Rogue hoes with the hickory (axe type) are awesome for digging; the best trail digging tool IMO. I have a 55H and highly recommend it. They’re made from old harrow discs, so they’re made from a high quality steel that stays sharp for a long time.
I have used the 60A (with the pick or stinger) but it does not dig as well. This is because the 2 sided blade is about the same length and the handle is mounted in the middle. Thus the handle on the 60A hits the ground and stops it at a shallow depth, while the longer blade of the 55H goes in deeper and loosens more dirt. I haven’t seen the rake yet, but the combi tool that Nana shows above likely has the same drawback as the 60A.
The rogues with the ash or fiberglass (rake-like) handles are not strong enough for digging. They do work well for lighter work such as cleaning out drainages though. Or hoeing a vegetable garden…
The Pulaski is a combination single-bit axe and mattock/adze. I try to keep mine real sharp and use it as a root cutter only, but some people use them as a primary digging tool.
McLeouds work well in some soil conditions, but don’t work well for me as there are a lot of tree roots in the soil here.
All of these are primarily US type tools though, so I can’t say what the availability is in the UK. Even in the US, they’re expensive and aren’t available at regular hardware stores. So they have to be mail ordered, and it’s costly to ship items that are both long and heavy.
