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Fiskars spade for clay soil

Updated: October 2026

You are on heavy or stony British soil, and the cheapest Fiskars spade in this set is the wrong economy for it. A Fiskars spade for clay soil, among the four amazon.co.uk listings kept here, means a pointed blade. The Solid round spade at about £15.59 is listed for soft, low-stone soil and turf. Its title talks about low stony floors, and that line is a bad translation, not a clay claim. The two pointed tools are the fixed Ergonomic at about £42.88 and the telescopic Xact at about £46.75. Both are on the [Fiskars spade comparison](/hub/digging-tools/fiskars-spade). Peter F. checked those listings and public UK sources in October 2026. There was no lab test and no clay percentage. Telescopic versus fixed is only a height note. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are on heavy or stony British soil, and the cheapest Fiskars spade in this set is the wrong economy for it. A Fiskars spade for clay soil, among the four amazon.co.uk listings kept here, means a pointed blade.

Our top picks

Fiskars Fiskars Ergonomic pointed spade 1070639

Best overall

Fiskars Fiskars Ergonomic pointed spade 1070639
9.6/10about £42.88
View offer
Fiskars Fiskars Solid round spade 1066717

Best value

Fiskars Fiskars Solid round spade 1066717
8.8/10about £15.59
View offer
Fiskars Fiskars Xact telescopic pointed spade 1066732

Rank 3

Fiskars Fiskars Xact telescopic pointed spade 1066732
8.8/10about £46.75
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Why the point matters in clay
  2. 2.The two pointed Fiskars spades
  3. 3.Water, roots, and sticky soil
  4. 4.When a spade is the wrong tool

Why the point matters in clay

Clay smears, holds water, and hides stones. A round blade is Fiskars’ shape for planting holes and bed edges, and for softer ground. A pointed blade is the shape its shovel-type guide gives to compacted, rocky soil and to roots. That guide is not a UK clay map, and it does not print these prices. It is still the split that matches the listing texts. The Solid bullets say soft, low-stone soils and cutting turf. The round telescopic Xact says the same kind of soft ground, at about £46.44. Paying more for a round blade does not aim it at hard clay. A range name does not repair that. Xact is not automatically the clay spade, because one of the two Xact listings is round. Start with the point. Then decide whether one person can use a fixed shaft. Shaft choice in general is the Fiskars spade buying guide.

The two pointed Fiskars spades

The fixed option is the Ergonomic pointed spade, article 1070639, at about £42.88. The listing calls it a pointed spade for hard, stony ground and says it is suitable for digging roots. The shaft is 125 cm, with a SoftGrip D-handle and a tread. The contents line says boron steel. Across 402 ratings it sits at 4.8, the largest count in this set. Review themes praise it on stony clay. One reviewer said it did not cut hedge roots, so do not buy it as a root saw. It does not telescope. For one person who can work at 125 cm, it is the clay pick inside this set. The adjustable option is the Xact telescopic pointed spade, article 1066732, at about £46.75. The listing aims it at heavy, stony soil, with a reinforced boron-steel blade, sharpened sides, and a measuring scale. The working length is about 111–130 cm. Reviewers mention root cutting and dry hard ground, and they mention sharing the length. One reviewer said the grip moved under pressure. That is a single report, on 61 ratings at 4.4, a much smaller base than 402. Choose it when two heights will use the same pointed spade. A few pounds separate it from the Ergonomic. You are paying for the lock, not for a harder point than the Ergonomic’s listing already claims. The gap against the Solid is the Fiskars Xact vs Solid spade page.
Fiskars Fiskars Ergonomic pointed spade 1070639

Testsieger

Fiskars Fiskars Ergonomic pointed spade 1070639
9.6/10about £42.88
View offer

Water, roots, and sticky soil

Very firm ground often needs water before you lean on the tread. A UK retailer says that about a different pointed spade, a DeWit, and also says not to lever rocks on that wooden shaft. Treat the watering line as gardening practice, not as a Fiskars specification or a soak time. Water the area, wait until the surface gives, then take a thinner slice. Do not jump on the blade with both feet. Levering a stone still stresses the joint on these Fiskars shafts. Roots are a limited promise. The Ergonomic listing says the spade is suitable for digging roots. One review said it did not cut hedge roots. The pointed Xact reviews mention root cutting, which is not the same as severing a woody hedge. If the root is a shrub you mean to keep, dig around it. If the root is a stump, a spade is the wrong machine. These blades are not stainless. Gardeners’ World’s 2026 round-up describes stainless as cutting clay cleanly, and carbon or solid-forged blades as tougher, with a weld as a possible weak point. Fiskars here is welded boron steel or, on the Solid, high-carbon steel. That round-up did not test 1070639 or 1066732. Sticky clay will cling, so scrape the head as you work and wipe it before you store the tool. A fork is the loosening tool for clay that has packed into slabs. A digging fork was removed from this category, so this page does not review one. Use a fork to break the ground, then the pointed spade to cut and turn, if you already own a fork.

When a spade is the wrong tool

A planting hole in a known bed is a spade job. A trench for drainage, a foundation, or a run that may cross gas or electricity is not a job to start because you own a pointed Fiskars. Search LinesearchbeforeUdig before new ground. Plans miss some private cables. If the plan shows a service in the hole, stop and bring in someone who is qualified. Dig alongside a known service, not onto it. These spades are not insulated tools. Stop if pain or numbness already limits you. A 125 cm shaft is not a treatment. Call a landscaper or a machine when the area is too large for slices you can lift, or when the work is drainage rather than a border. There is no clay percentage and no lab result here. Inside this set the choice stays simple: pointed Ergonomic for one user on hard, stony ground, pointed Xact if two heights share that job, and neither round spade as the clay tool.

Common questions

Which of the four Fiskars spades is for clay?
The two pointed listings. Article 1070639, the Ergonomic at about £42.88, is for one person on a fixed 125 cm shaft. Article 1066732, the telescopic Xact at about £46.75, is for heavy, stony soil when the length needs to run from about 111 cm to 130 cm. The two round spades are listed for soft, low-stone soil. A range name does not turn the round Xact into a clay tool.
Will the round Solid at about £15.59 cope with stony clay?
The bullets do not aim it there. They say soft, low-stone soil and cutting turf. The title’s stony-floors wording is a poor translation. You can use it on a soft edge. As your only spade in stony clay, it is the wrong saving, however attractive about £15.59 looks beside about £42.88. The contents article to match is 1066717.
Ergonomic fixed or Xact telescopic if both are pointed?
Choose the Ergonomic if you can use 125 cm and you want the larger review count, 4.8 from 402. Choose the pointed Xact if more than one height will share the spade. The price gap on this snapshot is a few pounds, about £42.88 against about £46.75. The lock does not make the blade sharper, and 61 ratings are a smaller base than 402.
Will it cut hedge roots?
Do not count on it. One reviewer of the Ergonomic said it did not cut hedge roots, even though the listing says the spade is suitable for digging roots. Pointed Xact comments mention root cutting on hard ground. Woody hedge roots and stumps are a different job from slicing small roots in a bed. If the root is a shrub you mean to keep, dig around it.
Is boron steel the same as stainless on clay?
No. The pointed listings name boron steel. Stainless is what a 2026 magazine round-up describes as cutting clay cleanly, and that piece did not test these articles. Boron and high-carbon heads can be tough and still hold sticky soil. Scrape the blade as you go. A weld remains a place to watch if you lever the shaft. The Solid head is high-carbon steel, and it is still the round blade.

Related pages

How to use a Fiskars spade

Fiskars spade

Best Fiskars spade: hard-ground pick, soft-soil value

Fiskars spade buying guide: soil, range and length

Fiskars Xact vs Solid spade: lock or pointed blade

Sources

Public sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures saved for this set on 20 October 2026.

  1. Fiskars — how to choose your shovel type (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. Fiskars — anatomy of a shovel (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. Fiskars UK — Solid pointed spade, metal shaft 1066716 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. Gardeners’ World — Fiskars Xact pointed spade review, 29 January 2020 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. MyToolShed — Fiskars warranty (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK — accepting returns and giving refunds (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. legislation.gov.uk — Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 23 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. HSE — underground electrical cables (retrieved 20 October 2026)