Hand cutting instruments are handheld instruments designed for cutting hard dental tissues. Like any other hand instruments, they are consist of three parts: the handle or shaft; the shank, which connects the handle to the working end; and the blade.
Hoe
A hoe is a form of chisel having a cutting edge that nearly approaches a 90-degree angle to the axis of its blade. It does not have a constriction at the junction of the shank and blade.
Hoes are used for breaking down tooth structure undermined by caries, smoothing cavity walls, and forming line and point angles.
Angle former is useful in defining line angles, obtaining retention in dentin, and beveling of enamel margins. An angle former is beveled on its sides and at the end to form three distinct cutting edges. It may be bi-angled (2960) or mono-angled (2961-2963). As the number of the instrument increases, its blade becomes smaller.
Enamel Chisel
Enamel chisel is a hand-held cutting instrument, having a beveled edge at a right angle to the axis of the blade. Several variations of the chisels are the straight (2949), mono (2950-51), bi-angled (2952), and Wedelstaedt chisels. The first three have shanks that taper and constricts, forming a shoulder where the shank meets the blade. A straight chisel has a straight shank and a cutting edge which is in line with the center of the handle, for anterior teeth and cervical restorations. Wedelstaedt chisels, on the other hand, have blades that are continuous with the shank, without a constricted neck. The shank is slightly curved. The instrument is used with a push motion to break down undermined enamel, to smoothen out cavity walls, and to sharpen line and point angles.
Enamel Hatchet
An enamel hatchet is a chisel-like instrument, with a cutting edge in line with the axis of its blade. It is always in contra-angled form with either a bi-beveled or single beveled cutting end.
Hatchet is used with a push, chipping or lateral scraping stroke in developing an internal cavity form and in removing undermined enamel.
Gingival Margin Trimmers
This instrument is a modified hatchet with a curved blade and a cutting edge which is angled from the blade. The blade is curved in two directions, an end to left, the other to the right. This is to utilize the instrument into the mesial and distal cervical wall of the teeth in class II cavity preparations. The tip of the blade is directed towards the cervical margin of the cavity and used with a lateral scraping action to create a bevel at the margin.
Spoon Excavator
Spoon excavator is a spoon-shaped hand instrument with sharp edges. These are used to scoop out carious dentin in deep cavities, where there is a greater chance of pulp perforation with the use of a bur, and during a traumatic cavity preparation in primary dentitions. It is also useful in removing temporary crowns, temporary cement in temporary restorations, and carving amalgam direct wax patterns.
There are two shapes of excavator blade, the round head and the elongated head. Elongated head looks more like a small surgical curette, while round head have a constriction where the shank meets the blade.
Spoon excavators come in various sizes, from small to large, and may be either single or double ended. Some of the shanks are curved, others are bi-angled and the blade are always paired, a left and a right.
Discoid-Cleoid Carver
This dental instrument, which is valuable in carving occlusal anatomy in amalgam restorations, is a double-ended instrument with differently shaped ends. Discoid end, as the name implies is disc-shaped and cleoid is the one with a pointed end. The blades are slightly bent. An example of this is the Black 1300/90-93.