Ask any gardener to identify the tools and equipment they consider necessary for maintaining their gardens and most of them will have a pair of shears for pruning.
The tool is used to cut stems and branches from the bushes, flowers, and small trees, they definitely have a lot of work to do and will eventually require some attention to make sure they’re working.
We will discuss how to improve the sharpness and cleanliness of your pruning shears, including the tools you’ll need for maintenance, and how to use your pruning shears safely and guide you through an easy step-by-step process to ensure they are as close to being 100% sharp and clean as is possible.
Equipment Required
Similar to most objects which require cleaning sharpened or cleaned there are numerous ways to do it as well as a variety of equipment that could be utilized.
It is important to note that the information you’re about to read doesn’t define the sole way that pruning shears are sharpened and cleaned However, it is the most recommended method to ensure they are in good shape.
The equipment you’ll need for Sharpening and cleaning procedures is listed below:
- Safety glasses or eyeglasses
- Gloves
- Screwdriver or wrench
- Course + fine steel wool
- Medium/fine Sandpaper
- Course diamond file
- Drying/cleaning cloths
- Wire brush
- The bucket or basin of soapy hot water
- Cleaning solvent
- Lubricating oil
Safety
The two first items on the list of safety equipment are likely gloves and goggles. You might think that sharpening and cleaning a pair of simple pruning shears isn’t exactly risky. But generally the case, it’s not.
But, you’ll have to work with equipment that has sharp edges and liquids that may accidentally spill into your eyes.
In both instances, the old saying that it is better to be secure rather than sorry is true Therefore, we strongly recommend wearing gloves and glasses during the time you work through the process of sharpening and cleaning the pruning shears you have.
Removing Your Shears for Pruning
It is the first thing to do to disassemble the pruning shears. If you’re worried it’s actually quite easy to accomplish depending on how they’re constructed, it will require you to remove one bolt or two screws.
After you’ve removed them, carefully break the two blades. you’ll be able to remove the springs off the handle.
Here are a few suggestions to make it easier. First, you should do the deconstruction on a towel that has been used before so that there’s less possibility of something slipping away and being lost. The other suggestion is to take notes of every piece, so to when they are put back together, you will be able to verify every piece to ensure it is in place.
Step-by-Step Instructions to Clean Shears For Pruning
- This is the primary cleaning procedure where you have to scrub the blades using the wire scrubbing brush as well as some soapy, hot water. If you don’t have an electric brush then a nail scrubbing toothbrush or an old toothbrush can suffice. It is essential to ensure that in addition to the main components of the blades, get rid of the dirt that has accumulated within tiny crevices.
- Even though step. 1 will remove ordinary dirt and mud, it is important to take further to get rid of the residue of plant sap, rust, and dirt that are determined to stick around. In this case, you’ll need to employ coarse steel or sandpaper. to make this portion of the cleaning process more efficient, some cleaning solvents may also be used.
- The final step of cleaning is to dry all the parts of your pruning shears that have been thoroughly cleaned with the cloth. If you wish to give your blades a shine, rub them using some fine steel wool, which will get them back appearing their best.
Step-by-Step Instructions to Sharpen Pruning Shears
Before we get into how to do it, need to note that many people are concerned at this point about whether they may cut their pruning shears too sharply and cause damage in any way. Although it’s possible, it’s highly unlikely, so don’t use that as a reason not to sharpen them.
There is no need to be able to make this part perfect, but sharpening your pruning shears just halfway is far better than not sharpening them and letting them deteriorate completely.
- If you examine every blade, you’ll notice that it has a shiny area that is the level that you will be sharpening. If you are unable to locate this, then it’s likely that your shears have been worn out or damaged and must be replaced.
- The point of the file in the inside of the curve of the blade Be sure to hold it at an exactly similar angle to the bevel we discussed in step 1. Move the file along the curve of the blade towards the blade’s tip, and when you do this, make sure it is angled correctly.
- For normal sharpening, repeat this process at least 10 times and up to 20 times. However, if one or both of the blades are in poor condition, you may require a greater amount of draws on the file to as high as 50 to get it perfectly sharpened.
- For a quick check to see if you have the shears sharp to a sufficient degree take them apart and make use of them to cut the paper. It’s not really trying to determine whether they can slice through paper (if they don’t, it’s an issue!) instead, they are creating an uncurled shred.
If the cutting shears have been sharpened to a sufficient degree The final step is to apply just the right amount of oil to lubricate the blades’ surfaces to shield them against corrosion.