Hand ice scraper, no handle

It comes without a handle, and that is a convenience rather than a shortcoming: every household has a shaft from an old shovel or rake that will go straight on. Fit it, fix it, and you have a tool cut to your own height.

The head is steel, 150 mm wide and 70 mm high, 360 mm overall. That is the weight you want so the blade does not bounce off the crust but gets under it and lifts it in slabs. A shovel is useless on packed ice; here a few strikes clear the pavement, the steps or the apron in front of the garage.

Knocks against concrete and kerbstones do not trouble the steel: a winter's work leaves the blade neither blunt nor bent. Wipe it dry afterwards so it does not bloom with rust before the next snowfall.