# What is it with American spades? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 16, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700 "2015-06-16T21:16:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/1 "2015-06-16T21:16:54Z")
This is a spade (the kind of thing you’d dig a grave with) as I know it (in the UK): [UK spade](http://www.toolstop.co.uk/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/GL51.jpg) Note the handy handle at the top, allowing your full weight to go down on the tool. These are spades as I see it in all US TV and films: [Walking Dead](http://media.comicbook.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/the-walking-dead-daryl-rick-dig-grave.jpg) Note the lack of handy handle, leading to hard work and blisters when burying your close ones. Why? ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/2 "2015-06-16T21:18:32Z")
Both types are available in the U.S. Freedom. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/3 "2015-06-16T21:27:25Z")
The spades don’t vary by nationality, there are just cheap ones (without the handle) and less cheap ones (with the handle). ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/4 "2015-06-16T21:32:51Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > Why? The same reason bad guys ride in the back of black limousines in movies, when in real life they sit in the front seat of stolen panel vans: it’s fiction. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/5 "2015-06-16T21:45:51Z")
> [@leahcim](#): > > The spades don’t vary by nationality, there are just cheap ones (without the handle) and less cheap ones (with the handle). Except in some nations even the cheapest spade available has a handle. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/6 "2015-06-16T21:47:54Z")
Smaller shovels usually have the handle on the end. Longer, larger shovels do not. At some point grasping the very end of a long stick doesn’t work well for moving weights. ---
**Author:** ![busterpickle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@busterpickle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterpickle)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/7 "2015-06-16T21:52:05Z")
We call them shovels, spades is for cards and maybe the small shovel in a fireplace set? I’ve used and have both and they serve different purposes so I’m surprised you have only seen one. The long handled one allows for a lot of leverage when prying up dirt. It is also easier to hold the handle up higher as you jump down on it, if you did a high jump onto the short shovel you could end up having it rock back and hit you on the thighs or stomach. Easier to unload materials and hold larger quantities with the shovel as you can space your arms out along the length of the handle. However, the long handle can really get in the way if there are others nearby and if in any tight quarters or are stooping. Short handle is great for gardening work as you might use one foot to push the shovel down and are simply moving dirt over. Also, good to have for a wheel barrel as it’s smaller and won’t slide around as much, good for mixing cement, too. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/8 "2015-06-16T21:57:39Z")
I named mine David. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/9 "2015-06-16T21:58:07Z")
You call spades shovels? Shovels and spades are different tools, with differently-shaped blades; one designed for cutting into the ground, one for lifting material. ---
**Author:** ![SirRay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@SirRay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirRay)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/10 "2015-06-16T22:01:28Z")
I [don’t understand the question](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bulldog-2309-West-Country-Shovel/dp/B004UQV9DW) ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/11 "2015-06-16T22:04:16Z")
SirRay, that’s a shovel, not a spade. Shovels rarely or never have a D-shape or t-piece at the top of the handle, spades often do. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/12 "2015-06-16T22:08:12Z")
> [@hibernicus](#): > > SirRay, that’s a shovel, not a spade. Shovels rarely or never have a D-shape or t-piece at the top of the handle, spades often do. Then is the answer to, “why are there no spades without handles in the UK” just, “because they call the ones without handles ‘shovels’”? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/13 "2015-06-16T22:11:36Z")
> [@leahcim](#): > > The spades don’t vary by nationality, there are just cheap ones (without the handle) and less cheap ones (with the handle). I don’t think it’s a matter of the expensive ones having handles and the cheap ones not; there are specific purposes for each type (and for the pointed kind versus the square kind of shovel). ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/14 "2015-06-16T22:16:11Z")
> [@hibernicus](#): > > SirRay, that’s a shovel, not a spade. Shovels rarely or never have a D-shape or t-piece at the top of the handle, spades often do. Eh? AIUI, a shovel is big and slightly spoony and a spade isn’t. I suppose there would be fewer handled shovels, though. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/15 "2015-06-16T22:23:23Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Eh? AIUI, a shovel is big and slightly spoony and a spade isn’t. I suppose there would be fewer handled shovels, though. This was my understanding of the difference, too. Shovels are scoops, but spades have a point (like the card symbol). ---
**Author:** ![homeskillet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/7ba0ec/32.png) [@homeskillet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/homeskillet)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/16 "2015-06-16T22:30:30Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > This is a spade (the kind of thing you’d dig a grave with) as I know it (in the UK): > [UK spade](http://www.toolstop.co.uk/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/GL51.jpg) > Note the handy handle at the top, allowing your full weight to go down on the tool. > > These are spades as I see it in all US TV and films: > [Walking Dead](http://media.comicbook.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/the-walking-dead-daryl-rick-dig-grave.jpg) > Note the lack of handy handle, leading to hard work and blisters when burying your close ones. > > Why? Is this a trick question? Look again at the Walking Dead screen shot. It seems to me that two guys are using shovels to dig the grave while in the lower left hand corner there’s a spade _with a handle_ sticking up from the ground. It would have been used at the start to break the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/17 "2015-06-16T22:38:09Z")
Oo, I thought from the thread title that someone had racial issues. :dubious: Garden spades/shovels available here typically have handles. The longer handle-free shovels are not intended for garden work, but more for utility digging. Seems to me you can raise a nice set of blisters overusing either tool. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/18 "2015-06-16T23:27:18Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > This is a spade (the kind of thing you’d dig a grave with) as I know it (in the UK): > [UK spade](http://www.toolstop.co.uk/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/GL51.jpg) > Note the handy handle at the top, allowing your full weight to go down on the tool. > > These are spades as I see it in all US TV and films: > [Walking Dead](http://media.comicbook.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/the-walking-dead-daryl-rick-dig-grave.jpg) > Note the lack of handy handle, leading to hard work and blisters when burying your close ones. > > Why? Have you even looked at your second photo? Note the spade on the left, put there after the soil in the hole has been loosened while the digger clears out the resulting spoil with a shovel. ---
**Author:** ![Ornery\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/da6949/32.png) [@Ornery\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ornery_Bob)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/19 "2015-06-17T00:08:49Z")
_Note the handy handle at the top, allowing your full weight to go down on the tool._ Try digging in hard soil and you’ll see how wrong that is. If you seriously need to get your weight on the tool, you step on the blade or even jump on it and that maneuver is easier with a longer handle. Also, it isn’t just the digging, it’s the lifting of the dirt out of the hole, and the longer handle of the shovel gives you a mechanical advantage that allows you to control the weight better. I have them both and I use them both - in my world, spades are for piddling around in the garden - serous digging is shovel time. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700/20 "2015-06-17T00:22:12Z")
When I dug graves at a Catholic cemetery, we hacked up the dirt with a [potato digger](http://m.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1274454) and removed it with a [paddy shovel](http://m.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1445568), and then squared the sides with a handle shovel. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-american-spades/722700.md?page=2)