Quick verdict
A forged steel sidewalk scraper with a beveled 7-inch blade on a 48-inch North American hardwood handle and a cushion grip, made to chop and scrape packed ice in winter and roots and compacted soil the rest of the year. It suits a homeowner whose driveway builds a plow ridge every storm and who wants one tool for ice and garden work. The caveat is the wood handle: it wants to live indoors and it flexes more than all-steel choppers.
Strengths
- Forged, beveled steel blade holds an edge under repeated strikes
- 48-inch hardwood handle absorbs shock and allows an upright chop
- Chops roots, sod and compacted soil in the off season
- Cushion grip helps with cold hands and gloves
- True Temper is an established US hand-tool brand
Weaknesses
- Hardwood handle needs to be kept dry and out of the weather
- No D-grip, so less twisting leverage than a D-handle chopper
- Weight is not stated in the listing
The overall YardToolLab Score is out of 100. Section scores are out of 10.
Who this scraper is for
Packed snow that has been driven over, sleet that froze overnight and the ridge of plow ice at the end of the driveway do not move for a shovel. They need a blade driven straight down. The True Temper 2683200 is a 7-inch forged steel sidewalk scraper on a 48-inch North American hardwood handle with a cushion grip, built to chop ice in winter and roots and compacted soil in the other three seasons.
This review is based on the maker’s published specifications and on recurring owner feedback. We have not run this product ourselves.
What you get
The tool is a forged steel blade 7 inches wide with beveled edges, fixed to a 48-inch hardwood handle finished in black and gray with a cushioned grip at the top end. True Temper describes it as a scrape-or-chop tool: ice and hardened dirt on the scraping side, weeds, tree roots and compact soil on the chopping side. Weight is not stated in the listing, and there is no D-grip; the handle ends in a straight cushion grip.
Chopping and scraping ice
A forged blade is the point of this tool. Forging makes the steel denser and tougher than a stamped blade, so the beveled edge takes repeated blows into ice without rolling over. Seven inches is a sensible width: narrow enough to concentrate the force of each strike, wide enough to shear a usable strip once the ice is cracked. Owners of forged choppers of this pattern report that the technique is a short, straight drop onto the ice to crack it, then a flat push to lift the broken sheet, and that a 48-inch handle gives enough leverage to do both without stooping. Scraping packed snow off concrete works the same way with the blade angled low.
Off-season use: roots and soil
Where a plastic ice chopper goes back in the garage in March, this one keeps working. The beveled forged edge chops through tree roots when a stump or a bed is being cleared, slices sod along a walk edge, and breaks compacted clay that a spade bounces off. It is, in effect, a light grub hoe held vertically, and it is the better buy for anyone who gardens as well as shovels.
Handle, grip and handling
North American hardwood, which in True Temper tools generally means ash or hickory, is the traditional handle for struck tools because it absorbs shock better than steel or fiberglass. The 48-inch length suits most adults for a straight-down chop without bending the back. The cushion grip helps in cold weather with gloves. The limits are the usual ones for wood: it needs to stay out of the weather, and a hard strike against a buried edge of concrete can split a handle where a steel one would only dent. A hardwood handle also flexes slightly, which some owners prefer and others read as less solid than an all-steel chopper.
Living with it
Dry the blade after use, since forged steel left wet and salted will rust, and run a file along the bevel once a season to restore the edge. Oil the handle lightly if it starts to look dry. True Temper tools carry a maker’s warranty in the US; the specific term for this model is not in the listing and should be checked on the product page. Storage is simple: hang it from a nail.
Alternatives to Consider
The Bully Tools 10-gauge all-steel ice chopper is heavier at 5.5 pounds, with a D-grip and a lifetime warranty, and it is the choice when the ice is thick and the handle will take abuse. The Garant Yukon forged ice chopper is the closest like-for-like, a forged head on a wood handle. For fresh or lightly packed snow rather than ice, a poly snow pusher is faster and lighter, and belongs alongside this scraper rather than instead of it.
Verdict
Buy the True Temper 2683200 if the driveway builds up packed ice every winter and the same tool will chop roots and sod in summer; a forged beveled blade on a 48-inch hardwood handle is the right pattern at a fair price. Skip it if the ice is thick enough to want an all-steel chopper with a D-grip, or if the handle will be left outside, where wood suffers.
Full specifications
True Temper 2683200 7 Inch Forged Sidewalk and Ice Scraper with 48 Inch Hardwood Handle and Cushion Grip FAQs
Both, per True Temper. Dropped straight down, the beveled forged edge cracks ice; pushed flat and low, it lifts the broken sheet and scrapes packed snow off concrete.
Yes. The maker lists chopping weeds, tree roots and compacted soil. It works like a light grub hoe held vertically for edging sod and clearing roots from a bed.
North American hardwood, which in True Temper tools generally means ash or hickory. Keep it dry and lightly oiled and it will outlast a plastic chopper; left outside it will gray and split.
The listing does not state a weight. A forged 7-inch head on a 48-inch wood handle is typically lighter than an all-steel chopper, which makes it easier to swing for longer but less able to crack very thick ice by weight alone.
