Fiskars Cultivator, Digger and Tiller

This is the first time I have used this post hole digger design and I must say it works very well for my current post hole digging project (32 holes at 4 feet deep and 10 inches in diameter - no more or less. In the past I have been able to get away with the tried-and-true conventional post hole digger-style boring holes no more than 2 feet but with my current project's diameter constraint of 10 inches and 4 feet deep the conventional style diggers just won't cut it as the hole diameter would obviously have to be much wider to accommodate the spread of the handles while 'trapping' dirt. ~ The pivot is completely welded to the handle so no dealing with loose bolts/nuts which is a nice change! However, for me I immediately put my digger in the ground from taking it out of the box and realized that it was extremely difficult to move the handles to dig - very stiff! After about 15-20 minutes of continuous use it loosened up nicely (NOTE: obviously this is highly subjective. I'm a big guy so what I find as being suitable in terms of how 'difficult' it is to open-and-close this digger may not work for you. It is still slightly stiff for me to use but I find it suitable). If you would rather start your digging with a conveniently usable digger I highly recommend spending a few minutes opening and closing the digger to wear it in so hopefully it is much easier to use. I will say that opening and closing will still require more 'work' than your typical nut-and-bolt hinged digger so be prepared to exert more energy when using this! ~ Another great thing about this digger design is the fact that the handles do not come together; I have experienced no knuckle-smashing with this one. That's great seeing as I have a huge tendency to bring the handles together aggressively and bash my knuckles while digging with the conventional digger design. ~ With the all-steel construction this digger is much heavier than my conventional fiberglass-handled digger! I'm not complaining but just something I personally noticed. It may be a little heavier as mentioned but I'll take the quality of the construction over the fact that I have to take an extra break here-and-there. I have read old reviews of their Fiskars diggers bending and breaking but I can at least say that after digging 3 holes to 4 feet deep I haven't experienced this. Did Fiskars update their design to accommodate for this? Not sure. If I experience any of this I will update my review to let others know. ~ Lifetime warranty ~ This obviously has the same straight-blade design as with many diggers - the ends of the blades leave an opening when fully clenched which means dry, loose soil will be difficult to grab and retain. Not sure why I have read other reviews of people complaining about this when this has been the case for decades. For my projects and if your project permits just add a little water to the hole. This digger has performed well for me thus far. If I experience any issues I'll update this review accordingly. I highly recommend this digger if you are particularly in need of digging deep holes and don't feel like renting/buying a motored post hole digger. ------------------- UPDATE 10/22/14 ------------------------ I dug 22 holes at 4'+ deep in very rocky ground and this digger took a beating let me tell you! The digger looks like it went through a war zone. After using the digger for awhile the 'stiffness' of opening and closing it became MUCH easier over time; it even now squeaks when I open and close mine - no big deal. The 'stiffness' of opening-and-closing the digger does have an advantage in that you don't have to aggressively keep the blades together when trying to bring your payload up from 4' deep! Just close the blades and bring up the digger from the hole. After having completed 22 holes, how it stood up to a beating and how it made my life easier I highly recommend this digger! ------------------ UPDATE 11/25/14 --------------------------- I have completed my project; 32 holes each 4' down and ~10" in diameter in very rocky ground. This post hole digger stood up to a huge beating. Everything about this digger is in good shape and is still working. Very impressed!

I've been wanting to set some posts on our 2 acre property for a few years but never saw anything for sale locally that was different than those heavy, knuckle-banging, unimaginative and common diggers. I put off doing the work in hopes retailers would improve their offering. My mother bought a house recently and we needed a gate installed so she could baby-sit our dog on occasion. Instead of hiring out digging the post holes because the ones commonly sold were too heavy for me to want to buy, I decided to search down an ergonomic tool and order it in online if I had to. I could no longer find the ergonomic tool I saw years ago and have wanted for some time, instead, I could only find this digger. Our Canadian Home Depot was not able to order it in for us even though they sell Fiskars products so I decided to order online, something I choose to do infrequently. This Fiskars post hole digger was also cheaper at Amazon.ca than Fiskars offers it online, themselves. The order came quickly and trouble-free so this experience was good as far as ordering and paying online was concerned. The post holes dug like a dream! I am a cancer survivor and my joints, bones and muscles have not recovered from chemo damage, I need to use tools that make a job easier. What a great tool! I won't say it made the digging effortless but it did make the digging easy. I wish I ordered this tool online years ago!

The curved handle, both at the top and at the bottom, is a wonderful design innovation. The traditional design of posthole diggers requires the top of the hole to become ever wider as you dig deeper, but this design allows for holes with vertical sides, so there is less dirt to remove. And also, when the post is finally placed into the hole, the space that must be filled back in with dirt is smaller, allowing for easier tamping down and for a firmer placement in the hole. I bought my model in 2007 and I installed fences on three sides of our lot with it. Last week I decided to add two more sixteen-foot lengths to my fence, requiring two more holes for posts, and this tool again worked very efficiently. It is well worth the extra cost over a traditional-design posthole digger.

I dig many post holes each year. Usually I use an auger but often I need to do them by hand or clean out the augered holes. Over the last 35 years I have tried many different types and I have had the most success with these. For some reason they stopped selling them in Canada (or at least southern Ontario). I jumped at the opportunity to by them when I saw them on line. They were pricey so I was really happy when I saw them the next time for 50% off. That price was much more reasonable. They are a tool which is used very aggressively so they will break. The problem I have with them is that there isn't really a quick fix for them when they break. Mine are used for a business so I realize they are a 'cost of doing business'. I think for someone who does not use them as often they should last a long time.

I was pleasantly surprised how well this works. Our land is rocky - it’s hard to dig with a shovel. The hole digger made putting fence posts into the ground much easier. Usual Fiskars quality.