Anyone used a scythe? Got one and still use it?

masraum · 05-07-2022, 05:12 PM

I suspect some of you older fellas and/or country/farm fellas have used one.

What are your memories of using them? Easy, hard, all about the technique, tips, tricks? Any crazy accidents?

We bought one. It appealed to my nature. I like doing unusual things and doing things the old fashioned way. Sometimes it's a revelation of how great the old ways are. Sometimes it's a revelation of how great the new ways are. But no matter what, it's an educational adventure.

The main reason that we got it was to clear at the end of a ravine where we can't get the mower. It works remarkably well on normal grass and weeds, the kind of stuff that you'd mow or use a string trimmer on. It's a bit tougher on the stuff along the ravine. But I think there's a bit of a learning curve. I can tell when I get the stroke right and when I get it wrong. The blade (whole thing really) is thinner and lighter than I'd have expected, and it's razor sharp. Based on movies and a lack of experience, you think it's more like a machete, something that you'd hack with. But it's a super light, razor sharp, slicing instrument.

The blade is from Austria. The handle is from Maine. You can order a "kit" from a place in Maine which is what I did.

https://scythesupply.com/

stevej37 · 05-07-2022, 05:18 PM

I remember my father having one....but the handles were a little different. The lower handle was attached to the main beam.

I have a smaller version that I use sometimes. Serrated blade...works well on low weeds.

MRM · 05:27 PM

My family had one or more on the farm I grew up on. we had a lot of hills and valleys where you couldn't mow the weeds. My dad had grown up in the era where people used them to harvest grain, so he wanted to try one on our farm.

It was kind of fun to play around with but it wasn't much good for weed clearing, especially on uneven ground. It's so heavy and with the two handles, it's awkward to maneuver. My impression was that it was suited to cutting grain or hay on a flat field where keeping the stems or stalks in a uniform direction was important. For weed cutting nothing ended up beating an old long-handled weed cutter that was basically a golf club handle with a blade instead of the club head.

There definitely is a learning curve to it. I tried to cut hay with it a few times just for fun. At first the hay is a less risk of getting cut that your own legs. After a while you progress to making a mess of what you're trying to cut, and eventually you get the hang of drawing the blade at the correct angle to cut the stems so they fall where they're cut. It takes a while to figure out how to use the ergonomics of the device so it works for you, not against you, because it's not intuitive.

From what I recall a lot of the trick was to let the scythe do as much of the work as possible. You need to keep it pretty parallel to the ground and low. You pull the scythe toward you, level to the ground, in a slight arch. You can't cut more than a certain length away from your body, even though you feel like you should be able to. A lot of the effort and frustration comes from trying to take too big of a swing.

EDIT: the weed cutter above is what we always used to clear weeds instead of the scythe unless we were just having fun.

herr_oberst · 05-07-2022, 05:30 PM

(heh heh - snath! - heh -heh!)

wildthing · 05-07-2022, 05:37 PM

masraum · 05-07-2022, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevej37

I remember my father having one....but the handles were a little different. The lower handle was attached to the main beam.

I have a smaller version that I use sometimes. Serrated blade...works well on low weeds.

I looked at those, and was going to buy one. If there had been one with a long handle, I'd have bought it, but they all had short handles.

masraum · 05-07-2022, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

(heh heh - snath! - heh -heh!)

Slap, slap, slap that snath. Like that.

masraum · 05-07-2022, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildthing

Yeah, that's exactly what I looked like today my first time out!

I'd watched a couple/few videos, and read some stuff on using the scythe. Yeah, it would take some getting used to, and harvesting grain would add a level of complexity, but it actually wasn't that hard to use.

My first target this morning was a patch of taller thicker grass. Part of the deal is that the angle of the blade to the snath needs to be "closed" (more acute) vs "open" (the difference between the two is not much). I didn't have the blade tight enough and the angle opened up. I got the blade angle adjusted and got the blade tight and went out later while the missus was mowing. I trimmed the weeds under the fencing, and actually got "decent" at it (considering it's my first day). I went down to the ravine where some of the stuff is thicker and more reedy. That was tougher. But it's not that bad, and was interesting. I can see myself using it instead of a weedeater for a lot of our weedeating needs.

Bill Douglas · 05-07-2022, 06:33 PM

I used one as a teen. they are very easy to use. Obviously keep it sharp. But they are very well balanced and not uncomfortable to use.

masraum · 05-07-2022, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

I used one as a teen. they are very easy to use. Obviously keep it sharp. But they are very well balanced and not uncomfortable to use.

that's what all of the websites and videos say, and that's what I found today (granted I didn't use it that much).

Bill Douglas · 09:56 PM

Yeah. I wouldn't want to mow a hay paddock with it, but for here and there sort of jobs it was excellent.

I used it on the farm for cutting stinging nettle that used to grow under trees in the fields. The nettles were kind of soft stuff so I guess they were easy to nail with the scythe.

LWJ · 05-07-2022, 09:53 PM

The Uncle cleared a large hillside with one last year. He has two replaced knees and is over 80.

Me? String trimmer.

red 928 · 05-07-2022, 11:15 PM

Only a scythe deals in absolutes

oldE · 05-08-2022, 02:42 AM

My Dad's scythe had a steam bent snath and felt like it was curved around your body. Also, the blade had a channel shaped like a rain gutter along the back edge which captured the stalks of grass and deposited the grass in the windrow. I never got good at it. The spacing of the handles and their angles is very individual. In the hands of an expert you can hardly believe how fast the grass is falling.

Best
Les

tabs · 05-08-2022, 03:33 AM

My Dad used a hand held one to trim the Ivy when I was a mere lad. I also used it when I could be coerced to take on the task..

ZOO · 05-08-2022, 04:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masraum

We bought one. It appealed to my nature. I like doing unusual things and doing things the old fashioned way. Sometimes it's a revelation of how great the old ways are. Sometimes it's a revelation of how great the new ways are. But no matter what, it's an educational adventure.
[/IMG]

This is the same reason I like to use an axe to split wood. A few days at subzero temps at our cottage, and I am reminded how difficult simply "living" was for most people. Keeping a fire going is a lot of work. So is drawing water.

I have the advantage of a chainsaw. I can't imagine using said axe to fell trees . . . or one of those giant two-person saws.

oldE · 05-08-2022, 04:37 AM

Zoo, using a crosscut saw wasn't so bad. Having a good rhythm with the person on the other end was critical, as was sharp teeth on the blade. You were certainly warm. Limbing the tree after felling was the real test of a sharp axe. My BIL was an artist with a single bitted axe. Before his axe was through a limb, he was already set to gather the energy of the swing to direct it to the next one. I couldn't dream of keeping up with him.

Best
Les

red-beard · red-beard's Garage

I had several that came with my Massachusetts house. I never used them for cutting grass, only scaring children at Halloween.

KFC911 · 05-08-2022, 05:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LWJ

The Uncle cleared a large hillside with one last year. He has two replaced knees and is over 80.

Me? String trimmer.

Chainsaws, hydraulic log splitters, Stihl 2-cycle string trimmers, sliced bread ....

Mine has been used and abused for over 2 decades ...

Naw... I don't slice my own bread these daze either

masraum · 05-08-2022, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldE

My Dad's scythe had a steam bent snath and felt like it was curved around your body. Also, the blade had a channel shaped like a rain gutter along the back edge which captured the stalks of grass and deposited the grass in the windrow. I never got good at it. The spacing of the handles and their angles is very individual. In the hands of an expert you can hardly believe how fast the grass is falling.

Best
Les

I was surprised by that. When I bought the one that I bought, I had to measure from the ground to the top of the femur and measure my cubit and provide my height so they could provide a custom snath. Now pretty much no one could use this thing other than me. If someone else wanted to use it, we'd have to buy another snath.