Introduction: Build an Excellent Snow Shovel for Your Car - Cheap and Durable

By Personal blog - in Romanian
About: I like making things, trying to utilize my hands and my brain. There is no limit!

Winter arrived together with the 'wrong kind of snow' :) - check this link for more details. If you have a car, I think it is mandatory to have on your car's trunk a small winter / snow kit including a snow shovel.
That snow shovel must be light, durable, to have a good grip and to be cheap. All these - except the last point - are easy to find in some brand products on the market. But they are not cheap, are opposite. So how to overcome this?
This instructable will show you how to build your own light, durable, with good grip and cheap car snow shovel.

Materials needed for a  light, durable, with good grip and cheap car snow shovel:
-a hand shovel only the metal part - here my choice was an aluminum one, it is lighter and good enough for hard snow / the right type of ice :) (or you can choose the iron type) - just make sure it is flat and wide enough at the front end
-a wooden shovel handle to fit the metal hand shovel
- 2 pcs of a long wood screw (5cm / 2 inches)
- 1 pcs of a short wood screw (1 cm / 1/2 inch)

Tools needed to build a  light, durable, with good grip and cheap car snow shovel:
-screw driver Philips head (cross)
-a panel saw
-sand paper
-electric drill
-drill bits to fit diameter size for the wood screw (3mm / 0,11 inch)

Let's start!

Step 1: Prepare the Wood Broom Handle

I found that buying the wood handle for shovel and the metal hand shovel separately, is cheaper than having a complete hand shovel with wood handle. So at the store I looked for a wood shovel handle and a metal hand shovel, just made sure both are fitting together.

The wood shovel handle has a small curvature, so put the wood shovel handle in the metal hand shovel and try to match the curvature like in the image (curvature is exaggerated). After that, mark the holes and the beveled cutting lines at the end of the wood shovel handle where it is assembled with the aluminuml hand shovel.

Measure 75cm / 2,5ft (or the length fits for your height - make it ergonomic) from the front of the metal shovel and mark a cutting line on the wood handle - see the drawing for details.

Measure 20cm / 8 inches from the previously cutting line and mark there also a cutting line.

Dismantle the wood shovel handle and the aluminum shovel.

Step 2: Cut and Drill the Wood Broom Handle

Using the panel saw, cut on the marked cutting lines. For this step is good to clamp the wood handle (use a vice) or ask someone to help you.

You should get a small piece of wood handle and the new wood shovel handle after cutting. The wood handle should have a nice beveled end.

The small piece will go perpendicular on the wood handle, to be used as a grip. Drill 2 holes on the small piece (on the diameter) and also drill 2 holes on the wood handle (2,5cm / 1inch depth) in order to assemble the 2 pieces like in the image.

Drill 1 hole also on the beveled end of the wood handle - 1cm / 1/2 inch depth.

Use the sand paper to smooth the edges after cutting.

Step 3: Assemble the Car Snow Shovel With Wood Handle and Grip

Now take the small wood piece and the wood shovel handle and using the Philips head screw driver, fasten the 2 long screws in the small wood piece in order to attach it to the wood shovel handle, like in the image. If the hole is too tight for the screw and is hard to fasten the screw, rub the screw's thread on some soap and fasten it, it should go easy now 
Are used 2 screws in order to avoid twisting the grip and unfasten it from  the wood handle.

After this, the small piece should be assembled perpendicular on the wood shovel handle.

Assemble the wood shovel handle with the aluminum hand shovel, use the short screw as indicated in the image.

That's all! Now you have a nice car snow shovel - cheap, durable, light and made by yourself!

Some improvements: use 2 small screws to assemble the wood handle to the aluminum hand shovel (need to drill one hole through the aluminum shovel and to the wood handle).

PS: Before writing this instructable, I searched for others possible design, I found that user n1cod3mus posted also a similar guide, see here the instructable and check yourself the way he did it.