Secateurs: Forged Bypass Pruning Shears with a Spring and Catch

Secateurs, credited to Bertrand de Molleville around 1813, are one-hand shears for live wood. The bypass kind has a sharp blade that slides past a hooked counter-blade like scissors, cutting cleanly without crushing; a spring opens the handles and a catch holds them shut. Forge the two halves, harden the blade, rivet the pivot, and fit the spring and catch. The picture: 19th-century secateurs with a leaf spring between the handles, from Baltet's L'art de greffer.