| > Man, there are a lot of specialized shovels. | >
| > Steve | | The most interesting shovel I have seen was left by the previous owner | of a dairy farm Dad bought in 1957. It was hanging up in an old maple | tree. The handle was 10-12 feet long, if I remember correctly. The | interesting part was the blade. It was a standard looking shovel, | except the blade was at right angles to the handle. If the handle was | straight up, the blade part was lying flat on the ground. | | Dad said it was a shovel for digging deep holes, like for a power | poll. It was used for scooping out the dirt, not for the actual | digging. I suppose they used a long steel rod to loosen the soil, | first. | | Paul | | Yes, I have seen those, and that is exactly what they were used for. | Removing loose dirt in the bottom of a post hole, most commonly one for a | telephone pole sized pole. IIRC, called a spoon. | | Steve | |
It is indeed called a spoon. It's companion is the same length, but looks like a shovel that has been straightened, call a spade. I have used both far too many times, digging telephone pole hole in easements inaccessible by truck. Standard depth for 35 and 40 foot poles is 5.5 and 6', respectively.