When You Need To Do Some Megaweeding

In a normal year, we would be running the sprinklers on the garden about now, because it would be so hot and dry, with no promise of rain. But this is not a normal year. I'm not sure what that even is anymore. We've just come out of one of the wettest Junes on record and July is off to a soggy start.

Last night, we had over four inches of rain and we really didn't need any. There was water laying in the field across the road and our next-door neighbor had lakefront property right out his front door. We've got two sump pumps in our basement and both of them running together could barely keep up with the water coming in. Fortunately, we weren't one of several residents in the area that lost that battle.

All this rain means the gardens are looking fantastic. The hostas appear to be on steroids. The double daylilies are blooming 100% double, for once. And the weeds are growing so fast and so big that I don't recognize them.

About those weeds... The gardens proper are doing fine in that department, thanks to either full plantings or mulch that's doing its job. But two areas are in desperate need of help. The Berry Barn, which I had completely weeded four weeks ago - it looked fantastic, I promise - now looks as if I haven't set foot in it all year.

And the grape arbor, well, let's talk about the grape arbor. We first planted grapes in 2008 - Mars, Reliance, and Himrod. We enjoyed these seedless table varieties for many years, until the last couple, when they just didn't do well.

This spring, ironically, none of the Reliance vines made it through the winter. One Himrod bit the dust and the other one isn't looking that good either. Both of the Mars vines made it, but they aren't producing a single grape. This has caused us to reevaluate this grape thing.

Romie wanted to just tear out the arbor and be done with it, but I wouldn't have any of that. I love that arbor, grapes or no grapes. So we I decided we'd let the grapes that remain do their thing and plant various clematis vines in place of the grapes that died.

"What if the clematis starts climbing all over the grapes?" he said. "Then they'll look pretty," I said. And that was that. But this post is about weeding, and the base of the grape arbor was absolutely solid weeds.

See the weeds at the rear of the grape arbor base? The whole thing
looked like that when I started weeding.

Dandelions, various grasses, a couple of types of clover (and they'd produced seed pods by now), poison ivy, plantain, baptisia seedlings, white mulberry, thistles, Washington hawthorn seedlings, creeping euphorbia, and various other weeds had made themselves right at home while we mulled over what to do.

Since the arbor was staying and we were growing desirable things on it, these weeds had to go, but oh my gosh, where to start? Images of a bulldozer came to mind, but we didn't have one. I love my family of Cobrahead weeders, but this was no match even for those.

But sometimes, ever so rarely, I have moments of brilliance. They're so few and far between that I'm prouder of them than I have a right to be, mainly because I know that every other person on the planet already knew about this long before I did. But dang, if I wasn't excited about the idea that popped into my head one day when I was doing absolutely nothing and having a good time of it.

What if... just what if I took my grandpa's manure fork (it looks like a pitchfork) and skimmed across the top of the weed-infested soil, about 2-3 inches deep, loosening the soil so that I could sift out the weeds? This would be better than hoeing because if you cut some of those weeds, that just means if you don't remove all the pieces, you're screwed. Some weeds are like earthworms - cut them up and they make new ones from the pieces.

I tried my method on a defunct strawberry bed first. It was a small area and I wanted to use the plot for something else. Oh. My. Goodness. Why I had not thought of this earlier, I don't know, but I now don't look at the weediest of beds with disdain anymore. It's actually kind of fun, because it's a much quicker and easier way of removing large quantities of weeds.

What about the dandelions though? No fork is going to remove those that easily. No, I still had to pull those out individually (unless they were small), but by loosening the soil around them, it made it that much easier to pull them out and get all the roots, especially with soggy soil.

Until the rains came last night, I made quick work of the grape arbor area. I'll finish up when we dry up a little bit. It won't take me long to finish the grape arbor and then I'll move to the other side of the yard and take care of the mess in the Berry Barn.

Hallelujah! Who knew weeding could be so easy? (You don't really believe me, do you? Try it!)

Gilmour Spray Nozzle and Flexogen® Hose Review and Giveaway

When the 4^th of July happens around here, it seems like summer is half over. Of course, this isn’t true, except for the school kids and that was a long, long time ago for us. There’s a lot of summer left in the garden too, and one thing that we’re sure to be doing in the hottest and driest part of summer for us here in NW Ohio, is some watering.

Recently, the Fiskars people contacted me about trying some of their products. I’ve always been a fan of Fiskars and somehow missed the fact that they acquired Gilmour, maker of garden watering products, back in 2014.

Among the things they sent me to try were these Gilmour products: 

Of all the things I received to try, the Super Duty Thumb Control Watering Nozzle was my favorite. In their description, they talk about a nozzle having “the right heft” to it, and I have to wholeheartedly agree. This just feels right in your hand. And it’s really easy to control with that thumb lever.

The nozzle head itself has eight spray patterns: Flower, Sweep, Garden, Shrub, Clean, Soft Wash, Rinse, and Jet.

It has stainless steel connectors so it doesn’t corrode and get hard to disconnect from your hose. They also sent me some Quick Connect components though, so I don’t even have to unscrew the nozzle to remove it. I just pop it off.

The Quick Connect set makes it easy to take the nozzle off and on from the hose.

Oh, and it comes with a lifetime warranty, too. I. Love. This. Nozzle.

They also sent me a Flexogen® Super Duty Hose. If there’s one thing that I hear gardeners complain about, it’s hoses. First of all, they don’t like heavy ones and secondly, they hate how they kink. I’ve complained about these very things myself.

The Flexogen® IS lightweight AND it honest-to-goodness DOES NOT KINK. I can't believe it, but it's true. Now this is saying something, because we have really low water pressure. I've had hoses that are supposed to resist kinking under pressure, but when you've got low water pressure, it's hard to make a product that simply won't kink. But Gilmour has done it.

The other thing is, this Flexogen® hose really is pretty lightweight. As someone who suffers from degenerative disc disease in my neck (as so many my age do), I appreciate how much lighter in weight this hose is than some. There's nothing I hate worse about water hoses than dragging one around that behaves like it was a 50-lb. boa constrictor.

Flexogen® hoses have eight layers and have been tested and proven to be the strongest and longest-lasting hose in its class. It's made with heavy-duty brass couplings to hold up well under use.

Also, the polished exterior resists dirt collection, unlike some other hoses I’ve tried. Of course, it’s gray, so it wouldn’t show much dirt anyway, but still. It's my new favorite hose!

It's a GIVEAWAY!

Now, the folks at Fiskars and Gilmour have been so kind to offer both the Super Duty Thumb Control Watering Nozzle AND a Flexogen® hose to one of my readers. If enough people enter, they’ve said they might give away two sets! So enter now and tell all your friends and neighbors. The more people that enter, the greater chance there will be two sets to give away! (And no, I do not know what the tipping point will be. LOL)

This giveaway will end with a random drawing on Saturday evening, July 9^th, at midnight EDT. All you need to do to enter is to fill out the Rafflecopter form. That’s it. But if you want bonus entries, check out the extra options when you fill out the Rafflecopter form. There are lots of ways to get a bonus entry!

a Rafflecopter giveaway    

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*I received these products from Fiskars/Gilmour for the purposes of reviewing them and hosting a giveaway. As always, I won't say anything about a product that isn't the truth from my own personal experience with it. I have received no other form of compensation for writing about these products.   

Fiskars PowerGear2: A Review and a Giveaway!

I love to prune. I mean LOVE it. Ask my husband and his face will cloud over, because he hates pruning. He gets ouchy about it not because he actually hates the act of pruning; he hates that I love it so much. He isn't convinced that pruning trees and shrubs is altogether good for them. It's one of the Top Ten Things We Argue About. (I know you have silly things that you argue about with your significant other too, so stop laughing.)

When Fiskars, a company who has been in business for 365 years now (!!!), asked me if I wanted to try out some of their PowerGear2™ products, I got all giddy. It's not that we don't have any pruners or loppers, or hedge shears, because we do, but to get to try out some brand new ones? Let me have at 'em.

Here's what they sent:

PowerGear2™ Bypass Pruners

• PowerGear^® patented gear technology multiplies leverage to give you up to 3X more power on every cut
• Fully hardened steel blade stays sharp, even through heavy use
• Rugged DuraFrame^® construction provides superior strength and reduced weight
• Contoured, rolling handle fits the shape and natural motion of your hand for comfortable use and reduced hand fatigue
• Maximum cutting capacity: 3/4" diameter

PowerGear2™ Hedge Shears

• Powers through tough branches that traditional hedge shears struggle to cut
• 10" blades cut all the way to the tip
• Shock-absorbing bumpers help reduce the jarring conclusion at the end of cuts
• Tough steel construction with riveted handles offers lasting durability
• Rounded ergonomic handles with Softgrip^® touchpoints enhance comfort and control

PowerGear2™ Lopper (18")

• Patent-pending design with modified gears and cam mechanism optimizes your cutting power in the middle of the cut where the branch is thickest and you need it most
• Fully hardened steel blade stays sharp, even through heavy use
• Rounded ergonomic handles with Softgrip^® touchpoints enhance comfort and control
• Low-friction coating helps the blade glide through wood, prevents the blade from gumming up with sap and debris and helps the blade resist rust
• Bypass blade style
• Maximum cutting capacity: 1-1/2" diameter (Larger-sized PowerGear2™ Loppers allow cuts up to 2".)

I'd actually won a pair of PowerGear2™ loppers at the Chicago Flower and Garden Show, but that was in early March and with the weather we were having after we got home from that, not much pruning was being done. But I've had a chance to try these out for a little bit and here's what I think:

Overall, all three products I tried were easy to use and with one exception, I had no problems. These are quality tools that come with a Lifetime Warranty. What I liked most about them were the relatively light weight, compared to some I've used, and the mechanisms operated extremely smoothly.

We I had quite a bit of pruning to do on both trees and some flowering shrubs, so last week I really put the loppers and the pruners through their paces. Easy breezy, and I mean that. I've got a little bit of arthritis in my right hand (my pruning hand) and they both cut through what I was pruning so easily that there was no stress on those joints at all. Fiskars actually did an extensive study of how the human body interacts with tools and used what they learned to ergonomically design these tools for the optimum comfort and performance.

Also, the non-stick surface of the blades made cleaning them a breeze. That was especially important to me with the hand pruners. It seems like I'm always cutting something close to the ground or unfortunately, using them in a closed position to dig dandelions out. (Yeah, I know, pruners aren't supposed to be used for digging, but when they're in my hand and there's a dandelion...) With the spring we've had and all the rain, mud happens.

I only used the hedge shears a little bit, because we really didn't have a lot of that type of work to do just yet, but I found them to be just as smooth to use as the other two tools.

I mentioned one problem earlier, and that was with the hand pruners. I'm a hand pruner hussy, in that I will try any pruner that I can get my hands on. You can never have too many pruners, right? I've tried a LOT of them and I have my favorites. I'm still getting used to these, because they have this really cool ergonomic feature, in that the handle rolls as you squeeze them shut, to help eliminate blisters and hand fatigue. That's different and it feels different.

The pruners, I think, must be designed for a larger hand than mine (which is small), because I felt the need to hold them closer to the blade than I think was intended. I say this, because more than once when I squeezed them shut to prune, I caught the fleshy part of my index finger in the rolling mechanism and it pinched. To be fair, I've had a similar problem with another brand of pruners (in about the same position of the handle), so I think it must be more me and the way I hold them than it is the pruners. But I wanted to mention it. I'm going to keep using them though, because they really do perform well, and perhaps I'll get over that pinching business.

That said, Fiskars is allowing me to give away five pairs of the PowerGear2™ hand pruners!  

FIVE!

So if you want a chance at winning a pair of them for your very own, just leave a comment to this blog post and tell me, yes or no, if you like to deadhead/prune your flowers or not. Some people hate the job, and some people love it. I love it, but if you hate it, you're probably going to want these to make quick work of it.

When you leave a comment, be sure to also provide a way for me to contact you, should you be the winner. (Email address is fine.) The giveaway will run until midnight EDT, Sunday, June 28, 2015. I'll use Random.org to randomly pick five winners from all the comments. Good luck!

Giveaway rules here.

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Fiskars website:  http://www2.fiskars.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/fiskars

Twitter: @Fiskars_HQ

Instagram: @Fiskars_HQ

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/fiskars_hq
Google+ : +Fiskars 

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Fiskars sent me the three tools featured above for purposes of testing and review. All opinions stated here about the tools are my own, based on my experience with them. No further compensation of any kind was given. This blog post contains my affiliate links for Amazon. If you decide to purchase anything through these links, I thank you. It won't cost you any more, but it may add a few cents to my account.

There's a New Tool in Town! Barebones Hori Hori Garden Knife (+ a giveaway!)

This past week's Earth Day festivities, ongoing since the first Earth Day in 1970, are meant to call attention to our planet and to urge us to be kind to it. It is life-giving in that we derive our sustenance from it, either directly or indirectly. Did you do anything special to observe Earth Day?

Just a couple of days before, I had received a new tool in the mail to test. It was not only new to me, but new to the rest of the world as well, with it being officially introduced on Earth Day by Barebones. The Hori Hori knife is a multi-purpose tool that comes in handy in ways that might surprise you.

The Barebones Hori Hori Knife sells for $29.99 and is available online
and at Home Depot.

"Hori" means "to dig"
in Japanese

Having its origin in Japan, the Hori Hori knife as a tool is not new to me and I have owned one for several years. It's my go-to general purpose tool, especially in spring, when I'm doing such gardening tasks as weeding, trimming, small digging, etc. Many companies make a similar version of it.

So what makes the Barebones Hori Hori knife different or special from others?

Though I haven't had much time to put it to heavy use, right off the bat I noticed that this is a heavy-duty tool. It has some serious heft to it. The handle is made of sustainable bamboo and the blade is rust-resistant tempered steel, giving it exceptional strength. One edge is standard sharp blade - with a bottle opener and twine cutter! - and the opposite edge is serrated.

The steel at the base of the blade goes all the way through the handle to the bottom, where a one-inch solid piece makes it strong enough for pounding. (Why aren't more hand tools designed with this???)

One side of the blade is marked in inches, which can be a help
in measuring depth when planting bulbs.

I'll be using this over the next few months to see how it holds up under use by a gardener who is notorious for abusing her tools, but I don't really have any concerns that it won't. You can tell it's a high quality tool that has had some thought put into its design. It feels really good in your hands. If I could improve on the whole hori hori knife experience, I would suggest that Barebones provide a leather protective sheath for it that can be attached to the waistband of my jeans.

Listen to Robert Workman, founder of the Barebones Company that you may know for their outdoor lifestyle products, tell about the Barebones Hori Hori knife in this short video:





The Barebones company got its start four years ago with Workman's vision...

"At barebones, our products are designed to lift the poorest of poor while still being relevant to the richest of rich. Think about that for a moment. If we have products that will really do that, then those products are a great equalizer in lifting us all to a higher place. After all, we are all here on this earth together sharing a human experience.

We can offer reliable power, provide sustainable living shelters, and teach sustainable food growth to every human being on this earth without overwhelming our resources. There is enough for all."

A portion of the sales of Barebones products benefit TIFIE (Teaching Individuals and Families Independence through Enterprise) and Goal Zero. For more information about the Barebones company, their philanthropy, and their other products, visit their website here.

Want to win a Barebones Hori Hori knife?

How would you like a Hori Hori knife of your very own? Barebones has generously allowed me to give one away to one of you! All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post, telling me about your favorite garden hand tool, as well as fill out the Rafflecopter form below. In order to be entered into the giveaway, you need to do both things. It won't take you long at all.


a Rafflecopter giveaway
The giveaway will end at midnight EDT next Sunday night, May 3, 2015, so make sure you enter by then. Good luck!

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Note:  I was given this tool by the Barebones Company to test in my own garden. I was encouraged to give an honest opinion of the tool, which any reputable company will do in order to get feedback for possible improvements on their product. As always, my opinions about any product I review are my own. I did not receive any compensation from the Barebones Company other than the tool I received for testing and will not receive any compensation from any purchases that come about as a result of my opinion about the tool.

Got Snow? Ames True Temper Telescoping Roof Rake to the Rescue!

Ever since I've had my conservatory, when winter comes, snow on the roof skylights has been a problem. Because the quality of winter light is lower, that light is even more important for my plants housed inside, in spite of most of them being somewhat dormant at the 50°F we keep it in there.

Snow on the roof, the sun can't melt it...

Snow is a good insulator, but
it blocks the light.

Anything that blocks light isn't a good thing, so when Ames Tools invited me to try some of their tools, I immediately chose their telescoping roof rake - part of their True Temper line - as one of them.

I received it last summer, but of course snow on the skylights isn't a problem then, but now it's January and the weather we're having had me searching the garage for that roof rake. It was easily found, just as easily assembled, and I got out there and used it.

I didn't need to extend the roof rake to its maximum length in order to remove
the snow from the skylights.

The angle at the far end of the pole is crucial for its ease of use, allowing you to be fairly close to the roof while using it. It's made of aluminum, making it pretty lightweight, and the pole's unique elliptical shape makes it 50% stronger than traditional round-handled versions.

That's better!

It didn't take me long to scrape the snow off the skylights, which then allowed more of that valuable light to shine in on all the plants. We had gotten some freezing rain before the snow came, so there was still some ice left on the windows, but the roof rake made short work of the snow. This was exactly what we needed.

It has push-buttons that make extending the pole all the way to its maximum length of 17 feet very easy to do, but it has a collapsible length of just six feet, making it better for storage. The 24" blade is made of temperature resistant polycarbonate.

One of the things I like about the Ames company is their attention to detail and to their customers. I visited their headquarters in Camp Hill, Penn., last spring and soon found out why they've been in business since 1774 - before the United States WAS the United States! I've promised to share details of that visit with you and I will - soon.

The telescoping roof rake is widely available at independent home improvement centers as well as the major outlets, with a selling price of around $49.95.

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Ames Tools provided me with the telescoping roof rake in order for me to try it out and give my honest opinion. This blog post expresses my own opinion on their product and no other compensation was given.

Ames NeverLeak™ Hose Reels: A Review

Since I discovered Ames Tools earlier this year and got to see firsthand how some of them are made and what the company's philosophies are towards their products and their customers, I've become a big fan. I have to tell you when they first contacted me about trying out some of their products, I was hesitant. But I'm very glad I decided to go ahead, because they've become some of my favorite garden tools and products ever.

When I visited their headquarters in Camp Hill, Penn., in April, one of the products that caught my attention was a hose reel that was actually attractive (as far as hose reels go) and had a guide on it that helped the hose wind up evenly on the reel when you wound it up. I was pretty excited when they sent one to me to try.

The basic info on the Ames Neverleak™ Hose Reel and Cabinet is this:

• NeverLeak™ aluminum water system, which resists cross threading, stands up to cold temperatures, and is 8X stronger than typical plastic water systems
• Features the Auto-Track® system that quickly and automatically distributes the hose along the reel during rewinding
• Holds up to 150' of hose
• Includes leader hose
• 20" x 23½" x 21"
• 2-year warranty

The cabinet is made of metal, painted black, and is heavy enough to stay put when you're reeling in the hose. We have heavy rubber hoses that we use in most locations of our yard and sometimes it feels like I'm wresting big rubber snakes when I'm trying to hang the hoses on a hanger. I just could NOT believe how easily the hose reel wound that thing up.

Watch:

YouTube video

I also got a chance to try out the Ames NeverLeak™ Poly Wall Mount Hose Reel with Manual Hose Guide.  For comparison, here are its features:

• Fully assembled design; just take it out of the box and mount to the wall
• Features Ames NeverLeak® aluminum water system, which resists cross threading, stands up to cold temperatures and is 8 times stronger than typical plastic water systems
• Includes a manual hose guide to keep hands clean, and accessory tray and easy-spin grip for added convenience
• Capacity ranges from 50’ to 225' of 5/8" hose
• 17½" x 23" x 17" 
• 2-year warranty

The two major differences between the free-standing one and the wall mounted one are that the wall-mounted one isn't entirely enclosed, so it isn't as attractive, and it doesn't have the Auto-Track® system. There's a hose guide, but you have to guide it manually as you reel the hose in.  A  knob on top of the guide makes it easy to hold onto and move back and forth as needed, but the other hose reel is definitely easier. Of course, there's a difference in cost too, with the cabinet style selling for $119 at Lowe's and the wall mount version for $39.98.

Time will tell how they hold up over the years, and though I prefer the cabinet hose reel that I demo'ed in the video, each one does a nice job of reeling the hose in and each is appropriate for the place where we're using it. (Cabinet version, outside. Wall mounted one, inside the garage.) What I really like is that now we don't have to wrestle the hoses to put them away, so we actually PUT THEM AWAY.  :-)

For more information on all the hose reels that Ames has to offer, check their website.

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Ames Tools provided me with both hose reels to try out for the purpose of this review. As always, the thoughts expressed here are my own.

Something Old, Something New, Shovels For Me, A Review For You

We've had this shovel for nearly 40 years.

When my husband and I first were married, we started accumulating things that one needs when setting up a proper household. A key to the front door.  A large garbage can.  A shovel.  The shovel wasn't on my list of necessary things, because my husband was the gardener of the family back then.

As is the case with many couples starting out, not everything you get is brand new. Family members are happy to hand down those things that they have to spare, and our first shovel came from my parents. (I think. It's hard to remember details that are 39 years old.) That shovel has gotten a lot of years of use and it shows it. But it still works, even if the tip is a little worn.

Times change though, and we now both know that a shovel is a necessary member in the tool shed.  I'm just as likely to use one as Romie.

So when Ames Tools contacted me earlier this year to see if I might be interested in learning more about their products, I thought about shovels. We sure could use a new one and they were happy to send a couple of them out for us to try.  In fact, I got to take a trip to Camp Hill, Penn., in April to actually see their shovels and other tools being made.

That's a story for another day, but let me just say this - I love this company. They've got an incredible history. Their tools "built America," and that's no kidding.  Ames was a company before the United States was the United States. Established in 1774, they're still going strong today.  That speaks volumes, doesn't it?

These are just a very few of the tools that the Ames company makes.

But about those shovels...

Ames Tools makes more shovels (and other tools) than you can imagine. Round point shovels, border spades, transfer shovels, floral shovels, drain spades, snow shovels, even a rice shovel. Not only that, they make them in varying levels of quality.  That's not to say they aren't all great shovels, but it depends on how much you're going to use it and how much you want to spend. Ames has a shovel for every use and budget.

Jim Maffei, Director of Marketing and
New Product Development at Ames

We wanted a good basic digging shovel and we needed something that would handle our clay soil as well as our old one shown above did.  Remember that shovel (not an Ames) with the zig-zag cutting edge that came out a few years ago?  We broke it. We broke the BLADE. That's how tough our soil can be.

As I looked through the Ames catalog, trying to figure out which shovel would work best for us, I got it narrowed down to four different ones, but I was still indecisive about whether I wanted the ash-handled round point, or the heavy duty professional fiberglass one. I needed help choosing.

So, I got on the phone one day with Jim Maffei, Director of Marketing and New Product Development for Ames, and we talked shovels. Since Ames was sending me the shovel(s) of my choice, cost wasn't really a factor for me. But there are all kinds of things that enter into why people choose the shovels they do and at first, I didn't choose one based solely on function.

I decided it was either going to be the Ames Long Wood Handle Round Point Shovel or the Razor-back Long Handle Super Socket Round Point Shovel. Razor-back is one of the professional lines of tools that Ames manufactures and they're now making these available to the general public, for those who want something a little heavier duty.

While this has nothing to do with function, I like my tools to look attractive.  The modern vintage look of the Ames wooden-handled shovel appealed to me a great deal, as well as the fact that it's made entirely in the U.S.  On the other hand, the Razor-back's signature color is red. I'll choose red for just about anything.

But it doesn't really matter how a shovel looks if doesn't perform well.  So my husband and I put both shovels to the test. We had several garden tasks this spring that were good for giving both shovels a workout.  We needed to remove shrubs, plant a tree, and of course, plant new perennials.You can use pretty much any shovel to plant most perennials, but when it comes to digging a hole to plant a tree or shrub and especially when you're removing either of these, you need something that's tough enough for the job.

Here's what I thought about each of these shovels:

 Ames Long Wood Handle Round Point Shovel

• I loved the feel of the wooden handle (ash) and I felt like it had some flex to it, but when I applied some pretty heavy leverage, I heard a crack. Nothing appeared to be broken though and I kept on using it quite a bit after that. Minor creaking sounds, but no problems. 
• The step feature on this shovel is sufficient for really standing on it to get more power behind your digging. I don't think I'd buy a shovel without the step for the kind of digging we do around here. (I like to jump on my shovels. Clay, you know.)
• The grip is a bit cushioned and I like the feel of it.  It also helps prevent a gloved hand from slipping.
• 60.5" long, weighs about 4.5 pounds.
• Nice weight - not too heavy and not too light.
• It's got an attractive modern retro look to it, as do other tools in this line.
• Has a 15-year warranty.  
• $14.97 at Home Depot.

Razor-back Long Handle Super Socket Round Point Shovel

• This one has a fiberglass handle and I expected that to make it a little more lightweight, but it was just the opposite. The tempered steel blade is a bit heavier, so that contributes to the extra weight. It wasn't so much heavier though that I would prefer the other shovel because of it.
• The step on this shovel is wider and since there are times when I use both feet at once when putting my weight into digging, I'd choose the wider step.
• This one also has a comfortable grip.
• 62.25" long, weighs about 5.25 pounds.
• Has the feel of a heavy duty tool that it is.
• Has a lifetime warranty.
• $25.97 at Home Depot.

So which shovel did I like better? That's really a hard choice to make. They both work well, and I don't think you could go wrong with either one. The only difference might be that over time, with use factors being equal, the Razor-back could hold up better and/or longer. Both wood and fiberglass can break, although the fiberglass is less likely to do so. And while I really like the wooden-handled Ames shovel a lot, if I absolutely were forced to choose, I'd have to pick the Razor-back. It just feels like a better shovel and I had a little more confidence in it when I was applying leverage. I would have no problem paying the extra eleven dollars for the Razor-back.
 
Interestingly, as I got ready to do my review, I looked a little closer at Old Faithful and what do you know...

 

I sent these photos to Ames to see if they could determine a general time period for when this shovel might have been made. Here was their response:

“The solid socket Featherlite shovels with the shock bands were made in Parkersburg, WV, during the '60s to mid-'70s.  We discontinued shock band production and use.” - Dave Combs, a 30+ year employee of Ames

That fit, since Romie and I got married in 1975. We also have an old drain spade that's made by TrueTemper (a division of Ames) that they identified as being about that age, too.

It seems that we've always been an Ames family.  :-)

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Ames Tools sent both shovels to me free of charge so that I could try them out and compare the two of them. I have shared my experience and given my honest opinion of them. No monetary compensation has been given to me for the purposes of reviewing these products.