Description
Left-handed detectorists spend their hobby adapting to gear built for everyone else. The Lesche Digging Tool is one of the few pieces of digging equipment made in a true left-handed version: item #49 puts the saw-tooth serrations on the left edge of a 12 in / 30.5 cm heat-treated steel blade, so a left-handed cut drives the teeth into the roots first instead of dragging them behind. Built in the U.S.A. by W.W. Manufacturing, sold with its belt sheath, and stocked here on purpose, because the guide lists it as a limited purchase and most dealers do not bother.
At a glance: Genuine Lesche Digging Tool and sod cutter, W.W. Manufacturing item #49, serrations on the left edge when the blade points up and the handle is in your hand. 12 in / 30.5 cm overall, heat-treated steel blade, 1.1 lb / 0.5 kg, red ribbed grip with steel hand guard, black nylon belt sheath included. Made in the U.S.A. For left-handed users. Right-handed users need the right-side serrated model (#48).
Why the left-side serrated model, and who should not buy it
A left-handed digger cuts a plug clockwise. Watch your own hand: the blade sweeps around the target with its left edge leading. On the standard right-serrated tool that leading edge is the smooth one, so the roots meet a plain blade and the teeth follow uselessly behind. Flip the serrations to the left edge and the same stroke saws through roots on the way around. That is the entire reason #49 exists, and it is why this is the left-handed Lesche.
If you are right-handed, do not buy this one. You cut counterclockwise, your right edge leads, and you want the right-side serrated model (#48), which we also carry. One well-known dealer's page says the left-serrated tool is made for right-handed folks. It is not, and buying on that advice puts the teeth on your trailing edge.
Compared with the smooth-edge trowels and the double-serrated import diggers, the Lesche gives a left-hander something rarer than either: a tool whose one serrated edge is on the correct side for the way you actually move. The blade, guard plate, grip, and 12 in / 30.5 cm reach are the same proven Lesche pattern right-handers have carried for decades.
Specifications
| Model | Lesche Digging Tool, W.W. Manufacturing item #49 (left-side serrated) |
| Overall length | 12 in / 30.5 cm (manufacturer) |
| Blade | Approx. 7 in / 17.8 cm cutting edge, 1.75 in / 4.4 cm wide (dealer-reported); saw teeth on the left edge, smooth sharpened edge on the right |
| Steel | Heat-treated steel blade (manufacturer) |
| Weight | 1.1 lb / 0.5 kg (manufacturer) |
| Handle | Red ribbed grip with steel hand-guard plate between grip and blade |
| Included | Black nylon belt sheath |
| Best for | Left-handed diggers |
| Made in | U.S.A. (W.W. Manufacturing Co., family owned since the 1950s) |
How it digs
Set the point at the edge of the target, saw clockwise around the plug with the left, serrated edge leading, and lever the plug out on its hinge. The steel guard plate protects your knuckles and lets you push with the palm. Trim the plug walls with the smooth right edge so the plug drops back flush and the site looks untouched. The 12 in / 30.5 cm blade reaches most coin and relic depths, and the sheath rides on your belt so your hands stay free for the detector and pinpointer.
Frequently asked questions
Is the left-serrated Lesche really the left-handed one? Yes. Left-handed diggers cut clockwise, so the left edge leads and the serrations belong there. Right-handed diggers should buy the right-side serrated #48.
Does it come with a sheath? Yes. The black nylon belt sheath is included.
What are the specs? W.W. Manufacturing lists a heat-treated steel blade, 12 in / 30.5 cm overall, 1.1 lb / 0.5 kg. We publish only what the manufacturer states.
Is it the same as the sod cutter? Yes. Lesche sells this tool as the Digging Tool and Sod Cutter; the smooth right edge is the sod-cutting side.
Can a right-hander use it? It will dig, but the teeth ride on the trailing edge of a right-handed cut, so you lose the root-sawing benefit. Buy the #48 instead.
Who it is for
Left-handed coin, relic, and jewelry hunters digging plugs in root-bound ground who have been making do with right-handed tools. Right-handed diggers: choose the right-side serrated model instead.
What's included
One Lesche Digging Tool, left-side serrated (W.W. Manufacturing #49), with the black nylon belt sheath. Nothing else is needed to put it to work.
History Seekers is a small American business, and everyone here detects. We dig plugs with these tools ourselves, which is why we bothered to explain the handedness instead of copying a catalog line. Browse our full range of metal detecting shovels and digging tools, and if you are not sure which hand you cut with, call us at 256-284-2247 and we will talk it through. Every plug you open is a chance at a find, and the story is more important than the artifact.
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