The Cyclone Long Handle Plumber's Shovel is a narrow trenching shovel for drains, pipe runs and any hole that needs to be tight rather than wide. It is Australian made, with a 310mm blade in 2mm boron and titanium treated Australian steel on a 1170mm lacquer-sealed hardwood handle. Overall it measures 1460mm long, 180mm wide and 290mm deep, and it carries Cyclone's lifetime guarantee.
What it does
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Narrow pointed blade. 310mm long and no wider than it needs to be, so the trench stays narrow and the spoil you lift out and backfill stays small.
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2mm treated steel. Agricultural grade Australian steel, boron and titanium treated and heat treated for tensile strength, factory sharpened and treaded across the shoulder for your boot.
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Long hardwood handle. 1170mm of premium Australian hardwood, lacquer sealed against weather. The length is leverage, and timber absorbs jarring that a steel shaft passes to your hands.
How to use it
Work the point in first, then step onto the tread and drive the blade to depth with your weight rather than your arms. Lever back on the long handle to break the ground before you lift, and take narrow bites: this shovel is shaped to cut a clean sided trench, not to move volume. In dry clay, soak the run the day before and the whole job changes character.
Knock the soil off the blade after use and wipe it clean, oil the steel lightly now and then, and keep it out of the weather so the lacquer on the handle lasts. Store it hanging, never resting on the cutting edge.
What it suits
Drains, trenches and pipe work. Stormwater and agricultural drain lines, irrigation and conduit runs, and narrow excavation through compacted soil where a wide spade will not fit.
Landscaping and planting. Cutting in garden edges, sinking stakes and tree ties, and digging deep narrow holes for advanced stock. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95.
Not a shovel for shifting loads. The narrow blade is the wrong shape for moving mulch, sand or soil in bulk. Keep a square mouth shovel for that and this one holds its edge for years.
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