Spear Head Spade vs Root Slayer: An Honest Comparison

The Spear Head Spade and the Radius Root Slayer are both heavy-duty digging tools built for tough ground, but they solve the problem differently. The Spear Head Spade uses a pointed spear-tip blade that slices compacted clay with less effort, while the Root Slayer uses a serrated V-shaped blade that saws through roots.

We make one of these tools, so you have every right to expect bias here. The deal we will make with you is simple: we will tell you plainly what the Root Slayer does well, we will not invent numbers about it, and we will point you to the tool that actually fits your ground and your jobs, even when that means saying "this one, not that one." Radius Garden makes a genuinely good product. It is just built around a different idea than ours.

The short answer: which should you buy?

If most of your work is digging, edging, transplanting, and dividing in hard, compacted, clay, or rocky soil, buy the Spear Head Spade. If your single biggest problem is sawing through thick, established roots you have already exposed, the Root Slayer's serrated blade is purpose-built for that one motion.

• Buy the Spear Head Spade if you want one all-around digging tool that penetrates hard ground with less effort, slices small and medium roots as it sinks, and handles the full range of garden jobs.
• Buy the Root Slayer if your work is dominated by cutting large, woody, exposed roots and you want a dedicated saw-style blade for that task.

How do the Spear Head Spade and Root Slayer compare at a glance?

We have left out exact dollar prices and gram weights on purpose. Both tools sit in the premium tier, well above a big-box shovel, and current pricing shifts by store and season. We would rather tell you what each tool is for than quote a number that is wrong by the time you read this.

What is the Spear Head Spade?

The Spear Head Spade is a digging spade with a spearhead blade instead of the flat, rounded blade you find on an ordinary shovel. It was invented by Daniel Mathieu, a gardener in Windsor, CT, working with his son Julien, an engineer. Daniel was 85 years old when he designed it, after a lifetime of digging this region's rocky soil. That gardener-plus-engineer origin shows in the geometry: the blade is double patented, and it is sharpened from tip to tail in hardened high-carbon manganese steel. The double-patented profile is also why it behaves differently in rocky soil. Instead of hitting a rock and stopping, the point finds the path of least resistance, wedging its way around the rock and on through the soil.

The point does the hard part. When you step on the blade, your body weight concentrates on that spear tip, so it enters compacted ground at a single point rather than fighting the whole width of a flat blade at once. As the blade sinks, the sharpened shoulders slice outward, cutting soil and small roots on the way down. In practice that means digging takes up to 80% less effort than a standard shovel in the kind of hard, dense soil that stops a regular shovel cold.

Better Homes & Gardens named it "Best Shovel/Spade" (2025), it has over 600,000 sold, and it carries a 4.9 average from more than 470 reviews. It comes from Glorious Outdoors LLC, a family business of about 15 years run by Hugh Mura and Harry Freeman, and every order is hand-packed in New Jersey. The flagship is the 40 inch D-handle spade, with a 58 inch long-handle version for standing leverage and a 30 inch mini for tight beds and containers.

What is the Radius Garden Root Slayer?

The Root Slayer is Radius Garden's root-cutting shovel, built around a serrated, inverted-V blade tip. The idea is to trap a root inside the V and saw through it with the toothed edges, the same way a pruning saw works on a branch. It uses carbon steel and Radius's signature ergonomic O-handle, which many gardeners find comfortable to grip and to bear down on.

The Root Slayer is not a single tool but a family. The lineup includes models such as the original Root Slayer, a larger XL, a compact Nomad, a Perennial shovel for tight root balls, and an Edger for bed lines. It is a well-regarded line, and if your main frustration is thick, woody roots you have already dug down to, the serrated blade genuinely earns its name. It is sold through big-box stores and online retailers, so it is easy to find and easy to see in person.

Pointed spear tip vs serrated V blade: how does the blade design differ?

This is the whole ballgame, so it is worth slowing down on. The two tools are engineered for two different motions.

The Root Slayer's serrated V is a sawing tool. Its strength is a root you can see and get a bite on. You set the notch over the root and work the blade back and forth, and the teeth chew through wood. That is a specialist's motion, and for that specific job it is very good.

The Spear Head Spade's point is a slicing and penetrating tool. It is not trying to saw a single root, it is trying to get through everything in its path on the way down. The tip breaks the surface at a point, the sharpened edges part the soil, and small and medium roots get sliced cleanly as the blade drives past them. You are not stopping to saw. You are digging, and the roots come along with the soil.

So the honest framing is not "which blade is sharper," it is "which motion matches your work." If you spend more time driving a blade into stubborn ground than you spend sawing exposed roots, the spearhead is doing more jobs for you. If your day is genuinely about cutting through a wall of thick roots, the saw wins that hour. For a deeper look at the technique itself, see our guide on how to cut through roots when digging without wrecking your back or your shovel.

Which tool wins each job?

Cutting and sawing roots

For thick, woody, fully exposed roots, the Root Slayer's teeth have the edge on that single sawing motion. For the roots you meet while digging, small to medium and still in the soil, the Spear Head Spade slices them without a second tool or a second motion. Most gardeners meet far more of the second kind than the first.

Breaking compacted and clay soil

This is the Spear Head Spade's home ground. Clay and compacted soil punish flat blades because the whole width has to enter at once. The spearhead cheats that by entering at a single spot, which is exactly why digging can take up to 80% less effort than a standard shovel here. If your yard turns to concrete in August, this is the tool.

Rocky ground

The point also helps in rocky soil, because it lets you probe and work around stones rather than slamming a flat edge into them. The hardened high-carbon manganese steel holds up to that abuse. Serrated teeth, by contrast, are happiest in wood, not gravel.

Dividing perennials and hostas

For splitting a mature hosta, daylily, or ornamental grass, you want a clean downward slice through the crown and root mass. The Spear Head Spade's sharpened blade makes that one confident cut. The Root Slayer's Perennial model is also built for this, so both brands take the job seriously, but the spade's slice tends to be tidier through a dense crown.

Edging beds

For crisp bed lines, a straight sharpened edge you can step on gives you the cleanest cut. The spade does this well as a second job. Radius sells a dedicated Root Slayer Edger if edging is your primary task, which is a fair point in its favor.

Transplanting shrubs

Lifting a shrub means cutting a clean root ball and then levering it out. The spearhead scores the perimeter with less effort, and a long handle gives you the leverage to pop the ball free. If you do a lot of this standing up, the 58 inch long handle is the one to reach for.

Which holds up better: durability, handle, and ergonomics?

Both are built to outlast a hardware-store shovel, and both back that up. The Root Slayer's O-handle is a comfortable, proven design that Radius stands behind. The Spear Head Spade is double patented and made from hardened high-carbon manganese steel, and its track record is the proof point: over 600,000 sold and a 4.9 average from more than 470 reviews.

On fatigue, the deciding factor is how hard you have to push. Because the spearhead does more of the work of getting into the ground, you are throwing less of your shoulder and back into every dig, which adds up over a long session. If your hands, knees, or back are the limiting factor, pair any tool with a garden kneeler and read our notes on ergonomic gardening techniques that save your back, knees, and wrists.

How do price, value, and warranty compare?

Price is close. Both are premium tools priced well above a big-box shovel, and both are worth it if they replace a drawer of tools that quit on hard ground. On warranty, Radius advertises a lifetime guarantee, which is a genuine strength worth naming. We would rather point you to what the Spear Head Spade has already done in the field: over 600,000 sold, a 4.9 average from more than 470 reviews, and Better Homes & Gardens naming it "Best Shovel/Spade" (2025). For current terms on our end, check the product page before you buy.

Pros and cons of each tool

Spear Head Spade

• Strengths: penetrates hard, clay, and rocky soil with up to 80% less effort than a standard shovel; slices roots while you dig; one tool for digging, edging, dividing, and transplanting; double patented; Better Homes & Gardens "Best Shovel/Spade" (2025); over 600,000 sold.
• Trade-offs: not a dedicated saw for thick, fully exposed woody roots; sold direct rather than on a big-box shelf you can touch first.

Radius Garden Root Slayer

• Strengths: serrated V blade purpose-built for sawing exposed roots; comfortable O-handle; a full lineup for specific jobs; lifetime guarantee; widely available in stores.
• Trade-offs: the sawing motion is a specialist's strength, so it does less for you on general hard-ground digging where a point matters more than teeth.

Which is right for you? A quick buyer's guide

The hard-clay gardener: if your soil goes rock-hard, choose the Spear Head Spade. Penetration is your bottleneck, and the point solves it.

The all-arounder: if you want one tool for digging, edging, transplanting, and dividing, the spade covers all of it. Browse the full range in all products.

The dedicated root remover: if you spend real hours sawing thick, exposed roots and little else, the Root Slayer is honestly built for that motion.

The tight-space or raised-bed gardener: reach for the 30 inch mini spade. And if you are still deciding between a spade and a plain shovel at all, our guide on spade vs shovel clears that up first.

For most gardeners fighting most soil, the tool that does the widest range of jobs with the least effort is the Spear Head Spade D-handle. That is where we would put your money. Take a look, and dig easier this season.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the Spear Head Spade and the Radius Root Slayer?

The Spear Head Spade has a pointed, sharpened spear-tip blade that penetrates and slices hard soil as it sinks. The Root Slayer has a serrated V-shaped blade designed to saw through exposed roots. One is built to dig through everything, the other to cut a specific root.

Which is better for cutting through roots?

For thick, woody roots you have already dug down to, the Root Slayer's serrated blade has the edge on that single sawing cut. For the small and medium roots you hit while digging, the Spear Head Spade slices them as the blade drives past, so you never stop to saw.

Which digging tool is best for hard, compacted clay soil?

The Spear Head Spade. Its point enters dense clay at a single spot instead of forcing a whole flat blade in at once, which is why digging can take up to 80% less effort than a standard shovel in that kind of ground.

Is the Spear Head Spade worth the money?

For gardeners working hard, clay, or rocky soil, yes. It is double patented, Better Homes & Gardens named it "Best Shovel/Spade" (2025), it has over 600,000 sold, and it carries a 4.9 average from more than 470 reviews, all from a family business of about 15 years.

Which should I buy, the Spear Head Spade or the Root Slayer?

Buy the Spear Head Spade if you want one all-around tool that digs hard ground with less effort and slices roots as it goes. Buy the Root Slayer if your work is dominated by sawing thick, exposed roots. Most gardeners are better served by the spade.

Still weighing the field? Our roundup of five Root Slayer alternatives compares every serious option in one table.