Pitchfork: Plastic and Metal Muck Forks for Mucking Out

Pitchfork: The Tines Decide How Your Day Goes

Anyone who mucks out daily soon notices that a fork has to do two things at once: hold the material and stay light enough to finish a box in one go. No single design manages both, which is why plastic forks for shavings, pellets and droppings sit here alongside metal forks with a strapped socket for heavy, wet muck.

Plastic for fine material

With shavings, straw pellets and horse droppings there is hardly a way past plastic. The tines stand closer together, fine material does not fall through, and the tool is light enough that the tenth box still works. Look at two figures: the temperature rating, where good forks stay flexible from minus 20 to plus 50 degrees instead of splintering in frost, and the UV stability, because a fork that leans in the light all summer otherwise goes brittle. Models with raised side tines hold more in one lift, and the version for straw pellets separates wet material from dry. For children the same design comes in a small size, from about five years old.

Metal for the heavy work

A trodden down muck bed will not come up with plastic. That is what the metal muck fork is built for, with 4 to 20 tines depending on the job and a strapped socket at the handle joint that takes the levering. Where a cheap push fit fork starts to wobble after one season, the socket holds the head in place. If you work overhead a lot or have different heights of people on the farm, combine the head with an aluminium telescopic handle and set the working height instead of adapting yourself to the handle.

Frequently Asked Questions

Plastic or metal?
Plastic for shavings, pellets and droppings, metal for wet muck and a trodden down bed. Many farms keep both in use.

Why do some plastic forks splinter in winter?
Because they are not cold resistant. Look for a stated temperature rating down to at least minus 20 degrees.

What does the strapped socket do?
It encloses the handle and takes the leverage. That is exactly where every fork breaks first, so a socket keeps the tool together far longer.