Shovels.

B

Bumppo

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Jan 27, 2006
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What about using shovels or trowels for light chopping, cleaving, or limbing? Input? Opinions? Does anyone carry them on backpacking , canoe or camping trips?
 
I bring a heavy garden trowel on canoe trips for bathroom breaks. It doesn't get used for much else, other than the odd job like working on a firepit. My last one had a serrated edge which did a good job on cutting through roots. But I never really used that feature either.
 
I carry one of the very light, orange plastic Coghlan's (sp?) shovels for digging out latrines, fire pits, etc. Any chopping for me would fall under the fixed-blade/hatchet category, though I've become quite smitten with the very lightweight Gerber collapsible saws for this type stuff.
YMMV. :)

Professor.
 
My first time I spent some real time with my dad in the wilderness was to prep for my survival class I was taking when I was in the cadets and he gave me an old spetsnaz shovel with one side sharpen with a file.

At the time my gear was very limited, so I remember him showing me use it as a hatchet to delimb trees and clear the ground from short vegetation. Works really well and those shovels are meant to last however in my opinion will never replace the hatchet/axe as a tool.
 
I have a Cold Steel shovel that goes on longer car camping trips. It has gone on a couple backpacking trips, but is sort of chucky, so it usually stays home. It is a great chopper and digger, and can split smaller chunks of wood with easewhen swung like a hatchet. My shovel is sharpened all around, so it doesn't take well to batoning. It is a nice tool, and sees lots of use around the yard.

I also have a Glock shovel thingie. That one doesn't get used much for anything. After I first acquired the Glock shovel, it did go on a couple trips, and it did digging duties just fine. However, the saw is pretty sort, and chopping with the shovel is ill advised due to the handle/shovel joint. If I didn't find it super cheap at a going-out-of-business sale, I wouldn't have it.

I also carry a Cohglan's lightweight orange plastic shovel on occasion. I also have a balck plastic Fiskars trowel that I take sometimes, too. The Fiskars has a hollow handle taht works well for stowing PJ balls or other little things.

The Fiskars trowel. I want to say it was $ .99 or $1.99 at Wally World:
Trowel002.jpg

Trowel003.jpg
 
A survival trowel!

Some other alternatives for digging are a Japanese gardening knife (hori hori)
http://www.arboronstate.com/home/aos/page_885_13/hori_hori_knife.html

or carving some type of digging tool

I think a pocket axe or a chopper is a better alternative for limbing, chopping and cleaving. You can use the axe to carve any sort of digger you want. It is difficult to use a digger to carve an axe.
 
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hikeeba said:
I have a Cold Steel shovel that goes on longer car camping trips. It has gone on a couple backpacking trips, but is sort of chucky, so it usually stays home. It is a great chopper and digger, and can split smaller chunks of wood with easewhen swung like a hatchet. My shovel is sharpened all around, so it doesn't take well to batoning. It is a nice tool, and sees lots of use around the yard.

I also have a Glock shovel thingie. That one doesn't get used much for anything. After I first acquired the Glock shovel, it did go on a couple trips, and it did digging duties just fine. However, the saw is pretty sort, and chopping with the shovel is ill advised due to the handle/shovel joint. If I didn't find it super cheap at a going-out-of-business sale, I wouldn't have it.

I also carry a Cohglan's lightweight orange plastic shovel on occasion. I also have a balck plastic Fiskars trowel that I take sometimes, too. The Fiskars has a hollow handle taht works well for stowing PJ balls or other little things.

The Fiskars trowel. I want to say it was $ .99 or $1.99 at Wally World:
Trowel002.jpg

Trowel003.jpg
Click to expand...

How about keeping a tight roll of toilet paper in the handle? Seems like a logical place for it. :)
 
Good call 42.

i didn't even know you could remove the end caps from those trowels. I am going to have to give mine a closer look.
 
your dibble link doesn't work. I would like to throw out there that they aren't for digging in normal soil, they are for poking holes to plant things in.

dibble2.jpg


MBTull said:
A survival trowel!

Some other alternatives for digging are a Japanese gardening knife (hori hori)
http://www.arboronstate.com/home/aos/page_885_13/hori_hori_knife.html

or Carving a dibble
http://www.coldclimategardening.com/wp-content/uploads/dibble.jpg

I think a pocket axe or a chopper is a better alternative for limbing, chopping and cleaving. You can use the axe to carve any sort of digger you want. It is difficult to use a digger to carve an axe.
Click to expand...
 
I have the cold steel shovel, lots of fun.

I've taken it on a couple of campouts and I think it's the best fire poker I've ever used! It's great for moving logs and sticks around, scooping and moving coals and heated rocks, pouring hot water from a super hot stainless water bottle, etc.

It's also fine for digging with, if that's your bag. I would say way too heavy for a dedicated bathroom trowel. I think it would be better suited to go along on primitive campouts where you will be building shelters and may want a firebed or be able to dig a large group latrine, and so on.

I've used mine (with the factory edge) to hack kindling, split small wood, and do some light chopping. Generally in places I would fear using my axe in (or in places I specifically avoid using an axe in, like root chopping).

It's also fun to throw (though this has resulted in a broken handle on mine).

It's fun, but for a chopping/splitting tool I would stick with a knife or axe.
 
Best deal is that small Fiskars...it's light and very durable. For digging a small drainage trench around your tent/bivi area, getting your poo-poo deep enough to keep animals from digging it up, to digging a small fire pit...it works quite well.

BOBDiggers.jpg


Another nice option is a long-handled trowel. I have an older Titanium one that I've taken on backpacking trips. It's great for moving coals on the fire.

The stainless U-Dig-It trowel is a great concept, just too heavy. My wife likes it, but I'm going to get her a Fiskars to lighten her pack weight a little.

Lastly, the Cold Steel shovel is a beast! For the truck, ATV or pack-mule, it's perfect and quite capable of duing a lot of tasks. And as Simon pointed out...it's a lot of fun throwing too:D

ROCK6
 
Crap in a hat... That Ti trowel looks like a great piece of kit.

Where'd you snag 'er? Me want...
 
I'd like one exactly like that Ti one, only steel...and I'd sharpen it. :D Nothing like a spear you can dig with! :p
 
HolyRoller said:
Crap in a hat... That Ti trowel looks like a great piece of kit.

Where'd you snag 'er? Me want...
Click to expand...

Wow, Dutchguard.com use to carry them but I don't see them listed anymore? You wouldn't like to see the price I saw last time I saw them on their website:eek:

Another option are the steel long-handled trowels found online and in some trapping shops. Here found the link of one I recently ordered...and it's MUCH cheaper! Dirt Trowel

ROCK6
 
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Well you can either have something that is a crappy cutter and crappy shoveler but can do both or have one that is good at something.
 
HolyRoller said:
Damn, I'm really trying to find a similar trowel now. The one linked to isn't bad, but I don't trust that rod-mount. The socket mounting is a huge selling point for me...

Edit:
http://www.smithandspeed.com/catalog/item/4388381/5548509.htm
Not quite socket, but I like...
Click to expand...

Those look pretty good. Yeah, I am a little skeptical about the rod-mount, but it does seem pretty solid. I've got some landscaping to do and it's pretty hard under the top soil. I'll give it a shot...for price, it's not too bad to try around the house. I do agree, I much prefer the socket style as it's a lot easier to replace the handle.

I'm almost tempted to drill out the rivet in the Ti spade and put a wood screw in so in case the handle breaks, it's easier to make a field repair/replacement.

ROCK6
 
I started out using one of the Orange plastic type trowels, Easily snapped.

Then I moved on to the Fiskars trowel, much sturdier, but bulky.

Next I began using a long perforated snow stake, which works, doubles as a shelter stake, is lightweight.

Finally I came upon the Montbell trowel, which works great, can be used as a shelter stake, and is the lightest of all of the above!
 
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