Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I am a master gardener/landscaper by trade and have two ratchet pruners used for work. What I needed was a pair to keep at my mother's to use when working in her yard. These looked like they would be comparable to those I already use and available for a good price, so I ordered them. The slide lock button is a bit stiff and difficult to close without using both hands. The ratchet is smooth, cuts clean and fits nicely in my back pocket. They work great as one stroke cutting for simple tasks like dead heading flowers, rose bushes etc then switch to the ratchet for thicker cuts. I have used them for pruning thin azalea branches, thicker tree branches and even to remove thick invasive poison ivy growing into the tree bark. A ratchet pruner is much easier on the wrist and hands. It also makes any pruning job finish much quicker. ****Update May 2016*** Changing my rating After barely using these for two months, the sliding release lever broke. From the beginning the lever was continually sticking. It was bothersome but thought I could ignore the inconvenience. Even though there is a screw in the middle of the sliding release lever, it does nothing but attach the plastic lever to the pruner. Today, while sliding the lever to open the pruner, the button snapped and fell off! Now there is no way to close the pruner when not in use. Not much use or value in this product!