Has anybody on here used a ditch bank blade (dbb) ? Specifically Council Tool's dbb?

S

Squashfan

Joined
Jun 6, 2012
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I having (or maybe I should say getting) to hand clear a bank on my property and I see this as an opportunity to get a new toy. I have a very nice 18" Marbles machete but I want something with more reach. I do have an old brush hook I am going to restore but it is not heavy duty enough for this project.
So I am looking at a ditch bank blade.

About the bank: It is a big bank 150-200 feet long and varying in width from 5-10 feet. Almost all of the vegetation is over my head but the thickest sapling I have found was less the 2 inches. Long grass as the ground cover with this vines entangling saplings and polk weed.

I should probably get a weed eater or something but a dbb is more fun.
 
I use one occasionally. I like them for small shrubs and the like. But around here it's mostly blackberries and I prefer a machete for those.
 
Square peg, is your dbb one of the smaller, lighter kinds or is it a heavier duty model? The one I am looking at is a heavy duty model.
 
Sparrow92 said:
Disagreed :)
A weedeater is never a better option, and the fact that those things are hellish to use is only part of it, IMHO.
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Darn tootin', sister! :D:thumbup:

And I would be surprised if a brush axe wasn't sufficient for the work. Ditch bank blades are usually LESS robust--more of a double-edged machete blade on the end of a long straight axe-like handle. I'd just carry a small machete or folding saw and use a scythe with a bush blade on it myself, though. :)
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Darn tootin', sister! :D:thumbup:

And I would be surprised if a brush axe wasn't sufficient for the work. Ditch bank blades are usually LESS robust--more of a double-edged machete blade on the end of a long straight axe-like handle. I'd just carry a small machete or folding saw and use a scythe with a bush blade on it myself, though. :)
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I am so glad to be among fellow sharp tool enthusiasts! It almost makes me cry out of joy when someone understands my love of sharp tools. I think you are right about the brush axe being enough tool. But I am going to have to almost fully restore it. There is a crack on the front of the handle so I may have to replace the handle. I will see if I can post some pics later.

Through a little bit of Binging, I have found that Tramontina makes a metal snath. Would that be good snath?
Oh! Tramontina also makes a 16" brush blade and an 18" grass blade! What evil things are you guys leading me into?
 
Squashfan said:
Through a little bit of Binging, I have found that Tramontina makes a metal snath. Would that be good snath?
Oh! Tramontina also makes a 16" brush blade and an 18" grass blade! What evil things are you guys leading me into?
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Noooooo! Please don't ruin your love of sharp tools by starting out any scything endeavours with a Tramontina snath. :P The blades, as far as I know, are of good quality, but the metal snaths are utterly incompatible with the tang angles on the blades. If anything, I'd say buying a Tramontina blade and making your own snath would be a suitable option... but Benjamin is no doubt going to talk you into one of them good American scythes, so I'll leave my opinions out of it. ;)
 
Sparrow92 said:
Noooooo! Please don't ruin your love of sharp tools by starting out any scything endeavours with a Tramontina snath. :P The blades, as far as I know, are of good quality, but the metal snaths are utterly incompatible with the tang angles on the blades. If anything, I'd say buying a Tramontina blade and making your own snath would be a suitable option... but Benjamin is no doubt going to talk you into one of them good American scythes, so I'll leave my opinions out of it. ;)
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Great. So much for this being easy. Sigh, I have nothing but a few files and sandpaper to make a handle out of.

Pics of the brush axe:

Leek is for scale.
leu4.jpg


The axe laid on the table the same way as in the first photo.
6wt2.jpg


The other side of the crack.
6m5x.jpg


Nice shot of the head.
lqgo.jpg


EDIT: Found this video of a guy using a scythe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=C6A2NDdSgB4

Don't know what you people would think of his technique but the brush he is clearing looks a lot like what I am facing. On a very steep bank. Fun!
 
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Sparrow92 said:
Noooooo! Please don't ruin your love of sharp tools by starting out any scything endeavours with a Tramontina snath. :P The blades, as far as I know, are of good quality, but the metal snaths are utterly incompatible with the tang angles on the blades. If anything, I'd say buying a Tramontina blade and making your own snath would be a suitable option... but Benjamin is no doubt going to talk you into one of them good American scythes, so I'll leave my opinions out of it. ;)
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Heeheehee. Yes the Tramontina blades are of acceptable quality though with very VERY few tension marks, but the snaths are garbage. Unfortunately Tramontina themselves seemingly doesn't sell just rings so the source mentioned doesn't have just those for sale (I've suggested he may want to look into it, though.) I have one of the units and the snath is usable, but not very pleasant. I need to try making a better one for it or enlisting G-Pig's hands at the task. I'd use something like this personally, though, as Sparrow mentioned. :D

yhst-129988217023674_2267_1032231


Squashfan said:
Great. So much for this being easy. Sigh, I have nothing but a few files and sandpaper to make a handle out of.

Pics of the brush axe:

Leek is for scale.
leu4.jpg


The axe laid on the table the same way as in the first photo.
6wt2.jpg


The other side of the crack.
6m5x.jpg


Nice shot of the head.
lqgo.jpg
Click to expand...

Yeah...that's definitely gonna' need a new handle! Should be very capable once it's spit-shined a bit, though!
 
I did some reading last night and learned some things. The Tram blade's tang is set up Austrian styleish. But the handle looks like a cross between Austrian and American. I found a place called One Scythe Revolution and they extolled the virtues of Austrian scythe. They also said the American style scythe is hard to use.

What does you guys and gals think of Austrian scythe? I think I know what FortyTwoBlades is going to say though. ;)
 
Squashfan said:
EDIT: Found this video of a guy using a scythe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=C6A2NDdSgB4

Don't know what you people would think of his technique but the brush he is clearing looks a lot like what I am facing. On a very steep bank. Fun!
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Ah, you found Niels' videos, great! :) As for his technique, it's about the best one you could pick for trying to learn from. He is way more experienced a scyther than most of us, and has "invented" a number of useful techniques for using a scythe in these exact situations. A little more info on him here: http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/niels.html :)
 
Don't take Botan Anderson's (One Scythe Revolution) word too seriously. He is, in my personal opinion, a shrewd businessman who stretchs "facts" to sell his products... in this case, that American style scythes are "hard to use". As FortyTwoBlades is most definitely going to tell you, they are not hard to use, per se. My preference is the "Austrian" style, (which should more accurately be referred to as the European style) for reasons I will not get into here, because I am bound to be out-argued. ;)

Here is another good video from Niels Johansson, demonstrating the versatility of the "Austrian style" scythe, albeit a Danish design -- with the forward facing grips, as opposed to the more commonly known snath with the grips facing towards the mower -- in a situation that I certainly wouldn't enjoy trying to wield a generally unwieldily American style scythe. :D
And, a video of someone else who needs to learn a bit more technique from a person like Niels, but showing more of using a scythe in unorthodox settings...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z71gl4wQ4fw

Just for interest, here is a little piece on "1SR" from scytheconnection.com:

Botan Anderson of One Scythe Revolution has become the most creative scythe seller, surpassing even Scythe Supply's ability to sell volumes of scythes to the generally under-informed, and sometimes misled, North American public. More than any other retailer, Botan fits the image of a man who can, as they say, "sell ice to the Eskimos".
He does deserve acknowledgment for his scythe-related activism, even though he sometimes 'forgets' to give credit where credit is due...
 
Sparrow92 said:
Don't take Botan Anderson's (One Scythe Revolution) word too seriously. He is, in my personal opinion, a shrewd businessman who stretchs "facts" to sell his products... in this case, that American style scythes are "hard to use". As FortyTwoBlades is most definitely going to tell you, they are not hard to use, per se. My preference is the "Austrian" style, (which should more accurately be referred to as the European style) for reasons I will not get into here, because I am bound to be out-argued. ;)
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Yeah--the American style is used very differently than the European type, but not at all hard as long as you've got a good unit, well maintained, and matched to the task--just like with any good scythe! I think that the two types simply speak a different dialect of the same language--like the differences between Canadian and Parisian French. Similar enough that people can get confused and try to use one as the other and not understand why they're getting poor results, because while MOSTLY the same on a fundamental level their approaches are different enough that they aren't exactly interchangeable. :D Personally I've been using the term "continental" to refer to the European pattern lately, as it helps to differentiate from the English, Scottish (uncommon), and Swedish styles a bit. I would LOVE to see examples of different regional European types (both blade and snath) indicated by nationality/province with notes on their configurations. Do you think Peter could put something like that together one of these days?

Here is another good video from Niels Johansson, demonstrating the versatility of the "Austrian style" scythe, albeit a Danish design -- with the forward facing grips, as opposed to the more commonly known snath with the grips facing towards the mower -- in a situation that I certainly wouldn't enjoy trying to wield a generally unwieldily American style scythe. :D
And, a video of someone else who needs to learn a bit more technique from a person like Niels, but showing more of using a scythe in unorthodox settings...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z71gl4wQ4fw

Just for interest, here is a little piece on "1SR" from scytheconnection.com:

Botan Anderson of One Scythe Revolution has become the most creative scythe seller, surpassing even Scythe Supply's ability to sell volumes of scythes to the generally under-informed, and sometimes misled, North American public. More than any other retailer, Botan fits the image of a man who can, as they say, "sell ice to the Eskimos".
He does deserve acknowledgment for his scythe-related activism, even though he sometimes 'forgets' to give credit where credit is due...
Click to expand...

Niels' work is pretty nifty stuff--but I think the video didn't get linked? :)
 
Heh--just watched the video you linked, Squashfan. From what I'm able to assess of the conditions (it can be hard without actually being there!) my American that I keep paired with a heavy TrueTemper weed blade would have swept through that in half the time and left almost as clean of stubble. It's rough stuff like that where an American excels. Niels is a real pro, so it's no critique of his technique--it's just that the American eats that kind of growth for breakfast.

For reference, here's an example of me using a 30" grass blade on tall dense reedy grasses in rocky terrain with lots of bumps, valleys, and a gnoll thrown in for good measure. A weed or bush blade would actually blast through this stuff with fewer hangups but I wanted to show how heavy of stuff you can get through without much trouble with a grass blade.

[video=youtube;Oe-OfaMsogA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe-OfaMsogA[/video]
 
Squashfan said:
I having (or maybe I should say getting) to hand clear a bank on my property and I see this as an opportunity to get a new toy. I have a very nice 18" Marbles machete but I want something with more reach. I do have an old brush hook I am going to restore but it is not heavy duty enough for this project.
So I am looking at a ditch bank blade.

About the bank: It is a big bank 150-200 feet long and varying in width from 5-10 feet. Almost all of the vegetation is over my head but the thickest sapling I have found was less the 2 inches. Long grass as the ground cover with this vines entangling saplings and polk weed.

I should probably get a weed eater or something but a dbb is more fun.
Click to expand...



They're quite common around here. Most people carry one around in their truck and you can do a lot with them if they're sharp and of decent quality. I have a couple of the councils hanging in my building at the moment. I personally have switched to the Cold Steel two handed machete as I can use it for longer periods without a break and have more control over it than I do one of these. I also dislike how they will roll in my hand if I hit something a bit harder than anticipated or at the wrong angle.

I do know a local gentleman who made a round handle for his so he wouldn't have the rolling problem and I am curious to see how well that works.

While my two handed machete doesn't have a hook I can use it one handed and get down low on something and it doesn't get caught in the overhead like a bush hook or bank blade. I carry a pair of Felco #2's for cutting through tangles of vines so I can get to the base of them with the machete. That's just what I've found works better for me.
 
That is some right impressive work, even by his usual high level of displayed skill! If trying to do that kind of above-the-waist work with an American I'd be going with a Seymour SN-8 aluminum snath and a "hybrid" or Swedish style blade or a thin/short bush blade like a TrueTemper Briar Edge. His forward-gripped little rig is pretty much perfect for the work he's doing there--absolutely no argument.
 
Also, Squashfan--to round out your reading I suggest ScytheConnection for info pertaining to continental European scythes and THIS guide of mine for info on American scythes.
 
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