The  Golden Shed Awards 

A free to enter competition to find the best products - judged by experts and users

As seen on TV,radio and featured in Loaded Magazine

The best Gardening and DIY products 

featured and tested by Fredshed.co.uk

Best Gardening Tool

Wilkinson Sword Universal Cutter - (Version 2)

This superb long reach pruner has been made even lighter and easier to use. Incredible cutting power and a less components to make this effective and reliable.

I gave the 2002 Golden Shed Award to the original Universal cutter which is still in use and a very fine tool.

6 years later the Mk 2 Universal cutter uses the latest lightweight materials and design improvements from industrial design guru Olavi Linden to improve it's performance even further.

The standard version is 1.6m long and now weighs only 1.1kg

A revamp of the telescopic version is due in 2009

buy the longer  telescopic version

Best DIY/builders  Tool

Abranet dustless sanding system by Mirka

I love decorating but hate the dust from sanding. I have tested dozens of sanders with dust boxes but they all fail as soon as their filters or paper clog.

The secret of this system is that the "paper" is truly transparent and the dust is sucked through into the vacuum pipe and away before it can clog the paper.

Another benefit of this system is that the "paper" lasts longer than normal abrasives which often actually clog up before wearing out. One day all sanding will use this system. The health and safety benefits are massive and that is just one reason that this system is widely used in the automotive industry.

If you want to buy the excellent new Abranet dust free sanding set click this link.

 buy the Abranet starter kit

Best Gadget

Police Tech Led Lenser Torch

For its size this torch is incredibly powerful and is a masterpiece of engineering.

Gold contacts, the latest bulbs - it's simple and works like a torch 4 times the size. Battery life is massively improved by the efficiency of the bulb and lens.

It is only  5 inches long and weights 148g but is bright enough to dazzle a crim at 100 yards.

It also runs of 3 normal AAA batteries, held in a secure cartridge that fits perfectly inside the torch.

The Led Lenser Police Tech torch can be focused by twisting the end and comes in a range of colours.

The  Shrubbery Fork and Spade from Bulldog Tools

Chosen for

 Outstanding Quality - Forged in Wigan UK

Innovation - designed for older/shorter/smaller gardeners

Tradition - Premier Range in production for decades and used by enthusiasts and professionals

The Bosch AXT2200 Rapid Shredder from Bosch

Impressive Performance - Rapid shredding

Outstanding Quality - "Powerdrive" motor and Swiss laser cut blade

Innovation - flat paddle to push in smaller material

Replacement blades easily available and easy to fit

buy AXT2200 Rapid from fredshed recomended supplier

The Flexible Head Ratchet Spanners from Draper Tools

Impressive Performance - save time and effort

Value and Quality - well made and reasonably priced

 buy the ultimate spanner set from Draper

The Fein Multimaster Tool

Innovative - Unique qualities - does jobs not other tool can do

Outstanding Quality - Rugged German made - for building site durability

Good technical support and ongoing product development

* many thanks to the editors of Practical and Good Woodworking magazines in judging this difficult category

The Accusharp Tungsten Carbide Knife Sharpener

 Performance -  quick, easy accurate sharpening

Safety - finger guard and light action

Durability - Reversible blades and replacements available

Reliability - no moving parts to go wrong

Fredshed - Big on Quality

The Golden Shed Awards is by Invitation only-

unlike other product awards,  manufacturers cannot buy entry!

products chosen on merit only

For more details about any of the  Golden Shed Award winning products please e-mail fred@fredshed.com

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