Secateurs Maintenance Guide - How to keep them for life

Secateurs Maintenance Guide is a short guide to remind you of a few basic things about secateurs that you already know, but don't practice. Not practising them affects the longevity of your tools and makes them wear out faster than they would otherwise.

All secateurs are designed to be used for cutting up to a maximum of 15mm thick branches.

Secateurs Maintenance Guide Point 1

You should never cut dry branches which will cause the damage of both the blade and branches. All secateurs should be used for only cutting living branches.

When you cut the branch, please cut in angle and do not twist the blade while cutting.

Secateurs Maintenance Guide Point 2

Please dry properly after use and put some oil around the attached screw to prevent rust.

Secateurs Maintenance Guide Point 3

If you want to sharpen secateurs by yourself please use an appropriate whetstone. Stones come in a variety of grades, from rough (low number of grits) to ultra fine (high number of grits). As a general rule for secateurs use the1000 grit for ordinary sharpening and a 3000 grit for polishing if desired.

Please contact us if you are not sure how to maintain your secateurs. We are glad to help.

Secateurs Maintenance Guide Points 4-5-6

Secateurs are generally easy to maintain. 90% of the maintenance consists of not leaving the in the garden. Simply put them in the house where there is less humidity will make the last for many more years.

Beyond that, oiling them every once in a while and sharpening them also helps maintain their longevity.

These are extensively forged tools. They are tough. But they are not multitools. They are made to cut wooden branches. Please don't cut wires with them.

Suwada's secateurs can last for decades. Simply use these as guidelines and remind yourself of them every once in a while to ensure you practice the principles proposed by Suwada's artisans. 

I hope you found or were reminded of some good value here. Please share this website with someone you think may like it. It helps tremendously as we try to spread the message of Japanese craftsmanship and product longevity.

Thank you for reading through!