Gardening Shear Maintenance

Keeping your garden shears in tip-top shape helps to make some of those bothersome chores much easier to handle, as well as making the completed task look far more professional. While some people commonly wear out their garden shears and simply go to purchase another set, this goes without saying that it’s bound to be costly, not to mention wasteful. By simply taking a few minutes to properly take care of your gardening shears, you can extend their usefulness and make them just as good as new (or sometimes even better). Follow these four simple steps to keep your garden shears a cut above the rest:

Cleanliness is Close to Green-Thumbedness

One of the most simple steps to maintaining your garden shears is, perhaps, one of the most obvious steps – a plain old cleaning will do wonders! As you use your shears, dirt and grime gradually builds up on the blades and in the crevices, gumming it up and making your shears stick. Surprisingly, most of this can be alleviated with just a little plain soap and water. If that doesn’t solve the problem, due to sap and sticky residues, try wiping the blades and cleaning them off with either ammonia or some mineral spirits. Both work well at getting rid of the sticky stuff.

Another common cleaning occurrence is that garden shears frequently get rusty. Often put away dirty and wet, rust can quickly go to work on your shears, making them stiff and difficult to operate. Should you happen to find rust on your shears, however, don’t despair. Fortunately, most rust can easily be cleaned off by lightly scouring the area with a bit of steel wool. Oiling your sheers, after every use and cleaning, will also help to keep rust at bay.

Slip Sliding Away

Keeping your gardening shears not only clean, but also well-lubricated, is another important aspect of tool maintenance. Doing so will help to prevent your blades from rusting, as well as just making them easier to open and close. Don’t worry though – lubricating your blades is a very simple task to perform. In order to do so, all you require is an old clean rag for cleaning, and some oil to lubricate the joint and blades.

Taking your oil, moisten the cloth and then simply wipe down the blades of your gardening shears. Also be sure to oil the main pivot point of your shears as well. It can help if you apply a little extra oil to the blades and then open and close them several times, in order to work the oil down into the joint. When you’re done, simply wipe the blades down once more, removing any excess oil that may be sitting on them.

Always ensure that the blades are kept well-lubricated. This can be done using any grade of clean automotive oil or oil that is specifically made for multiple tasks. Products such as WD40 can also help to clean and lubricate your shears, but it’s still a good idea to add a little extra oil afterwards.

Taking Care of Loose Screws

It’s amazing how much a simple tightening can do when it comes to making those shears work like new. There is a trick to doing this, however – not tightening your shears enough will make them cut poorly, while tightening them too much will result in the shears being stiff and awkward to operate. For best results, tighten the bolt slowly and in small increments, until the shears will open and close with a distinct scissor-like sound.

Maintaining Your Edge

All it takes is a simple file or sharpening tool, in order to keep a nice blade edge on your shears. To sharpen your blades with a sharpening steel, simply drag the sharpening tool along the blade, ensuring that you stay even with the bevel. You don’t want to over-sharpen and 5 strokes will usually do the trick nicely. Once that is done, run the steel along the other side of the blade (the flat side), removing the metal burrs that might have accumulated on the opposite side.

If you’re using a file to sharpen your blades, the technique changes slightly. If your blades are extremely dull, you may want to file the edges of the blade with a coarse file, then follow up with a fine-surfaced file. To use these files, you will want to use a back-and-forth motion, taking care to file first the beveled side and then the flat side of the blades to remove any burrs. In no time, you will certainly master the cutting edge.

Maintaining your garden shears helps to keep them in excellent shape and makes your gardening tasks much easier. By following this routine, your garden shears will easily last for years and years to come – it’s definitely worth the few minutes each task will take.