Freund 12 A 1 Forged Loppers - Professional Pruning Shears for Thick Branches Up to 45mm

Forged loppers for branches and boughs that would defeat a lighter tool. The 12 A 1 suits anyone who cuts hardwood regularly, whether in an orchard, a vineyard, a hedgerow or a fruit tree that has been left to its own devices for a season too long.

The curved, ground blades draw the wood into the cut rather than pushing it away, which keeps the stroke clean and leaves a cut face that closes over neatly. At 750 mm overall, the tool sits at a length that gives genuine two-handed leverage on thick growth without becoming unwieldy inside a canopy or a dense hedge. That balance is not accidental; it is the kind of thing you notice after an hour's work rather than in the first five minutes.

Forged construction is what separates a tool you sharpen and keep from one you replace. A pressed blade will do the job for a season or two, but it will not hold an edge the same way, and once the edge is gone the work becomes harder than it needs to be. Sharpening the blades at the start of each season and wiping them down after use in wet conditions is all the maintenance this tool asks of you.

The weight, just under two kilograms, is worth knowing before you buy; this is a tool built for the work, not for occasional light use.

• Cutting capacity: up to 45 mm diameter
• Total length: 750 mm
• Blades: curved, ground
• Construction: forged
• Weight: 1,958 g
• Suited to orchard, vineyard, hedgerow and estate work
• Maintenance: sharpen at the start of the season; wipe clean after use

Winter pruning is the natural time to reach for loppers of this kind, when the structure of the tree is visible and the wood is dormant. Buy once, keep the blades sharp, and there is no reason this tool should not still be in use a decade from now.