TheTentLab Dirt Saw Deuce #2

It's ultralight and gets the job done, but digs into the hand when digging or chopping in rocky or rooty soil.

I have three Deuces – I guess if I had four of a kind I might have a winning poker hand. 

I didn’t choose any of them myself. The first (red) was a gift from my daughter after our eight-person through hike of the JMT in 2014, when we all shared a much heavier but very effective U-Dig-It Pro for daily dumps.

Like many of the other reviewers here, I received the other two as Trailspace Top Reviewer booty. All three are the mid-weight (0.6 oz, 17g) Deuce #2 variety, but have evolved more toothiness over time, culminating in the current DirtSaw® model. I will focus this review on this most recent model, but most comments apply to all three models.

All three Deuces are ultralight as advertised and reasonably effective at digging catholes, but not as user-friendly as their longer and (much) heavier cousins like the U-Dig-It Pro. That’s a worthy trade-off for anyone needing to save weight. For larger groups like our team of 8 on the JMT in 2014, the weight of a beefier trowel effectively gets divided up and probably results in deeper holes in those rocky Sierra soils – not everyone goes at the task with equal vigor, especially if they are in a hurry.

My original Deuce has survived a lot of hacking and prying without bending or any other compromise. No problem there.

The notches on the leading edge help catch and break small roots when cutting through duff, but I don't see that all the crenulations on the sides of the DirtSaw model contribute all that much. As of this writing, it’s possible to order the older model on sale direct from TentLab.

If I were to choose my own Deuce, I’d go for the slightly longer (7.7 vs.  6.8 in) and beefier but also heavier (0.95 oz, 27g)  #3 model, not just because I have big hands but because I think other users (i.e. my small-handed wife) could also benefit from some extra leverage and depth.

I am departing from all previous Trailspace reviews of the Deuce in giving it only four stars (shocking!) because I see some room for improvement. The thin metal edge tends to dig into the palm of the hand when digging or chopping in hard rocky ground or through roots. The web site instructions and videos suggest one- and two-handed grips and using the Deuce upside-down to rough out a hole, but that doesn’t really deal with the “cutting edge” problem. I wonder how many users really heed that fine print – most of us just grab the idiot end and go at it. In fact, some previous reviewers here have noted that they used a bandanna for padding to deal with this. You can see that I tried padding my first one with duct tape, but it didn’t help all that much.

To deal with that problem, I cut a slot in a piece of ¼” / 6mm plastic tubing, wrapped it around the handle, then filled it with epoxy. This got a bit messy but got the job done. The finished product weighs 0.85 oz / 24g. Both my wife and I were quite happy with this “soft handle” during our outings this summer. Probably not a cost-effective solution for the manufacturer, but maybe there’s some way to roll the top edge?

The Deuce models have undergone some minor improvements over the years. Maybe it’s finally time for a major one.

Background

I have used a cheap plastic trowel, the U-Dig-It Pro, and three different Deuces to dig numerous drop offs in mountain, forest, and bog soils in various places around the world.

Perfect

Got one of these as a Trailspace top reviewer a few months ago. Used it last week in the Sierras. Way better than the trowel I was using before. No issues with use. Really digs in.

Only advice I have is be careful how you store it. I originally had it hanging off the back of my pack and it abraided my pack a little. So I moved it to a zip lock bag inside my camp shoe. Much better. BTW, it is easy to clean. 

Background

4 nights near Alta Meadows, Sequoia, Sierra Nevada