Ames 2300200 Grass Hook for Trimming High Weeds/Grass, 1.5" x 0.75" x 0.25", Black

...Get this! I have Mexican feather grass and it dulls my shears in minutes. The scythe makes a once miserable job easy. Just be careful 'cause it is REALLY sharp!

It met my intended usage - cutting thick and hard to get at weeds. It's a little "clunky" and I don't understand the offset in the blade but it works fine.

I had an antique sickle that I had bought at a garage sale. It was shaped very much like this one. I lost it in the tall grass, and still haven't found it. So I was hoping this one would be just like it, and it is. The blade is very sharp, and came protected in a plastic coating that I removed and discarded. I've just spent a few minutes testing it out, and got a wheelbarrow full of tall grass and thistles.It won't cut through anything woody; for that you need a different tool. (I use nippers.) But it's great for tall weeds. As a previous reviewer said, you grab a handful of weeds and put tension on them, then cut them off at the base. It's especially good for places where you wouldn't take a weed whacker, like in among the irises. We have hard clay soil here, and pulling grass is impossible, so I began using a sickle a long time ago.I appreciate the simplicity of the design. The tang is long and bolted into the handle, so it doesn't wobble the way I've read some other types do. My old sickle was probably decades old. I expect this one to last just as long, if I don't lose it first.Interestingly enough, mine doesn't say Ames on the handle, though it does say True Temper, so I'm not sure if it's exactly this model or not, though I did buy it from this page.

First of all, the grass hook did not come properly sharpened, so I had to have someone sharpen it for me. Now that it has been sharpened, it does not cut high weeds and grass very well. When I was growing up, my grandmother had an old rusty grass hook that cut better than this one does now that it has been properly sharpened. Needless to say, I don't recommend this one.

The one I received only had a couple of inches at the base sharpened to any extent. I bought a peening anvil for a scythe I purchased elsewhere and thought I would try it out on this thing. I had to use a file to get any sort of edge on the majority of the blade. I then drew out the steel on the anvil which probably also work hardened the steel. After final sharpening, this thing was going through grass and weeds with ease. It has become my favorite gardening tool. The coating on the handle does feel tacky and cheap, so I may put some wrapping on it. The black coating started chipping off as soon as I started working on the edge so I just ground that off near the edge on both sides to fully expose the steel. So in a nutshell, I only liked this thing after I completely reworked the edge. It wouldn't cut anything on arrival. I only paid $8 or $9 for it so it just gave me a little project making this thing a usable tool. I don't think I would pay $15 to $20 for another one though.

I was expecting at least some reasonable quality and usability, sadly this is cheap made in China garbage..No quality or substance to this product whatsoever, used it on a small section of garden, 4 foot wide by 60 feet long which was not overly dense and cut a few things down, sadly it is now completely blunt!!The metal is not hardened in any way and doesn't stand up to even light work / use and the few times I caught the very end in the soil caused the point to go off it immediately.Waste of money

Can't seem to find these hand-held sickle anywhere at the local stores. I purchased this at the request of a family member who is not mechanically inclined and refused to use a power trimmer. She absolutely loved this sickle and have been using it religiously to trim grass and weeds in the back yard. She claimed it is sharp emough to whack grass with ease. I will probably have to hone the blade later on but it looks easy to do. Thank you Amazon for carrying such a product. I know you've made a certain family member happy!

I got it by mail promptly, used it that very day and it worked just fine the way it was, although it needed some sharpening, but, It is normal for tools of that nature not to be mailed extremely sharp to prevent accidents in transit. Overall, I am very happy with it.