Lawn rakes are similar to leaf rakes, and the names leaf rake and lawn rake are sometimes used interchangeably. However, lawn rakes are designed to be more versatile than leaf rakes. They can be used to gather leaves and for other garden tasks. Lawn rakes can also be called fan rakes or spring tine rakes.
They have thin tines which fan out. The tines are bent near their the ends, either with a slight curve or a sharp right angle, to help them collect debris. The tines are usually springy, so they have a little bit of flexibility, meaning they are fairly gentle on the ground.
Lawn rakes benefit from having stronger, tougher tines than leaf rakes, while remaining fairly lightweight. A good quality lawn rake should be easy to manipulate, but strong enough to ensure the tines won’t break with extended use.
Lawn rake heads usually have tines which fan out to between 400mm (16″) and 500mm (20″). They’re made from carbon steel, stainless steel or spring steel for added strength. The handles are usually between 1.2m (47″) and 1.8m (71″) long, so they have quite a long reach.