Lawn Jaws – Necessity was the Mother of Invention!
“Evolution and tenacity” describes the development of Larry Carter’s Lawn Jaws Weed pullers. Trial and error were also an important part of the process.
Lawn Jaws Story
The need for an innovative weed pulling solution began when Larry acquired 4,000 square feet of land adjacent to his home in UpCountry, Maui. This previously ‘un-cultivated’ piece of property, is elevated 1,750-ft high on the slopes of the towering and dormant Mt.Haleakala volcano. The parcel was completely covered with native short and tall pasture grasses, weeds, and invasive plant species.
Larry first whacked and mowed the tall grasses and weeds and did some initial experimenting with weed removal. Basically, this resulted in a 4-inch stand of unwanted weeds and an undesired parcel. He couldn’t use a tractor or larger scaled landscaping machinery because of the previously installed fence lines.
Larry reluctantly used chemicals to weaken and kill most of the unwanted brush. He didn’t want to poison the soil, nor damage it to a point where new grass wouldn’t grow, or damage Maui’s fragile ecosystem. Putting more chemicals in the soil and ultimately into our ocean was the last solution endorsed by Larry. So he began “hand-to-hand combat” with his newly gained land. He experimented with a number of mass-marketed garden tools from his local hardware and nursery store, making his goal removal of all the unwanted grasses, weeds, and invasive plant species by hand.
Of all the tools Larry experimented with, electrician pliers worked better than all the usual weed puller options. Not surprisingly, electrician pliers weren’t perfect, and had obvious short-comings when used to pull garden weeds. With about 1-inch of very short teeth, and un-needed wire cutters that proved to be uncomfortable while pinching skin, the tool left his hands sore from the lack of ergonomics in construction. The electrical pliers didn’t quite catch the weed roots, slipping off the grip, and frustratingly filling with mud and debris. This is when the vision of a LawnJaws weed puller was born.
The Lawn Jaws Vision
Innovating a “never seen before” gardening plier, Larry spent months creating a tool with back-slanted teeth (like shark teeth) eliminated the wire cutter option, allowing space for teeth to cover the entire length of the plier jaws and constructed a tool with rounded handles to eliminate pinching, and provide an excellent level of ergonomic comfort during and after use.
After three years of designing, innovating, trademarking, bar coding, patent applications, sourcing and manufacturing, LawnJaws were forged and put on the market. In April of 2014, after testing the product, the editors of Better Homes and Gardens featured the product in the garden section. Suddenly, orders were received from all 50 states plus Canada but stock soon ran out and a new batch were forged and shipped to those who has waited as long as six weeks. Even after the wait, Lawn Jaws received great reviews from consumers.
Lawn Jaws is a practical and effective gardening tool for all types of users, and a perfect name for a great product! Every piece of the Lawn Jaws story is the story of one man with a good idea, neighbors and friends helping, a lot of tenacity and the courage to innovate and navigate changing circumstances.