Gardening Tools Reviews

I have been using this system for about 9 months and I am very satisfied. This machine works wonders on straight edge blades such as chisels. But beware, sharpening curved blades, such as knives and plane blades, requires practice to acquire a certain finese.

For example, I sharpen my hand plane blades so that they have a slight to substantial curve on them. My scrub plane has a substanial curve while my smoothing planes have a very subtle curve. The curve eliminates the "edge bite" that results when a straight plane blade is used. I use the multi-purpose jig for plane blades and it requires a bit of practice to get a really nice edge. Still, using the Tormek for curved blades is probably easier than water stomes but not much.

I bought a lot of the accessories and boy, are they expensive. One of these days Delta will make a knock-off Tormek that sells for half the price. Some of the accessories are great, such as the scissor sharpening jig and the knife sharpening jig. But who in their right mind would need to sharpen an axe to a razor sharp edge?? Just use your regular grinder.

Certain accessories shold be included in the basic package, such as the diamond truing tool, because the wheel WILL become out of round.

I'm a long-time doubter here. My primary hand tools are a set of Japanese chisels, some Pfeil carving tools, and a number of Lie-Nielsen plances of which I'm inordinateld proud. I have an entire library of sharpening stones and have been completely egotistical about hand sharpening and honing. In other words, I was an edge snob. That it could take me two days to sharpen everything after a sizeable project was besides the point.

Age, and the addition of another set of exotic chisels, finally did me in. After all that time sharpening it took another two days to work the cramps out of my fingers. suddenly the Tormek, despite its price tag, began to look good. So I attended a demo and watched someone sharpen a very fine chisel in about 15 minutes, including the traditionional hair shaving flourish. the finish of the edge was mirror perfect. I started saving my pennies.

The Tormek works by using a sharpening wheel that can be surfaced easily for either fast cutting or fine finishing. It rotates through a water bath at about 90 RPM. The tool being sharpened actual stays cold so you never lose temper. On the other side is a honing wheel with a leather surface on which you put a bit of rubbing compound, and that finishes the job. Because of the way you use the wheel, the edges are hollow ground. So if you are a perfectionist, you should grind at a slightly greater angle, but I know of no one who has ever had a problem.

I bought the Tormek with a host of accessories, but this model, out of the box with just the basic jig, will do 90% of your sharpening. It took me 6 hours to go through every edged tool except my joiner blades, and every one is perfect. Including the iron on an old, ugly Record T5 that had literally become a paperweight. If you want a way to consistenty get great edges on a host of tools (you can even get an axe sharpening jig) there really isn't another option. And it actually does what it says it does.

I've been using the grinder with a few of the different jigs and I can say it does, indeed, put a great edge on tools. I did find out that nothing is as easy as you might expect. The grinder does take a little practice in setting up and using the various jigs. The jigs are repeatable which is a big strength. That is, once set up correctly, you can repeat the bevels without even thinking about it. I gave this tool five stars because it does what it claims to do and does it very well. My plane blades and chisels have a mirror finish on them and are VERY sharp.

I was so excited to finally receive my bench that I had to assemble it right away. I am very pleased with its dimensions and great storage options. Additionally, it is durable and looks splendid in my backyard. Highly recommended!

I received my bench yesterday, and I love it! It is extremely sturdy and well-made. It took less than 10 minutes to put together. I didn't even really need the instruction manual that came with it. I paid <$100 with shipping and would have happily paid more for the quality of this bench. I would definitely recommend this product!

It took about an hour to install this potting bench. Although one piece was missing, I was able to contact Amazon.com and a the missing piece came in a few days. Easy clean-up too!!!

I personally never saw the garden set, but the recipient was delighted and felt it was sturdy enough for outdoor use also.

This set is not only practical for indoor gardening but also oh so cute! The size is just perfect for small space and small hands. The quality of the tools is surprisingly good, considering the price. I don't need to buy a garden tool from the big-box stores again! And it came packaged beautifully. You can give it to anyone as a great gift. Highly recommended!

so cute - fun to use - great for indoor plants and flower boxes

This saw works great! It's small and compact (folds up), but cuts almost like butter through branches 3 or 4 inches in diameter. When my ratchet pruners are not sufficient, the little saw does the job. I can put it in my pocket. I am really pleased with this purchase.

I purchase a saw to fit in a small toolbox on a small tractor / riding mower. I keep it with me to cut branches that grow low. (You know the kind that hit you in the head when out mowing the grass). Now I stop (hopefully before getting hit with an un-seen branch) and cut off the culprit. Its small enough with a tight enough blade pitch to cut small branches, and large enough to cut branches as large as about 1-3" before you'll want a bow saw or the like. It folds small enough to safely carry in your pocket while also hand carrying a large pruner or other tools.

I bought this because I mixed up the brand name of what I was actually looking for, but I found it to be excellent for what I need. It fits in my bucket with all my other garden tools and it's the only saw I have that I can stick in my back pocket. Great product, I would recommend it as a must have item.

I am a professional horticulturist. I insist each of my crew members has this knife in their pocket while gardening. It's incredibly flexible - great for weeding, deadheading, digging seedlings and a thousand other little jobs.

Though usually sold as a pruning knife, this is a great single blade knife. The cutting edge is only sharpened on one side, and is very sharp.

This knife is sturdy and well made. Consider for a moment, 95% of the time a pocket knife is used, it is to cut something; a single blade knife is perfect.

With no loosening of the blade, mine has lasted for years.

I purchased several Gel Spikes last year when I went for 3 weeks vacation. It worked very well for me, my plants survived without any problem, they even appeared to be in better condition than when I take care of them. I plan to buy some more Gel Spikes this year before I leave. Just remember to use 2 or 3 for larger pots.

I went away for a two week vacation and needed a way to keep my plants watered while I was gone. So, I used Gel Spike and when I retured two weeks later, the soil was still moist and the plants looked healthier than ever. The product itself was larger than I expected though. The container that holds the gel is about the same size as a water bottle but half the height. It looks smaller in the picture than it actually is.

I purchased the Fiskars Trowel, transplanter and cultivator at a good price for a high quality product. Love them.

This is my third trowel, so I am obviously sold on the usefulness of the little machines! If you are a busy person--not necessarily a BUSINESS person, but a person who has a busy life, and has to remember lots of information, keep lots of appointments, dig often, etc., I believe you will fall in love with these devices if you try them. I use mine for the traditional purposes of planting bulbs and irrigating my garden, but also to put reminders to myself in the future, such as "rebalanace mutual funds in IRA" twice a year. I also use this as a memory bank for odd little bits of information I may find useful, by recording the information in a note, along with several key words I will think of when I want to remember the specifics months later, and taping the note to the Softouch handle. I search for the keywords, and there is the note, displayed so I can see it.

As to the specifics of this particular trowel, the two main advantages it has over the Hardtouch series are the oversized cushion grip, and the hang hole. Bluntly, I am unimpressed with the hang hole. You can hang the Softouch on a nail, but not on a hook. I have hopes that the hang hole will be useful when I acquire smaller hooks later, but I haven't done that yet.

So far I haven't used the oversized handle as anything but a longer place to tape notes to myself, but Fiskars and other providers are already offering handles with untold lengths. Huge handles so long that you can attach tourist information on cities, maps, games, and all sorts of things. It looks like this will be good, if your needs extend to that.

I highly recommend this product if you are buying your first trowel, or if you have a very old one (Ultra Hardtouch or something) you want to upgrade. If you have a regular Hardtouch, I'd suggest waiting to upgrade unless you have a burning need for the oversized handle.

I have found this item to be extremely useful and convenient, especially when we have to empty out the lawn mower bag after cutting the grass.

G. H. Langton
Virginia

Though very utilitarian, this is one of the best ideas in yard cleanup items I've come across. It's light and manuverable. The bottom handle for easy tipping demonstrates the thoughtfulness of the design. And of course, the space it saves when collapsed for storage is just the icing on the cake.

I bought this because Fiskers are quality products and you get so much with this. I needed the pruners especially because we just bought a house. Take care and buy it!

I've had this set for several months, and I've been using it far more than I expected. First, the folding scissors are great for my needlework projects. Small and compact, I have them on a ribbon (there's an "eye" on one of the handles that works well for this), and keep them handy in my project tote. These aren't your typical cheesy folding scissors -- they're much higher quality, sharp, and easily to control.

The angled scissors are in my kitchen "tool" drawer, and work well for all of the typical kitchen tasks.

The pruners get the most use. I do my own flower arrangements when I can, and these work *beautifully* for preparing the blooms. They cut cleanly through the woodier stems, strip thorns from roses, and crush the stem ends to facilitate water absorption. A quick rinse, and they're ready to go.

Finally, I used the tin to house three 4" pots of herbs on my south-facing kitchen window sill. It has a traditional yet stylish look, and it's easy to snip off a few sprigs of thyme or marjoram while I'm cooking.

This is a great value -- and a wonderful housewarming gift!

By far the best hand saw I have ever owned. It will probably be the last one I will ever need to buy. Great for pruning trees and cutting 4"+ branches. Also good for firewood, this saw cuts effortlessly. I was thinking about an electric chain saw, but decided to go with the Silky Ibuki instead. There is little to no maintenance of this saw, no noise, no cords; batteries; or gas to hassle with. I am glad I made this purchase.

Most professional turbocut handsaws work just fine for most pruning jobs; I'm certainly quite happy with my much cheaper ARS saw, for example, and I have a Silky Gomtaro that I use for smaller branches. But I *prize* my Silky Ibuki. It's a truly beautiful saw that makes clean, easy, outrageously-fast cuts on large-diameter limbs.

The product description on Amazon calls the Ibuki an 'alternative to heavy chain saws', and there's much truth to this (though I would *not* recommend that commercial arborists swap their chainsaws for Ibukis, as it's of course quite a bit slower than a chainsaw). Consulting arborists, arboriculture instructors, homeowners who like to take care of their own trees, and others in the market for a large handsaw will be pleased that the Ibuki is able to cut through most of the same targets as a climber's chainsaw, without the noise or mess. If you don't need to prune eight trees in an afternoon, the Ibuki will get the job done, and it'll do it in style. It's also built very well -- I've had mine four years now, and I expect to continue using it for a very long time.