Wilcox

Why r/BuyItForLife recommends Wilcox

4 mentions from real owners

• #1Jul 2, 2025

  Spring is almost here! Let’s talk garden tools!

  I'm not in the US. We don't have Harbour Freight here and Amazon prices are a lot higher than in the US as well and more limited selection. I have seen knock off of some items on Amazon, but often shitty versions of the real thing. That said, sure there are things you can find elsewhere cheaper. As I said, peruse the catalog, you can use them to narrow things down and then find them cheaper (or not) elsewhere. No prob. Amazon is just a firehouse of cheap crap. They do have nice things as well (Wilcox is easy to find on Amazon for example and is a fantastic trowel for the money), but they push the sponsored crap on you and you have to know what to search for, otherwise it'll be buried ten pages in.

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• #2Jun 4, 2025

  Best BIFL gardening tools?

  I am a big fan of Korean and Japanese gardening tools in general. As a person who does not have massive meathook hands and is not six feet tall, I find they fit me better and have been very high quality. Felco pruners are my favourites. They have replaceable blades, springs, etc and come in different sizes (and I have yet to need to replace a blade). I have small hands and have used Felco 5 for years, which is their economy model. I recently upgraded to 15s and oh, those are even nicer. Even the number 5 were a dramatic upgrade from Fiskars. The 5s cost about twice as much as the Fiskars, but have already lasted more than five times as long. For loppers, I use Corona. Much lighter than Fiskars for the same power, which makes them much less tiring. Make sure you get a pocket sharpener too. Someday I shall try Felco loppers too, someday... As a farmer and market gardener, most of my tools come from https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca (they are Canadian, but ship internationally - or you can just use their catalogue for ideas of what to look for). Their house brand garden tools are excellent for the price. More expensive that the cheapest thing at the Home Depot, yes, but pretty competitive with the more expensive shit they sell there that is mega-heavy and breaks anyhow. One tool in particular from the house line I recommend if you have any pavers and cement driveway with gaps is the crack hoe. It works stunningly better than a butter knife. Seriously. It's a shitty task and a good tool makes it a ton faster and reaches better so you don't need to do it as often. (I still want a flame weeder someday though) Another brand I like is Radius. The shovels are the best I have ever used. Nice big foot platform, great handle height, the round handle really is terrific even in the rain. Caveat, my husband did manage to break one of the fibreglass handled ones after a decade of heavy use. They have a lifetime warranty, so I sent it back to Lee Valley (if you are outside the US, they direct you to return it through the vendor) with no hassle at all. I have upgraded to the Pro version which has a stainless steel handle. The fibreglass was lighter and I miss that a bit, but the heavier one is still very well balanced. If you aren't digging trenches with it, the lighter one was just fine before I started farming! The other product of theirs I really, really love are the weeders. The long handle one is the best thing ever for long-tap roots like dock and thistles. The shorter handtool version is like the super upgrade to the cheap dandelion weeders or a butterknife that you never knew you needed. Both of them come out top in many tool tests and surveys as well. Wilcox is another company for hand tools. The All-pro trowel is fantastic and a farm staple. I will second the ho-mi suggestion. They are basically a small hand plow. My husband reaches for this over the trowels. It's extremely versatile and can be used for digging, planting, weeding. If you don't have a lot of space or budget, I would pick this one or getting a shitty set! I don't need it all the time, but when I do, I really like my Hori-hori. Really love it for doing root divisions and such. You can also use it as a trowel, but I prefer the Wilcox if I am using it that way. My favourite weeder is a San Kaku, or triangle hoe. I love it so much that I have two of them in different lengths. I wasn't a fan of normal garden hoes, but this. This my friends! Fucking love it. Slices through weeds like butter, especially if you keep it sharpened and makes perfect furrows for planting neat rows of carrots and whatnot. So good. Also you feel like a peasant warrior farmer wielding it. Speaking of bladed tools. I always must put in a scythe shout-out. I hate weedwhackers and string trimmers and they send me into a blind rage. Not a fan of lawnmowers either really, and the scythe can replace both. It is not any more dangerous than a lawnmower I promise and doesn't require a ton of strength to use. In fact, if you are having to work hard to cut the grass with a scythe, that means you need to sharpen it sooner.

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• #3Jun 4, 2025

  Best BIFL gardening tools?

  Wilcox All-Pro Trowel. I've had mine going on ten years and it is still looks brand new. Fantastic tool for the garden and definitely BIFL.

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• #4May 4, 2025

  Spring is almost here! Let’s talk garden tools!

  >If you were to only buy one, my suggestion is the Wilcox All-Pro. What size would you say is the most versatile?

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