Do-it-yourself miracle shovel + drawings

Gardeners have come up with many different devices that make it easier to cultivate the land. Some inventions have already been put on the conveyor and are being mass-produced. Among such tools is a miracle shovel, which allows you to manually dig a garden without back pain.

The principle of operation of the miracle tool

The presented diagram shows what nodes the miracle shovel consists of. Now let’s look at how it works:

• To start digging the garden, the handle of the tool is placed strictly vertically. Together with him, the teeth of the working forks acquire the same position. A person needs to stand with his foot on the stop or the upper jumper of the working forks and press with his body.
• When the teeth are completely pierced into the ground, the handle of the shovel is retracted towards itself. Through the lever mechanism, the working forks lift the soil layer, pushing it through the teeth of the stationary upper stop. At this time, loosening of the soil occurs.
• Further, the miracle shovel for digging the earth is moved back to the still uncultivated area, and all actions are repeated.

Summer residents do not always buy such a tool, because it is easy to make it yourself. This project does not require complex drawing. Simply, guided by the diagram, you need to understand the essence of the device of the miracle shovel, and then weld it from metal, choosing the dimensions to suit your requirements.

Varieties miracle-shovel

The device and principle of operation of different miracle shovels is almost the same. There are only a few design modifications. Let’s look at a few examples of such a tool:

• The classic soil ripper is a miracle shovel from one segment. The tool consists of a working fork with a back stop. This shovel allows you to increase productivity with minimal fatigue, but it does not completely break up clods of earth due to the lack of a second stationary segment with teeth. After digging, the soil will have to be further broken with a rake. The classic tool is suitable for work on constantly cultivated black soil. In this case, it is desirable that the mass of the worker be within 80 kg.

  

• The classic shovel is imperfect, since when digging up hard clods of earth, they do not loosen. After some improvements, the tool has a second segment. A striking example is a shovel called Plowman. In fact, it is a soil cultivator. The length of the teeth of the working forks does not exceed 25 cm. Usually they are made 10–15 cm each. The working forks lift the upper layer of the earth, breaking it against the teeth of the second stationary segment. The plowman is not intended for digging virgin soil. The efficiency of the tool is observed when the mass of a working person is from 60 kg.

  

• A similar device has a shovel called Mole. A distinctive feature is the rear stop. If the Plowman has a T-shaped, then the Mole has an emphasis in the form of an arc. The second stationary segment with teeth differs. Here the front stop is raised. The length of the mole’s teeth is at least 25 cm. This allows you to make deep digging. Due to the large depth of digging, it is difficult to work with Mole, especially on clay and grassy lands.

  

On sale you can find a Tornado shovel or a similar miracle tool without a name. All of them have approximately the same drawings and dimensions. They can only differ in the length of the teeth and minor modifications to the body.

Self-made classic ripper

The photo shows a do-it-yourself drawing of a miracle shovel from one segment. The tool consists of working forks. Efficiency and ease of work depends on the removal of the stop. The longer it is, the harder it will be to dig the ground. However, the advance step depends on the length of the stop. The optimal size is considered to be an emphasis 15-20 cm long, but it all depends on the physical condition of the worker.

The shovel does not have a hinge mechanism and a second stationary segment. Because of this, the design is easier to manufacture. Although it is more difficult to work with a classic ripper than with a shovel consisting of two segments.

Making a classic shovel with your own hands is quite simple. The only difficulty here is to give the teeth a special shape, as shown in the diagram. Due to these bends on the pins, force is evenly distributed and it is easier for a person to dig. The teeth are made from hardened steel. It is optimal to use the services of a forge or, in extreme cases, find fittings. The body itself is welded from a round or square pipe. The rod cannot be used for these purposes, as the tool will become unbearable.

Independent production of a shovel from two segments

It is more difficult to make a miracle shovel with your own hands from two segments. But such a tool is more efficient and easier to work with. You can weld the structure according to the Plowman or Mole scheme. This is a personal preference of the owner. The photo below shows and numbered all the main parts of the shovel. Guided by this scheme, we will look at how to make a miracle tool at home:

• Let’s start with the frame. In width, it does not need to be made more than 50 cm. Due to the large capture of the soil area, the digging speed will decrease due to the rapid fatigue of the worker. The optimal width of the working forks is 35–40 cm. It is better to bend the frame from a square steel pipe.

  

• When bending the frame, remember that the front stop bars are its continuation. In the diagram, they are indicated by the number 1. A crossbar is welded to the side elements. The teeth of the second stationary part of the fork, indicated by the number 2, will be attached to it. As a result, the main frame is obtained, on which all the shovel nodes will be assembled.
• The back stop, indicated by the number 3, is welded to the frame at an angle of approximately 100^о. It is made a couple of centimeters wider from the working forks. The emphasis must be strong, since the main load falls on it when lifting the earth layer with a pitchfork. The shape of the stop depends on personal preference. You can make a T-shaped structure according to the Mole principle, as shown in the diagram. This option is considered lightweight. If you like the shape of the Plowman’s stop, then an arc resembling the letter P is bent out of the pipe.
• For the manufacture of working forks, indicated by the number 4, take a piece of square pipe. A piece of a round pipe with a diameter of 50 mm is welded in the center for a wooden handle. The working forks are a movable element, therefore they are attached to the common frame with a bracket marked with the number 5. The connecting assembly consists of two parts: one is welded to the frame, and the other to the socket for the handle. For the manufacture of the bracket, sheet steel with a thickness of about 5 mm is used. The two elements are connected with an ordinary bolt, but they are not tightly tightened so that the working forks can move.
• For the manufacture of the pins of the working fork, marked with the number 6, hardened steel rods are taken. One end of the teeth is sharpened at an angle of 30^о, and the other edge is welded to a square pipe with a connecting movable assembly. For better loosening of the soil, the pins are bent at an angle of about 150^о. The teeth of the second stationary fork are made of reinforcement. You don’t need to sharpen the edges. The pins are welded to the cross member of the main frame. The teeth of the working forks should be 1 more. The distance between the pins depends on the width of the frame, but not less than 100 mm.
• After connecting the two elements, a wooden handle is inserted into the welded section of the round pipe. Its length should be slightly below the chin of a working person. From above, a T-shaped crossbar is attached to the handle. If desired, the handle of the miracle shovel can be made U-shaped. Then two pieces of a round pipe are welded to the bar of the working forks along the edges. Two cuttings are inserted into them, and connected from above with a jumper. In the photo, the U-shaped handle is shown under the number 3.

To make it convenient for different people to work with a home-made miracle shovel, the back stop and the handle must be made with adjustment in length. Here you need to show imagination. You can cut inserts from the pipe and drill holes for cotter pins.

On the video, see the procedure for making a miracle shovel:

Reviews

And now let’s read the reviews about this tool.