Planet Jr Wheel Hoe - Not Much Has Changed

1934 Planet Jr Catalog

Over the years we've got our hands on a couple old Planet Jr catalogs that are quite a joy to peruse. This particular Planet Junior catalog was published in 1934 and includes a wide range of farm and garden tools. These catalogs are a great read because they're written like a book with descriptions and guidelines for how to use every implement to help the user grow their own food. Although in black and white, the photos provide great detail for how the tools are intended to be used.

It's incredible how a tool like the Wheel Hoe has stood the test of time and it is equally as useful today as it was 100 years ago. As the this catalog states, "Few gardens are too small to require a wheel hoe as it will save more than enough time and labor to pay for itself in the first year." This couldn't be more true. There's just not another tool that you will find that allows you to do so much in your vegetable garden with little effort. This is also probably why the design has hardly changed at all in over 100 years of it's existence.

The Planet Jr Single Wheel Hoe

Planet Jr Single Wheel Hoe

When we started Hoss Tools, we sought to design a Wheel Hoe that was very similar to the time-tested design of the Planet Jr Wheel Hoe. The only significant improvement we made was including oil impregnated bronze bushings into the wheels to improve durability. Our steel parts are also powder coated, but of course powder-coating wasn't available in the early 1900s either.

The Planet Junior Single Wheel Hoe was available in several different packages which included the No. 16, No. 17, No. 17 1/2, and No. 18. According to the catalog, "The No. 16 is the most completely equipped Planet Jr. Single Wheel Hoe. " When this catalog was published, you could purchase a No. 16 Single Wheel Hoe for a whopping $8.50! And although the value of the dollar has changed quite a bit since 1934, the quality of this Wheel Hoe hasn't.