Coghlan's Folding Camp Shovel, 23-Inches

When you're backpacking you're always trying to carry less weight and take up less space with your gear. This shovel folds down very nicely and takes up minimal space in my pack. The trade off is, it is a bit heavy but that's because its very sturdy. I've seen lighter shovels that fold down as nicely but I don't think they'd manage to dig through hard dry ground like this shovel can.

Fairly stout and digs holes in hard ground with ease. Easy to fold, and has a small storage size.I think that this is a generic product, because I have seen the same shovel with different brand names (Coleman for example).Works well and is inexpensive.

After reading some reviews for this shovel, I was hesitant at first to buy it. But the price was was excellent so I decided to take a chance even if it was inferior in quality compared to a previous folding shovel I had. Upon receiving it, inspecting it and 'playing around' with it, I found it was better than I expected in terms of quality and potential sturdiness. It was as good if not better than my previous folding shovel which was an army surplus type shovel. A pleasant bonus was that is came with a canvas carrying case.I intend to keep it in the trunk of my car to shovel me out if I get stuck in the snow. I had a snow shovel which had trouble with hard packed snow and it took up too much room in my trunk. The new folding shovel will have no trouble with the snow and occupies almost no room in my trunk compared to my snow shovel.

I bought this after a snow storm in my area a year ago to keep in my car for emergencies. A year later, I used the shovel twice in the same week. The shoveled failed, see my photos in the gallery. There are three problems with this product.1. The pivot joining handle and stem is loose which allows a lot of play and the handle take the load unevenly at the pivot which, in my case, caused the handle to bend.2. The main nut that allows the shovel to fold or stay secure unfolded does not lock. It come loose after few seconds of use and the shovel's blade folds, which could pinch your fingers.3. The blade thick and the shovel overall feel like it has a lot of weight. This is good if you're trying to dig your car out. On the other hand it gives the false impression that the blade is sturdy and hard. It is not. The tip of my shovel bent 90 degrees. See photos in the gallery.You get what you pay for: a disposable shovel.

Yeah, this shovel is a bit big and may be considered heavy for the light packers. I'm a fit dude, so I'm not going to stress about the extra ounces I'll be carrying around. If you're buying this to take on your hiking and camping trips, I'm going to assume you're fit enough to add this to your pack as well ;)It's a big shovel, so you can displace some dirt with this. If you're only going to be digging small holes, I'd suggest going with a smaller shovel.There is a review here that says the handle is too loose. You tighten a collar after unfolding then shovel. I think our friend here didn't tighten the collar enough that actually holds everything rigidly in place...I recommend this shovel unless you only need to make small, wimpy holes in the ground.

This thing packs into a very small box, is extremely easy to unfold and lock into place, and is almost completely made of metal. The joints are not perfect, and so once unfolded and locked, there will still be a slight amount of wiggle/rattle. It's not bad, and I still expect it to perform just fine. Best value I have found between Amazon and C*stco for a nice folding emergency shovel. Got one for both cars.The shovel does include a serrated "knife" edge, as well as an angled serrated "saw" edge, but I wouldn't expect them to do much. The form factor isn't really ideal for cutting, and it's probably not sharp enough either.

If you are looking for an entrenching tool and have a budget, this is the one to get. The only thing this shovel could have that could make it a "5 star" shovel is a "pick" for that stubborn, almost-hard-as-a-rock ground. Otherwise, it works good in the field and has held up for the few times I've used it. Some may complain that it doesn't have a case, but if you can live without (most can) its well worth the price.

This shovel is sturdy and would do the job; however it is heavy and not easy to refold back into its flat position.