Mechanical tillage requires significant physical effort. In order to streamline the process and save time and labor resources, a number of improved devices for digging earth have been developed. Miracle shovel, flat cutters, pitchforks original design help to dig and loosen the soil with minimal effort.
Digging soil with a lightweight shovel
The design of the shovel provides for the presence of holes on the working surface. The tool bucket is a pointed steel sheet measuring 210x280 mm with oblong slots, This design has a number of advantages:
- The version with slots is lighter than the classic one, which saves physical strength;
- Through slots prevent the sticking of wet soil, the tool does not have to be constantly cleaned;
- Simultaneously with digging, the soil is loosened, stones and fragments of the weed root system are separated.
Working blades with holes are made of high-quality steel, additionally subjected to anti-corrosion treatment.
This device is suitable for digging a garden with any type of soil, since it easily penetrates hard, dry soil. For too large areas to be processed, it is better not to use it, since the productivity of other options is higher.
Device combined with forks
The task of digging up heavy, compacted earth is handled very well by a two-part earth digging device. The working blade consists of fork teeth, onto the end of which a pointed spade bayonet is welded. Thanks to the pointed edge, the blade fits into dense soil more easily. A shovel with a pitchfork for digging soil is convenient when harvesting tuber crops. The soil crumbles through the tines, and the crop remains on the forks. Thus, the need for bending is minimized, which is important for elderly summer residents.
When choosing a suitable tool, you need to pay attention to the suitability of the equipment for the type of soil being processed, ease of use, lightness of construction and the area of the cultivated area.
For small areas there is no point in purchasing a bulky, rather expensive tool; a compact shovel will be sufficient. And for summer residents who want to experiment, you can try making a device for digging up the soil yourself.
When the summer season begins, it means that it’s time not only for relaxation, but also for active work in the garden. Any summer resident wants to make his task as easy as possible when it is necessary to cultivate large areas of soil. For this purpose, various equipment is manufactured or purchased. Recently, a miracle shovel that you can make yourself has become very popular.
Characteristics of the device
Many owners of a summer house or private house would like to have at their disposal a universal shovel for digging a vegetable garden, made with their own hands. And this goal is quite achievable.
The classic version of the miracle shovel (haydamak) is a bayonet design, with which you can very efficiently cultivate land of absolutely any complexity. This structure is a combination of a lever and villas, thanks to which the pointed parts penetrate the ground very easily.
Of course, you can use an electric walk-behind tractor, an electric cultivator, or order a tractor, the device of which is equipped with a special plow. But in order to carry out all these actions, you will need to spend a fairly large amount of money to purchase or hire equipment. This is why gardeners prefer to work with their own hands using homemade devices.
The miracle digger is notable for the fact that its pointed teeth will penetrate the soil very easily, and since a special lever in the form of a long handle is installed on it, you can lift very large pieces of soil, which will be loosened by hitting the second part of the fork located on the surface . Depending on the different elements and depth for loosening, The tool is divided into several types:
- The usual one, which is called “plowman”.
- A more advanced one with the name “mole”.
An ordinary shovel (Archimedean) can be made at home without much effort. It consists of one reliable stop and teeth. To use the tool, you will not need to exert much physical force, but the speed of work will increase. It is worth noting that if there are large blocks of earth on the site, then a shovel will not cope with this task. Usually it is used exclusively for frequent cultivation of chernozems.
The miracle shovel “plowman” is used not only for digging the ground, but also for good loosening. The length of the teeth is approximately 10 or 15 cm, thanks to which you can work on a variety of soils, and the teeth will stick very deeply and easily into the ground, even when a person weighs only 60 kg.
The depth of the “mole” bayonet will be approximately 25 cm. It is used to carry out deep digging of the surface. The length will be sufficient to plant some kind of vegetable crop. To use such a tool, it will be necessary to make some effort, especially if you have to work on alumina and soil that is very well compacted.
There is a third type of shovel, which is considered universal. The bayonets on it will be 15–20 cm long. They can be very conveniently used in those regions where the soil freezes heavily. And also if the main soil is chernozem.
If the climate of a certain zone is very harsh and the ground freezes more than 10 cm, then even this depth of bayonets may not be enough to complete the task efficiently.
Operating procedure
It is necessary to point out the great conveniences that can be achieved by using a miracle shovel. With its help, you will not need to perform various bendings, and therefore the risk of back injury is reduced. Making such a shovel is especially important for those people who suffer from radiculitis. With the help of a miracle digger, you can reduce physical effort, and this will speed up the work.
The operating procedure for the miracle shovel is as follows:
- You need to press your foot onto a specially installed pad. This way the shovel will go deeper into the ground.
- The foot still remains on the court, and the other foot takes one step back. In this case, the shovel should be tilted to the back, and the soil will end up on its teeth.
- Next, you should make small shakes with your left and right hands. In this way, the soil will be removed from the surface of the implement and loosening will be carried out.
- To turn over the soil, you need to make a sharp upward movement and move the shovel about 15 cm to the rear. After several approaches have been completed, you need to take a regular rake and use it to break up the stones in the area.
Previously, this type of shovel was called a “spade.” This word was formed from actions during work. It was necessary to step or step on the shovel. In this way it was possible to press on a metal bayonet. The principle of operation has not changed at all since then.
There are also factory models of similar shovels. But they have a certain drawback: the earth will very often stick to the moving parts. Because of this, the work will take much longer and become more complicated. In addition, the shovel is equipped with a wooden handle, which often breaks. The cutting must be inserted into special sockets.
If you want to make a homemade tool, you should make sure that all the parts are very securely connected. That is why various jams and breakdowns are practically excluded. But this does not mean that the miracle digger has no shortcomings at all. You can accidentally deform the weld seams and break plastic parts, if any. But usually such malfunctions occur only after several years of active use.
Required materials
It is worth noting that To assemble a shovel, you need to pay attention to certain points. Do not neglect this information, because without it the shovel will be unreliable:
To create a tool, you need to use the following materials:
- Fittings.
- A pipe having a square (preferably) cross-sectional shape of 110 mm.
- A metal pipe with a diameter exceeding 50 mm.
- Welding machine.
- Angle grinder.
- High quality drill.
- Sandpaper.
All this must be found for production. But if you have some of your own developments, then you can use them and improve the shovel yourself.
Manufacturing instructions
Before you start making a miracle digger yourself, you need to study design features tool.
Typically, the forks are fixedly mounted on a frame that is positioned horizontally. It must be supplemented with a special stop, which is located in the back.
You will need to pass rods between the teeth, which will very much resemble a regular rake.
Several handles can be attached to a tool, but in most cases only one handle is used. It is not necessary to use exclusively a wooden handle, since it can quite easily break off during operation. Instead of wood, it is best to attach a metal pipe. If a wooden handle breaks at the very base, then the piece will be very difficult to remove. It will need to be drilled out.
More can be done simple models, which consist exclusively of a frame, which is also a stop located behind the working part. The teeth must be fixed to the front rod, which must also have fasteners. You can attach handles to them.
First you need to make well-sharpened bayonets. The fittings are ideal for this. They must be cut to the required length. The ends of the segments must be sharpened at an angle of 30 degrees. But if the ground is not solid, then the angle does not have to be set as indicated. It is quite possible to reduce it to 15 degrees. But due to such manipulation, the cutting part will often become dull.
Once the bayonets are made, the supporting bar can be created. It needs to be made from square pipe. You will also need a pipe that will replace the wood and be used as a handle. All elements must be welded according to the drawing.
The drawing and dimensions of the miracle shovel are as follows:
Advantages and disadvantages
Before you start making a miracle digger, you should clearly understand all the pros and cons of this design. Sometimes the negative aspects are so significant that it is simply not advisable to use a shovel for a certain area.
The equipment is convenient to use for the following reasons:
- You can significantly reduce physical stress while working.
- The processing speed of the area will increase.
- The shovel is quite easy to use.
- Can be used on almost any soil.
- Has great reliability.
But any device also has certain disadvantages. The Miracle Digger is no exception:
- If the structure breaks, it will be quite difficult to repair.
- It is impossible to perform figure digging.
- You cannot dig holes with this shovel.
- To work productively, a worker must weigh more than 80 kg.
This tool will be ideal for plowing a plot, loosening the soil efficiently, or sowing. 15 or 25 cm bayonets will be enough to plant cabbage, potatoes and other vegetable crops. But tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers need to be planted as seedlings, and for this you will need to use other tools to make holes. It is also worth noting that a shovel will be completely useless in the garden. Because with its help it will be impossible to dig around trees and create holes.
From this we can conclude that a super shovel for digging a vegetable garden is ideal for those areas where vegetables are grown. The area of the site should be quite large, otherwise all the work can be done much easier using a regular shovel.
The beginning of the summer season means not only relaxation, but also a lot of work in the garden. Each summer resident tries to make the task of cultivating the soil as easy as possible for himself, for which he uses various equipment. Recently, a miracle shovel that you can make yourself has gained wide popularity.
Miracle shovel: what is it?
The classic version of the miracle shovel is the bayonet shovel, which allows you to efficiently process soil of any complexity. Such a tool is a combination of a fork and a sleigh, which makes plowing the soil much easier. Of course, it is much easier to use walk-behind tractors, electric cultivators, or ask for help from a tractor driver whose machine is equipped with a plow. However, all these actions will require quite significant material costs from you, which is why most gardeners still prefer to work with their hands.
What is so remarkable about the miracle shovel? The sharp teeth of the super-shovel easily penetrate the soil, and thanks to the lever (presented in the form of a long handle), you can lift large pieces of soil, which will be loosened against the second part of the fork located on the surface.
Based on the depth of loosening and the presence of additional elements, all such devices can be divided into three types: ordinary, “plowman” type and “mole” type.
Conventional shovels are in most cases made at home and consist of a fork and a back stop. When using such a tool, you can really reduce the load and increase the speed of work, but such a shovel will not solve the problem with large blocks of earth. It is only suitable for working on regularly cultivated black soils.
The miracle shovel of the “plowman” type is intended not only for digging the earth, but also for better loosening the soil. The length of its bayonet is usually 10-15 cm, which makes it easy to cut up any type of soil, and the bayonet easily enters the ground even if the worker weighs no more than 60 kg.
The depth of the bayonet of a mole-type shovel is at least 25 cm and is intended for deep digging. The pothole is immediately used for planting vegetable crops. If this particular tool is used, the digger will require a certain effort, especially if he has to work on compressed soil or alumina.
Important! In addition to the described options for miracle shovels, there are also universal options, the length of which is from 15 to 20 cm. They are excellent for regions where the soil can freeze to 5-10 cm, and the main type of soil is chernozem (brown soil).
If the climatic conditions of the region turn out to be even more severe, then even this depth of shovel bayonets will not be enough, and you will not be able to qualitatively renew the soil.
How to dig correctly with a miracle shovel? Let us note the ease of use: you will not need to bend over, and the risk of back injury is minimized (this is especially true for people with radiculitis). The required physical effort also decreases, and the speed of work, on the contrary, increases. The procedure for working with the improved shovel is as follows.
By pressing your foot on a special platform, you need to bury the shovel into the ground. Without removing your foot from the platform, take a step back with your other foot, while simultaneously tilting the shovel towards you - the soil will be on the teeth. Light shaking of the left and right hand shake off the soil, thus loosening. You can turn the soil over with one sharp upward movement of your hand, moving the shovel 10-15 cm back. After completing several approaches, you need to walk through the area with a rake and break up the clods.
Did you know? The outdated name for a modern shovel is “spade.” It comes from the definition of the type of action “to step in, to step with one’s foot,” that is, to press on a metal bayonet.
In factory models of shovels, the moving parts are often clogged with earth, which is why they begin to work worse. In addition, sometimes the wooden handles that are inserted into special sockets break. IN homemade instruments All parts are connected quite rigidly, so that breakages and jamming are almost completely eliminated. However, this does not mean at all that the miracle shovel for the garden, which was made with your own hands, is completely devoid of shortcomings. There is a serious possibility of deformation of solder or weld seams and breakage of plastic parts (if any), although such malfunctions only appear after many years of active use.
Do-it-yourself miracle shovel that we will need
There are several important points to pay attention to when self-production miracle shovels. The length of the bayonet to which it will penetrate the soil depends on the depth of soil freezing. In cases where the use of a shovel is necessary only for loosening the soil, 10 cm will be enough, but for planting vegetable crops you will have to dig deeper (at a minimum, the teeth should go 5 cm into the layer of frozen soil). The width of the future miracle shovel depends on the expected area of land.
Important!The width of the tool should not exceed 50 cm, otherwise too much effort will be needed.
Picking up necessary materials To create your own miracle shovel, you must remember that industrial models are based on the use of forks, but not ordinary two- or three-pronged ones, but wider ones (from 35 cm). With a step between the working rods, about 5 cm is formed, which is seven teeth a quarter of a meter long. It is clear that this is not the whole miracle shovel, and the drawing, which will be presented below, shows many other, no less important details.
So, To create the described tool with your own hands you will need:
- reinforcement or alloyed flat products with a width of 2 cm and a cross-section of about 0.5 cm;
- square pipe with a cross section of 1 cm;
- metal pipe with a diameter greater than 5 cm;
- welding machine;
- bolts and nuts;
- Bulgarian;
- drill;
- sandpaper.
Did you know? The name of the person who invented the miracle shovel is not known for certain, although there is an opinion that it was developed in Yekaterinburg.
Instructions for making a miracle shovel with drawings
Before you start making your own miracle shovel, you need to pay attention to the main design features of such a tool. In most models, the forks are movably mounted on a forward, horizontal frame, complemented by a stop at the rear (in some cases, the frame is replaced with a slightly curved slide). Between the teeth there are counter-directed rods, which are more reminiscent of a rake.
The tool may have two handles, but in most cases it is a regular handle, like a shovel or the same fork. However, not in all cases a wooden handle is used, since such a lever can easily break (the teeth often catch on roots). Instead of a handle, a metal pipe (for example, aluminum) can be installed. If a wooden handle breaks in the socket of a garden tool, at its very base, then removing the fragment will be quite difficult, and the only way out is to try to drill it out.
There are also more simplified models, the design of which includes only a frame, which is also a support (placed behind the working part). The teeth are fixed directly to the front rod, at the ends of which there are fasteners for the other two handles. This version of the miracle shovel is most often made at home.
Did you know? In the old days, a standard wooden shovel (or, as it was also called, a “blade”) had a width of 6-14 inches and a length of 8-16 inches, and this with a total length with a handle of 1½-1¾ arshins. In Rus', all shovels and blades were hewn primarily from aspen, sometimes from linden or birch, and even less often from oak or maple.
When making a miracle shovel yourself, first of all, you need to create bayonets, for which the pre-prepared reinforcement is cut into pieces of the required length. The ends of these sections are sharpened on one side at an angle of 30°, although if the soil on your site is soft, then the bevel angle can be reduced to 15° (however, this will often lead to dulling of the cutting part).
Having the required bayonets on hand, you can proceed to creating a supporting bar, for which part of a square pipe is cut off. It is also worth preparing a round hollow pipe, which in the future will play the role of a handle. All elements are welded according to the drawings presented below.
Advantages and disadvantages of using a miracle shovel in the garden
So, we have already figured out how to make a miracle shovel ourselves, and what you might need for this. But is this tool really necessary on the farm? It is necessary to take into account all the advantages and disadvantages of this design.
The miracle shovel is much more convenient to use than its other analogues, because it:
- helps reduce physical activity;
- increases digging speed due to the width of the channel;
- very easy to use;
- suitable for use on any soil;
- has a high reliability indicator.
There are also design flaws, these include the following:
- complexity of repair measures;
- lack of possibility of figure digging;
- inability to dig holes;
- For productive work, the weight of the digger should not be below 80 kg.
The tool is simply ideal for arable work. Based on the length of the bayonets on the main forks, the pothole is used either for loosening the soil or for sowing. So, a depth of 15-25 cm (the exact figures depend on the level of soil freezing) will be quite enough for planting potatoes, cabbage, corn and most vegetable crops. However, given that tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers are planted immediately as seedlings, you will have to manually create separate holes for them. In the garden, the miracle shovel will be useless: it is not suitable for digging up trees and creating neat holes.
Summarizing all of the above, it should be noted that such equipment will definitely be useful to owners of vegetable gardens used for growing vegetable crops, and the area of the cultivated area should not be less than fifty meters, otherwise it will be easier to do the work with a regular shovel.
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Working on the ground is not easy, so it is very important to choose the most convenient equipment that can not only perform the required amount of work, but also significantly facilitate its implementation.
Shovel with holes – handy tool both in the garden and on garden plots. This tool is used when digging up tubers and digging up soil, loosening individual areas of soil.
This shovel has a pointed bucket measuring 210 x 280 mm with narrow oval-shaped holes made in it. Thanks to these holes, lumps of soil do not stick to the bucket, and large roots and stones are retained when digging.
This makes the work much easier, since you don’t have to bend down often and manually remove everything stuck to the bucket. In addition, because of the holes, the shovel weighs less, and you will be less tired when working on large areas.
This shovel is convenient for digging up a garden with any type of soil, as it digs and loosens at the same time. The tool is made of hardened steel and coated with a protective layer against rust.
Fork-shovel They have, in addition to the teeth of a conventional fork, one bayonet located on the edge. This tooth differs from the others in its greater width and sharpness.
The tool is indispensable when digging up heavy types of soil, since its design allows you to not exert much effort during work. The bayonet of this shovel easily enters the layer of earth, followed by the rest of the teeth.
When digging up potatoes, for example, the vegetable remains on the fork and the soil slips back. In this case, you do not need to bend down and pick up potatoes with your hands; you can throw them onto the wheelbarrow with one movement of your hands. In addition, vegetables are not damaged as when working with a shovel.
Usually on summer cottages Pensioners work, people are not young and are not always in good health, so the question of what is the best way to dig soil in a dacha sounds acute.
When working with such forks, there is no need to often sit down or bend over; the strength of the arms and shoulders is involved in the work, and the lower back is not loaded. For older people this is a very important point. The less tired you are, the more work you will be able to do.
If you have a question about how to quickly dig up a vegetable garden, pay attention to the invention of the monk Gennady. This miracle tool looks like a shovel with a steering wheel. An enterprising monk, based on an ordinary shovel, designed a unique gardening tool from the following elements:
This homemade plow allows you to plow the ground several times faster than with a shovel. Having a rotating method of operation, the tool does not load the lumbar region of the back and is applicable to dense soil layers.
Its length is adjustable, and the width of the bucket scoops up twice as much soil as a conventional shovel. Due to the fact that when you turn the steering wheel, the earth tilts to the side, there is no need to bend over and remove clods. It's quite convenient when landing garden crops. People suffering from radiculitis will appreciate this device.
– This is an unusual looking hoe with a plate curved in some places. This equipment is suitable for many types of work. It can be used for hilling, weeding and loosening.
Externally, the Fokina flat cutter looks very simple and unpretentious. This is a flat wooden stick with an irregularly shaped metal “chopper” bent in several places. However, it is precisely these bends of the plate that make it possible to perform the most different types work - from weeding to hilling.
The main advantage of a flat cutter is that its regular use improves the quality of the soil. When loosened, the soil receives the maximum amount of oxygen and nutrients and is saturated with moisture, so the problem of how to make chernozem loose, at a minimum, ceases to be insoluble.
The tool is convenient to use; it replaces a number of other garden tools, such as a plow, hoe, cultivator, fork and rake. Small flat cutters can be used to reach even hard-to-reach places.
If you have clay soil on your site, a flat cutter can serve as a pick when digging. When planting seeds, it can be used to dig ditches, in addition, you can hill up plants, remove grass, rake up dry branches when cleaning the area, and trim strawberry mustaches.
Important! Leaving the flat cutter on winter period Where equipment is stored, treat it with an anti-corrosion agent.
Tornado design is collapsible, which is convenient when transporting tools. It consists of: 
- central metal rod;
- rotating handle;
- working part with sharp teeth. It is noteworthy that the teeth are located counterclockwise. All parts of the tool are connected with bolts and nuts.
During operation, the tool is placed vertically with its teeth in the soil, then the handle is turned a full turn. The tines are completely immersed in the ground, and the effort is minimal.
Some gardeners call this cultivator a woman's shovel. This is due to the fact that it does not require much effort to complete the work.
The Tornado shovel is a multifunctional device for cultivating soil. With this tool you can do the following:
- Loosen the soil in the beds.
- Dig up areas for planting.
- Treat the soil around trees and shrubs.
- Remove weeds from the soil.
- Weed between the rows of the bed.
- Clean up flower beds, pick up dry grass and debris.
Did you know? The ancient Slavic peoples used such a tool for working on the ground as a harrow. A log with branches was used as a harrow, which is why it was called a knot harrow. Then iron tools appeared. Harrows were used for weeding and moistening the soil by loosening.
The design of this tool consists of two pitchforks working towards each other. The first ones grab the soil and throw it onto the second forks, thanks to which the soil is dug up, loosened, and clods of earth are broken against the rods. There is no need to bend over and break the lumps manually.
The soil gripping width of the shovel is about 40 cm, and the depth is up to 30 cm. This device for digging the earth allows you to grab large layers of soil, simultaneously breaking them, without much effort. In addition, by digging, you also remove weeds, throwing them to the side, again without effort or bending.
How to make a miracle shovel with your own hands, drawings and assembly procedure for an easy-to-make home tool.
The proposed design of the shovel will allow you to quickly dig personal plot. In this case, the layers of earth do not turn over, but are loosened very well. This method of tillage makes it easy to control weeds.
Operating principle: we press the stop with our foot, the teeth cut into the ground along their entire length; tilt the handle of the tool towards you; The teeth easily cut through the soil, forming deep furrows in it.
It's better to see once
Let's look at what parts the structure consists of:
Metal tooth
tooth mounting profile
emphasis
pen handle
handle stop
pen
METAL TOOTH
We will make it from a standard metal strip with a cross-sectional size of 5x50 (mm). From a piece 270 (mm) long, four teeth can be made. We mark the strip as shown in the figure. Using a grinder, along the marking lines, we cut off the necessary blanks. We sharpen the narrow ends of the workpieces into a cone.
TEETH MOUNTING PROFILE
On a square metal pipe we make eight through cuts: in width - equal to the width of the tooth; in depth - to the pipe wall. The interval between cuts should be the same as shown in the figure.
UPOR
It can be done with right angles, but it is more pleasing to the “eye” if the corners are neatly bent. You can bend the corners using.
1. Assemble the lower part of the tool.
With the help welding machine We fasten the prepared parts together.
HANDLER FOR PEN
Let's make it by analogy with the stop
STOP FOR HANDLING
