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Everyday Gear Good Stuff

Long-Handled Lawn Trimmer

Image of Long-Handled Garden Clippers or Lawn TrimmersDetermined gardeners who find kneeling to trim and clip lawns uncomfortable might like these long-handled clippers. Once quite common (think 1950s-1960s), these babies did the job before motorized weed whackers took over suburbia. That long handle and those little red wheels allow you to snip the grass as you stroll along.

Yes, they’re inefficient, but hey, is there any reason gardening on a nice day should be fast? No gas fumes and no recharging required. No kneeling, either, or unpleasant vibrations shaking your hands and arms.

This model doesn’t require a lot of force to open and close, and I find it easier, and much more pleasant, to use our fancy — and heavy — weed whacker. And there’s this other issue — our home is brick, and the weed whacker is not altogether kind to bricks; there’s no danger of this tool chewing up the venerable exterior of our home.

Mine came from eBay, and I sharpened the blades myself with a knife sharpener we already had. It worked perfectly. The secret to trimming success? The lawn must be dry — otherwise, the grass just sticks in the scissors-like blades.

Hot tip: I couldn’t find an auction for these on eBay, so I emailed an eBayer who sold other antique garden implements and asked if she had anything like them. She sent me pictures, described the item, and we agreed on a price. Then she set up an auction just for me, I clicked on “buy it now” and we had a deal. So if watching eBay (or keeping an eye out at garage sales) doesn’t pan out, don’t hesitate to ask.