Vintage Keen Kutter Grass Shears – Spring Handle Garden Shears, Red Cast Handles, Sharpened & Working

Vintage Keen Kutter arrowhead logo grass shears with spring handles – cleaned, sharpened, and ready for honest yard work or display.

These early–mid 20th century shears have that classic Keen Kutter arrowhead logo on the blade and the original red paint clinging to the cast handles. I disassembled, cleaned, tuned, and sharpened them so they still work instead of just sitting on a shelf.

Details

Brand: Keen Kutter (stamped logo on blade)
Overall length: approx. 13½ in (34.5 cm)
Blade length: approx. 7½ in (19 cm) from pivot to tip
Cast iron/steel handles with coil return spring
Remnants of original red paint on handles
New 1/16” cotter pin at the pivot (old non-original pin replaced)

What I did

Fully disassembled at the pivot
Degreased all parts and removed active orange rust while preserving the dark patina and original paint
Cleaned and lubed the pivot and spring, then reassembled and adjusted for smooth action
Carefully tuned the stops and blade alignment so the tips now meet and cut
Sharpened the outer bevels and de-burred the insides – they cut paper and cardboard cleanly from heel to tip
Finished with light oil and a coat of wax to protect the steel and handles

Condition

Blades are straight, aligned, and sharp with honest pitting and age staining from use.
Handles are solid with no cracks in the forged blade sections or obvious breaks in the cast handles.
Coil spring is original and returns the handles as it should.
The original wire loop / hook latch that locked the handles closed is missing – the small hook and lug are still there, but the loop itself is gone. Shears function normally; you just don’t have a built-in storage latch.
Expect typical vintage character: patina, small nicks, and wear consistent with 80+ year old garden tools.

These would look right at home hanging in a garden shed, on a potting bench, or in a vintage tool display—but they’re also fully capable of trimming grass around stones, steps, and flower beds if you want to put them back to work.