# Breaking mattock/cutter.....



## suggg (Jan 1, 2006)

Hi - I was wondering if there is a fav mattock/cutter or mattock/pick in the 5lb category which people have had good success with. The ZAC Tools 5lb mattock/cutter heads are breaking on me. They all break at the narrow spot where the tool connects to the handle. I'm currently using a HOME DEPOT back up mattock right now. I'm digging in semi hard soil/ decomposed rock..... as soon as it starts getting tough/rocky I switch to the 6lb railroad pick - no failures with that tool.

Been looking around the net and those JR Fire Tools - esp the Super P 40 look really strong.... but pricey. Or how about the standard NUPLA mattock? It seems like a lot of the tools are forged in India? I personally think I'll break the Rogue Hoe tools. (soil too rocky). I'm the only person using the tools about once a week on hilly, sometimes rocky terrain. - Thanks - Gus,


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## Cotharyus (Jun 21, 2012)

My tool of preference is a Rogue Hoe like thing that I make myself. I've never actually held a Rogue Hoe, so I can't speak for the durability, but what it lacks for me is a perpendicular cutting blade opposite the main tool for cutting a root or something without having to turn 90 degrees to it. I solved that problem with my tool, and I have yet to break it, other than a handle or two, but my tool uses a post hole digger handle secured by two bolts, so you can buy one at any hardware store.


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## Harryman (Jun 14, 2011)

JR Fire tools are sheet steel and too light to replace a pick/mattock. They're nice tools but not for rocks.

Rogue Hoes are awesome for roots/dirt and one of my favorite tools, again, not for rocks.

I think your choices are either consider the cheap imports as disposable or look for a higher quality forged head, maybe one of the European suppliers or a vintage one on fleabay.

I prefer 2.5 lb heads myself, but I'm a geezer.


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## zombinate (Apr 27, 2009)

Cotharyus said:


> My tool of preference is a Rogue Hoe like thing that I make myself. I've never actually held a Rogue Hoe, so I can't speak for the durability, but what it lacks for me is a perpendicular cutting blade opposite the main tool for cutting a root or something without having to turn 90 degrees to it. I solved that problem with my tool, and I have yet to break it, other than a handle or two, but my tool uses a post hole digger handle secured by two bolts, so you can buy one at any hardware store.


Just for clarification, this sounds like a mattock with a larger hoe face.


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## thefriar (Jan 23, 2008)

Rogue Hoe 60A, can bench with wide end, and the "pick" end is good to pry with.

We have a bunch of rock, pretty much where the Wisconsin glacier dumped its rock and boulders as it forged to Long Island Sound. The trick is to not swing when you're benching, you won't break things. We've already done 450 hours of trail work this year and no tools lost...

If you're actually digging, then 60A will work to chop up the soil so you can extract with shovel. The Speedsocket gigs from the Depot are awesome as the give a wee big of leverage.

Or, do what we do when we have proper digging or rocks to move and get a rock/digging bar. They're heavy to haul in, but worth the effort.


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## suggg (Jan 1, 2006)

Thanks for the replies - I have been thinking about the disposable mattock head concept. I have also been thinking about backing off sooner once the rock bed turns from decomposed to solid - and then using the railroad pick. I'm doing quite a bit of benching.... how do you bench a segment without swinging a pick? That's been my main method!! Hmmmm, lot's of rad tools out there when used with a bit more care...... - Gus


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## Cotharyus (Jun 21, 2012)

zombinate said:


> Just for clarification, this sounds like a mattock with a larger hoe face.


No, really it's more like a Rogue Hoe with a larger hoe face. I'll see if I can dig a picture up somewhere.









Managed to find that. It's a pretty wide blade, the whole works weighs just north of 6lbs. For what it's worth, I've built ~2 miles of new trail in the past year with that tool, total cost, one handle. The digging face is an old AG disc blade, the cutting side is an old AG planter coulter. I carry a file and keep both sharp. Makes the work easier, especially when you get into roots.


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## Ridnparadise (Dec 14, 2007)

I think the go is having a few specialised tools, rather than one and I don't like the fibreglass handles I have seen locally. We use heavy pick (one pointed and one chisel end), mattock, chip hoe (not much good) heavy fire rake and shovel to clear bench, as needed in sequence. Whatever the tool, it is the handle that matters most to me. I like a narrow grip and a kiln-hardened, Australian hardwood handle. If they are "light" in the hand and balanced, the impacts are more controllable and effective, rebound is reduced and metal heads just fade away while the handle carries on. My current fav mattock handle is about to retire after 3 heads......


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## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

I'll bet you can't break the head on this critter. The other thing is a customized dandelion rake. With these two tools I can cut or dig through anything and move and shape more dirt per hour than with any other non-motorized tools I've ever used & I've been doing this for almost 50 years.


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## suggg (Jan 1, 2006)

Trail Ninja - those two tools are also my primary path creators..... The mattock in your photo - is that the Ames/ True Temper EZ Pick? Sounds like a durable tool. Off to the hills/dirt for now - thanks for the response - Gus


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## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

It is an EZ pick. 
The other thing is something they call a dandelion rake here. It sucks for dandelions though.
It looks like this when you buy it for about $15. I cut the tines off and about an inch or two off each end to make it a little more stable. It works like a bulldozer & moves a ton of dirt a long way as long as it's already loose.


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## Miker J (Nov 4, 2003)

Hey there Primitive Pete...


A cutter mattock is for cutting through roots, not rock. Stick with a pick mattock and you'll break less tools.


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