Skip The Bench Grinder: The Lowe's Find For Sharpening Your Dull Garden Shears

Garden shears are a surprisingly large category of beginner garden tools. They range from small, flower-cutting specialties to very large loppers. They share a few commonalities, one being that they need to be razor-sharp to do their jobs well. If you are a dedicated gardener, you may be less than comfortable with the idea of sharpening your own shears than pruning your pear tree. The good news is that Lowe's has a tool called the Orange Ninja Multi-tool Garden Tool and Knife Sharpener that might change how you feel. It's easy to use, so keeping your various garden shears sharp becomes second nature. You can even sharpen lawn mower blades with it!

The idea of sharpening may bring to mind images of bench grinders showering sparks across a workshop. This tool is nothing like that. It is a handheld tool that uses your muscle power to do the work. A combination of diamond sharpening abrasive plates and ceramic honing rods is the key. Not that you need to know anything about those features, as each of the specific sharpening openings on the tool is labeled for use. So, you don't need to guess which to choose. You also don't need tons of sharpening knowledge to sharpen your gardening tools.

Sharpening an edge is the process of removing a tiny bit of metal to restore the original, sharp edge. The various openings on the Ninja are matched to the sharpening angles of common cutting edges. (It comes with an instruction manual). By matching the openings to the shape of your tool's cutting edge (a lopper vs. pruning shears, for example), you will be ready to sharpen the tool. Then pull or push the Ninja along the edge, and the Ninja does the work. Take several passes along the cutting edge, and then test the sharpness by putting it to work. If necessary, take a few more passes.

A couple more details to consider. First, unlike sharpening with a bench grinder, there's zero chance of chips or debris flying off your cutting tool when using the Ninja, but your hands will be very close to a sharp cutting edge. Use protective gloves when sharpening those edges. Second, before you sharpen, remove any sap or other goop from your garden tool. Denatured alcohol will help loosen stubborn sap. Finally, take the Ninja with you into your garden. If you find a clipper cutting poorly, take a moment to fix that problem. Its portability is one of the Ninja's benefits