Lifeline Utility Shovels?

Anyone had reason to press a Lifeline Utility Shovel into action? I don't much care for the locking feature for the telescoping handle, but the sharp edge on the blade, and size/weight/packability have me intrigued.

Lifeline is not a brand known for quality. Just saying....

Offhand, it looks like a cheap version of a mountaineering (avalanche). On a high mountain or a glacier, a good, sturdy shovel is a vital tool - not the kind of implement to go cheap on. I have used shovels a lot doing archaeology and wildland fire fighting where they are effective and versatile. If I could have just one tool on a fire line, it would be a shovel, but in those situations, weight is much less of a concern. What you need there is a stout (really stout) handle which the lifeline clearly does not possess.

For non-mountaineering situations, various military entrenching tools work rather well, and they are reasonably compact. You can put a sharp edge on any digging implement, and I do so on nearly all of mine. It improves their effectiveness remarkably

For digging out of thick, heavy snow, without taking up your entire trunk, I recommend Voilē's telescoping shovels. I have one in each car. Shorter shovels are much harder to use and hurt my back. For non-snow digging, I also have a Cold Steel shovel, and I have sharpened the edges on a grinder.

I'm still carrying around a Glock shovel (entrenching tool) I received several years ago. I wonder if anyone ever ended up purchasing that Chinese Army shovel that was the rage a couple of years back. There was a video of it being used with some interesting background music. It looked pretty useful if it was of good manufacturing quality.

Here's the link to the video for nostalgia purposes.

I was looking for some information about backcountry / avalanche shovels recently and came across this document and found it helpful: Shovels That Span the Divide Between Heaven and Hell

For vehicle use and for bug out bag, I use one of these;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roughneck-68004-Shovel-27-inch-Handle/dp/B003CT4DFE/ref=pd_sim_diy_19

I filled the gaps between the shaft and the blade with 2 part Epoxy then painted it with some Krylon paint to camo it up. It weighs the same as the standard Fiskars NATO folding shovel.

The steel blade is very tough and hard.

Thanks for a most informative reference - it is the real scoop on shovels. I am surprised that the Black Diamond product did not perform better.

I have the square mouthed version

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roughneck-Square-Shovel-27-inch-Handle/dp/B003CT4DFO/ref=pd_bxgy_diy_img_y

Last time we had snow it cleared the wheels nicely, just wouldn't want to clear my path with it.

I do not like telescoping shovels, folding shovels, or plastic shovels despite the convenience factor. I have settled on keeping a square bladed garden spade in the back of my Jeep.

A square blade is far more versatile at digging in snow and ice that a spade shaped blade. And a real hanlde makes a huge difference in effectiveness and not hurting my back.

I never understood the attraction of a toy type entrenching tool where you have to get down on your knees to use it. In combat conditions it is one thing, but I am not being shot at and have no desire to kneel in the mud, much, and snow to be able to use my cool short shovel.

I have one of the pointed mouth versions that we use for tree planting. Need to go and have a look for the square mouthed one. Thanks for the tip! I too, prefer a real shovel and square mouthed is the way to go in the snow.