Best method for hoe repair

Got a new grub hoe. Spent three evenings putting an edge on it by hand with a file while watching gardening videos on YouTube (and nursing an injured shoulder.) Finally went out to deal with all the clumps of grass in the garden that I've been saving specifically for this tool. I'm in love. It cut through grass like a hot katana through butter and dealt with the roots in a couple of swift chops.

The problem is that it found a rock before I did and put a giant dent in my sharpening job.

What's the best way to go about dealing with this?

Because of the weight of the blade, it's a bigger dent than I've had to deal with before. The metal is bent forward a fair amount relative to the rest of the blade. And I don't have any kind of powered grinder, just the file. After all the time I spent to get a good edge on it, I'm not wanting to take a bunch more metal off (I'd probably have to take off an 1/8 inch or so to put on a fresh edge below the dent... which I really don't want to do with a file, nor in general for the longevity of the hoe.) Is that the best option? Could/should I hammer the bent part flush with the rest of the blade and go from there? File the edge flush with the top of the blade and leave the rest of the dent until the rest of the blade gets sharpened down to that point over time? Some other method?

Hi Matthew, based on the other nicks in the blade, I'm guessing it is destined for a life of nicks and boo boos.  Does the big dent affect how well it works?  If not, I'd leave it alone and use it.  If it is a problem, I'd possibly use a rat tail file or curved file to take the corners off the dent.  Not really sharpening it into a curve but allowing it to cut a bit better.  If that makes any sense...

What are the chances of finding another rock again? If time is spent to remove that dent just to strike another rock, that would kinda suck. I say leave it be, as that small ding in the edge doesn't appear to reduce the overall effectiveness of the hoe. If it were mine, I'd wait until there were six or eight dents then put a new edge on it.

James Freyr wrote:What are the chances of finding another rock again? If time is spent to remove that dent just to strike another rock, that would kinda suck. I say leave it be, as that small ding in the edge doesn't appear to reduce the overall effectiveness of the hoe. If it were mine, I'd wait until there were six or eight dents then put a new edge on it.

That's totally how I deal with knives and axes and such, I'm just not using those where I'm going to hit a rock and put a proper dent in the blade. o_0 I guess my major concern is whether doing nothing would increase the risk of more significant damage in the future for to the bent piece breaking off.

Mike Jay wrote:Hi Matthew, based on the other nicks in the blade, I'm guessing it is destined for a life of nicks and boo boos.  Does the big dent affect how well it works?  If not, I'd leave it alone and use it.  If it is a problem, I'd possibly use a rat tail file or curved file to take the corners off the dent.  Not really sharpening it into a curve but allowing it to cut a bit better.  If that makes any sense...

Fortunately, it should face fewer rocks in the future. Just happened to be weeding in an area next to where a load of gravel had been dumped in years past and I still occasionally find a piece that wandered too far from the pile. The new gardens are going in an area that has been relatively rock free.

It did lose a bit of effectiveness by the end of the session today, but I suspect that had more to do with it the whole blade needing a quick touch up with the file and little, if anything, to do with the dent.

This angle might illustrate how the edge is bent over a bit better than the others I posted, if that makes any difference

Mathew Trotter wrote:Just happened to be weeding in an area next to where a load of gravel had been dumped in years past and I still occasionally find a piece that wandered too far from the pile.

So that dent came from a piece of gravel?  I was imagining a bigger rock.  If gravel did it, I'd definitely not try to fix it because you're likely to hit more gravel in the future.  If the metal is bent/pushed over to one side you could either file the pushed-over bit off or you could tap it with a hammer to try to bend it back.  If you are really looking for a project.  And you have nothing better to do...  

I would smooth the area a bit with a round file.  If the ding really bothers you, then you may be able to fine someone who can fill the area with weld.  TIG would probably be the best process, but the weld would be a LOT harder than the surrounding material.  I have no idea if that is an issue for a hoe.  Maybe the area would become susceptible to cracking?  If you take it to a welder or machine shop, you could ask them about hardfacing/hardsurfacing the hoe ( [youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAV_E2QE9AU)[/youtube]