In the process of digging a trench for the water supply, I got to the road, already literally 2 meters from the road the soil became very dense and dry, my bayonet shovel didn’t take it at all, it was impossible to drive it even 3 cm. I had to look for a way out, I began to think what to break through this layer? Associative thinking suggested using an ax, which I did by making a hoe out of it. He chose a heavier and wider ax, I have such good stuff in bulk, and I chose an already cracked ax, the profile of which did not suit me in everyday life (wide blade). What of this
it turned out, see photos and videos. Of course, you can still cut off the "ear" of the ax and rotate it 90 degrees, but then the holder will need another, in general, I was in a hurry and did everything for the sake of the experiment. In the future I’ll probably do just that, I’ll just expand the “ear” and remake it to the diameter of the handle.
Homemade perfectly penetrates this dense layer, which I could not take with a shovel, this is what I need. As for the efforts, this is no more difficult than working with a bayonet shovel. Also, an ax perfectly cuts roots, branches, bricks, and everything that will stand in the way is only a question of the strength of steel.
In the hands of a hoe is quite comfortable, however, the handle is short, you will need to buy a normal one. The tool is centered by itself, the blade always stands clearly down due to weight. The handle is set to the ax at a right angle, if you just need to rake it with a tool, you need to flip the blade a little towards you to get a shovel. He himself had never held a pick in his hands, so there is nothing to compare with. The assembly took 30 minutes, 2 electrodes (3 mm) and a quarter circle of the grinder.
Materials and tools that I used:
Material List:
- old ax;
- a piece of pipe;
- self-tapping screws;
- stalk.
Tool List:
- grinder;
- welding machine;
- Grinder for sharpening (optional).
Homemade manufacturing process:
Step one. Training
We clean the ax, and also cut off a piece of the pipe into which the handle will be inserted. We choose a pipe with a thick wall so that everything holds tight. Docked surfaces brought a little grinder in a plane, in order to get more.The area of contact and weld everything well.
Well, then we proceed to welding, we firmly weld everything in a circle, it took me two electrodes. The blade of a classic pickaxe is littered so that it turns out a blade, but I did it at a right angle, it seemed to me that it should work better, because we hold the holder not parallel to the ground, so that there will be the right angle there.
Step Two Cuttings
He sharpened the stalk with a knife a little and pressed it into the pipe well, went in tightly, there are no backlashes. I drilled two holes in the tube and pushed the screws to the full length. Everything is holding tight. Loads here will not be greater than that of a bayonet shovel.
Step Three Test
At the end, we sharpen the ax, most likely such a hoe should be sharpened in front, that is, the descent should be one, but I have not yet decided what is the best. Sharpen the grinder or grinder.
The ax cuts roots, sticks, perfectly breaks even bricks lying in the ground. If you do something like this, you can also make holes in the garden for seedlings, you can chop under the root or root, digging drainage grooves, chop ice, and much more. I’m satisfied with the tool, I need one on the farm, try you too. This concludes the story, good luck and creative inspiration!