Repurposing Hedge trimmers?

[Prashun Patel]

Ok, don't laugh. I have a pair of old hedge clippers that I was about to throw out, when I thought 'too bad I can't shape the tip and this as a scraper'.

Does anyone know if the steel for garden tools is appropriate to be used this way, or am I asking for an impossible edge to sharpen, risking a shatter, or both?

[Chris Burgess]

Well I am not expert but this is my thought. I dont think they will shatter as I am sure they are not hardened like a file. They are made to cut wood......obvious, but I doubt they are HSS. I am sure they are a High Carbon steel and may work but I am not sure how long they would hold their edge

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

I've just re-sharpened a friend's hedge trimmer blades / teeth, and in my opinion, they'll need sharpening again pretty soon! They were really easy to file down (I used a round file for a chainsaw blade), but they didn't take as much work as the usual hand saw blades I re-sharpen. The hedge trimmers sounded rather dull, as oppesed to the 'singing' you get from a hand saw. IF you used the hedge trimmer, I think you'd only find that it bent...