimensions of the blade itself are about 4.75" X 6". It is tapered to a nice point, is slightly cupped, and has a folded-over edge at the top in case you wanted to give it some oomph with the heel of a boot. It has a hammer function for use on tent stakes and such and is actually capable of performing that task without distorting or otherwise breaking the tool, unlike some other camp shovels I've used in the past. This one is heavy and well-made.

That said, this is an excellent and useful tool for car camping, camping with larger groups (where you have more backs to carry heavy little goodies like this), and for winter or desert duty with your vehicle where you may find a small shovel useful. (It's small enough to leave under the seat and forget it until you really need it, versus forgetting to take a larger shovel that you wouldn't otherwise carry all the time) When I'm backpacking, however, this baby is way too heavy. Instead, I take along a much smaller, lighter plastic trowel for sanitary duties.