!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Fokin ploskorez hoe by Ecominded

I give this Fokin ploskorez hoe 9.5 out of 10 acorns.



I was super excited to get this hoe all the way from Russia, and a little disappointed to see that it did have some rust spots already on the blade. Perhaps it happened in the long shipping? I have difficult time sharpening blades (due to my hypermobility, it's hard to hold blade and sharpener at the correct angle). I did not attempt to sharpen the blade and risk ruining the blade, and so used and reviewed it based on the condition it arrived in.



For the handle, I used a piece of oak lumber that I found in my garage and sanded smooth. Then drilled the holes and bolted the blade to the handle. It was not a terribly difficult endevor, and something I think most people would be able to do if they have the right sized drill bit. Eco minded does sell hoe handles, but they are recommend saving money on shipping and just making your own. I agree!



For my first test, I took my Fokin hoe and used it to attack a narrow path that was totally overcome by buttercup, and that I really hadn't wanted to weed by hand as it would take at least 30 minutes to clear it out that way. With the Fokin hoe, it took maybe 6 minutes, and I didn't have to bend down.

Before / After
 

Pile of buttercup mulch!


The mulch was really easy to hook with the hoe and move around. Next, I went to the area next to my potato bed that's hard to mow. 5 minutes later, and it's a much nicer path! I love how easy it is to get right next to garden beds and clean those edges. The blade is really easy to do precise work with.

Before / After
 


Since I was so impressed with it's edge work, I decided to see how it'd do in edging my hugel. Once again, this is one of those areas that would normally take me 30+ minutes to weed out by hand, and so it rarely gets done. It took me 2 minutes to make it decent, and 2 more minutes to tidy it up/

Before / After
 

For my final test today, I attacked the backside of my hugel that is absolutely overgrown by buttercups. I've weeded this area by hand twice now, and it usually takes me at least 10 minutes to yank the tops off the plants and my hands are all sticky with sap. This took me 4 minutes. No bending, no sappy hands. And I had a nice pile of mulch to move easily where I wanted.

Before / After


I was hoping this hoe would work as a small scythe, but it really wasn't sharp enough for that--or I had the angle wrong--because it really didn't like to cut grass for me. It probably would have if I knew how to sharpen it. As it is, though, it did a marvelous job on my buttercups, and I reall like the pointy end which is great for digging at stubborn plants and hooking piles of mulch/weeds. I used the hoe is both my left and right hands and with both sides of the blade, and it worked equally well in each circumstance.

All in all, I HIGHLY recommend this Fokin hoe. In the words of my husband, "It's the tool I always dreamed off." It's perfect for those that have limited mobility--I would have LOVED to have this tool when pregnant and when I had my babies strapped to me and it was so hard to get up and down.

(Aside: My husband is really tempted to do downtown with a bunch of these hoes and "pimp" them out sell them on the street corner, maybe with some gold and sparkles on the handles "Fokin Hoe, $15." But, I'm not going to let him!)

Editing to Add: I'm REALLY enjoying the curve that this blade has, and the sharpened point of it. It's really great for grabbing and ripping out those pesky weeds that spread by runners, and it even digs quite nicely, too. The curve of the blade also makes it really easy to snag and move whatever mulch you cut. I pulled this thing out tonight--when I really should have been washing up after dinner, to have fun weeding out around my garden beds. It really is a delight to work with!

Wonderful review, thank you Nicole! :)

I would also like to point out your words: "It's perfect for those that have limited mobility"

As soon as the author, V.Fokin is a handicapped man he created his tool so that even weak and handicapped people could use it with ease.  

It's mentioned that shipping is cheaper if you make your own handle. Can anyone recommend specific woods for making the handle out of? Nicole A. mentioned she made hers of oak.
I'd be tempted to make mine of a weaker wood so certain people I live with will break the handle and not the hoe, but that concern may be groundless...  ;-)

I honestly don't think you can break the blade. That thing is STURDY. I'd make sure to get a wood that doesn't split easily, as you have to drill two holes in a line, and I can imagine that on a wood (like cedar?) that it might split up the handle if you whack something really hard or use it a lot.

The website says even pine is okay.  I'm going to use oak on one, and a tree branch I cut from a dead green ash tree for the other.

I couldn't find any reference to the kind of steel used or if sharpening is required.  Anyone know about either issue?

I read somewhere that it is carbon steel.  I would assume it would have to be sharpened sooner or later, but that is based on experience with other carbon steel tools.

Trace Oswald wrote:I read somewhere that it is carbon steel.  I would assume it would have to be sharpened sooner or later, but that is based on experience with other carbon steel tools.

That's correct, Trace. The blade should be sharpened as often as you would sharpen a scythe.

My dear friends, those who received their flat-cutters (Fokin hoe) I would greatly appreciate if you leave your feedback here! :)

Looks like an interesting tool but I wonder: Why does it stand on an angle?
Stability reasons?

Florian Hübner wrote:Looks like an interesting tool but I wonder: Why does it stand on an angle?
Stability reasons?

Good question.  Yes, the steel strip is bent at 3 different angles that are very important, this is actually a know-how, carefully thought out by the author, Vladimir Fokin. It make the tool strong, stable and springy at the same time.

My only question is, am I worthy of this tool? Since I was recently laid off, I’ve started a small gardening exchange. Between looking for new work, I’m tackling people’s gardening issues - mostly weeds.  I’ve been using the hand claw, but I’m slowly dying in the process...As I approach bigger projects, I’m going to need to learn bigger picture methods. The Folin ploskorez hoe looks like an excellent teacher!

Can’t wait to try it in my heavily rooted bed !

How long does the shipping take to USA

mike soriano wrote:How long does the shipping take to USA

In the times of lockdown all post services apply quarantine period, so all parcels come late than usual.  Now it may take 1-1.5 months for shipping to the States, instead of 3-4 weeks, as it was before.

This FOKIN HOE looks like it could really do some clearing!

I give this Fokin ploskorez hoe 9 out of 10 acorns. I love this tool. It's very easy to use, fast, accurate, and cuts weeds like a monster. I bought 3 sizes, and all work great. The largest is great for heavy brambles and the smaller ones are excellent for the food forest. I made my own handles and i would suggest making round handles rather than square. Round is much more comfortable to use. Square is easier to make and will work fine for small areas, but if you are going to give these tools a workout and have a larger area, i think round is the way to go.  You can't beat the price for these tools, and i can't imagine wearing one out any time soon. The will take a lot of sharpening before they will be to worn to use.  Really excellent tools. I'll try to remember to take some pictures soon. I have a lot of brambles and thistles that need to be taken out soon.

My small garden has a lot of weeds & roots, so looking forward to trying it.

Attention flat-cutter (Fokin hoe) users - some useful tips from the author, Vladimir Fokin:  https://ecominded.net/fokin-hoe-author-tips

Important information for those who ordered ploskorez Fokina (Russian flat-cutter) from us:

We shipped more than 60 parcels in April and May and all of them stuck for 1-2 months at Russian border or somewhere else but later most of them went through and were delivered to the destination. Some parcels arrive after 3 months since they were shipped. All parcels are late due to COVID-19 impact. And this happens to all post services now, USPS, Canada Post, DHL or Russian Post, no matter, all of them have to obey COVID-19 quarantine instructions.

Also there is an alert message on USPS site: https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction.action saying that the package delivery time may be extended due to COVID-19 impact.

So any delay with delivery is not our fault, it is the subject of COVID-19 impact and we are pretty sure that all parcel will arrive sooner or later. Please be patient.