The Gilmour Traveling Sprinkler is a cast iron, green-and-yellow model of the classic John Deere tractor. It follows the path you lay out with the water hose, covering up to 13,500 sq. ft. of lawn, and the manufacturer says its adjustable spray arms water at a diameter ranging from 15 to 55 ft. Gilmour also says the 2-speed traveler will follow up to 200 feet of hose before the sprinkler’s shutoff ramp automatically stops it and turns off the water.

User reviews at Amazon and at DrillSpot are a toss-up between one-star (hate it) and five-star (love it). Some folks say the sprinkler works especially well for odd-shaped yards and that kids get a kick out of it. Others complain that the gears strip themselves and the plastic internal parts fall apart right away. Are the Deere design and the cool factor of a self-propelling sprinkler enough to part with $70 - 100? Let us know in comments.

Traveling Sprinkler [Gilmour]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Street Pricing [Google]

The Fiskars Micro-Tip pruners are great for precision trimming jobs on small plants, flowers, and even vegetable gardens where a larger pruner would be unwieldy. The non-slip handles, blade cover, and blade lock also keep the sharp parts away from your soft parts. Looking at the 1-1/2″ blade, I can also imagine a host of uses in the shop where larger snips or cutters would be too big or clumsy for intricate cutting or trimming work - feel free to share your ideas in comments!

Street pricing runs about $10 from your local Home Depot.

Fiskars Micro-Tip Pruners [Home Depot]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls — gather ’round for the fight of the century. In this corner, weighing in at anywhere from 120cc to 190cc, depending on the situation, is the burly brawler, the buff bender, the big boss from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin: Briggs & Stratton! In this corner, weighing in at anywhere from 160cc to a monstrous 690cc is the heavy hitter, the hot hater, the hypnotic hustler from Alpharetta, Georgia: Honda! These two will duke it out to see which small engine reigns supreme…right after this commercial break.

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I always stare in wonder at folks who can manage to actually grow something in a garden.  It’s a mystery to me — always has been. I can work on motors or build furniture fine, but when it comes to keeping things green in an outdoor environment, the best I can do is let the weeds take over. Reader Fred does a little better than that. Here’s a great pic of his micro greenhouse experiment.

Gardening in Wisconsin, the land that global warming forgot. Trying to start pepper plants in peat pots. The problem is that these seeds need temperatures about 80 degrees to germinate. It’s 61 degrees two weeks into June.

So, we’ll plant ‘em anyway and put a clear plastic deli container over each one to act as a micro greenhouse.

Down here in Texas that would set the poor plant on fire if I did it. I’ve planted two things in my entire life that have grown. One is a cottonwood that thrives still in my father’s yard, and the other is a little oak tree that’s still clinging to life –- barely — in my front yard.  Best of luck to you and your peppers, sir.

Toolmonger Photo Pool [Flickr]

Can anybody tell us why you’d buy an 8-inch hatchet — what good is a hatchet this short?  You’re not going to get much of a swing with it, and you’re not really gaining much portability over a 14-inch hatchet.

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Yes, ladies and gents, this is a preview of the upcoming Craftsman C3 cordless chainsaw — they’ll add it to the existing C3 line in late July.  Craftsman recently released this information to Sears associates only, and just as of today it’s cleared for public consumption. On with the show! (more…)

If you just have a lawn mower, a Gas Caddy like the one pictured above might be a little overkill — but if you maintain a bunch of gas-powered equipment, you might appreciate this simple solution for transferring and storing all that fuel.

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If you’re looking for a good weekend project, Lowe’s website offers instructions on building your own backyard putting green. Using wood, sand, paver base, astroturf, PVC, and a few basic tools — plus some elbow grease/quality time spent with the kiddo — this looks like a project you could do even without the big box. In fact, one online magazine dedicates a whole section to building your own greens that go beyond the 8′ by 8′ square.

We see a few potential concerns, though:  warped wood over time, protecting the green in winter months, and drainage issues since the flat turf and raised border can retain water.  Do you have experience building a green or ideas about how to improve drainage?  Post in comments and let us know!

Weekend Projects [Lowe's]
DIY Backyard Putting Greens [Residential Putting Green Magazine]

Skil just recently introduced the Isio 2-in-1 gardening tool — it’s a new lithium-ion grass and shrub trimmer with a tool-less blade-changing system that allows you to convert it from lawn shears to shrub trimmer and back again easily.

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In this great action shot, reader Vincent Ma cuts some stone for his latest backyard project and shows off his hard-won work clothes.

Using an angle grinder from Canadian Tire, and a Norton diamond blade, I can score grooves in the brick in order to snap the “wings” off the Celtik wall unit. This way I can make beveled units for curved sections of the wall.

My work pants are nearing their end. Here a giant rip opened up and all I can do is duct-tape it to prevent my underwear from showing. Yes, I do know how to sew, but I don’t wanna bother with it.

Never feel bad about working so hard that your work clothes can’t take the strain. The only idiots who’ll make fun of you for that are the same people who’d hire out the project you just did with your bare hands. The duct tape just means you value one type of work over another this weekend — nothing wrong with that.  Also, the stones look great.

Toolmonger Photo Pool [Flickr]

I’m not sure if the Hose End Safeguard (HES) is the solution to a problem I never had or a cheap way to make sure I never have the problem.  WenDan Enterprises claims the HES will save you money in the long run by protecting your stuff from scratches and saving you from having to replace the hose end.

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The makers of the SnapBagger claim that it out-performs most other methods of bagging leaves.  You can rake leaves into it like a dustpan, scoop leaves from the ground, or load leaves into it while somebody else holds it, like you might already do.

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Walk into the gardening section at your local big box and you’ll to notice two different kinds of cutting tools — bypass and anvil.  You’ll see these two options for everything from pruners to clippers to loppers to hedge shears.  So how do you know which one is right for you?  Learn more after the jump.

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If you want to drive me out of the room, change the channel to a cooking show.  For me, these things rank somewhere between having my teeth pulled and cleaning the garage.  But I hold few topics in as high regard as grilling — all the best food comes from the grill.  So when Weber announced they’re coming out with a new cookbook called Weber’s Way to Grill, I pricked up my ears.

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People keep telling you, “You don’t need a truck if you don’t haul stuff regularly.  Just get a trailer.”  I see some problems with that logic: for one thing, a trailer requires extra storage space that you might not have;  and also it requires that you plan ahead and pull the trailer every time you might need it.  The Tow-N-Stow may not help with your planning ability, but it definitely takes care of the problem of where to store the trailer.

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Whether you’re a fan of spike aeration or not, you have to admit that the Mow-Aerator treads would look pretty badass on your riding mower.  Plus, once you’re done aerating you can take your lawn mower mudding.

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Any good Toolmonger knows that the best part of a project is the celebratory beer and barbecue when it’s finally finished.  A major project requires a major celebration, and a major celebration requires a major grill. If you’re in need of a new gas grill this season, take a look at the Weber Genesis E-310 in espresso brown.

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