Who else uses a scythe?

FortyTwoBlades said:
Please do take photos! I'd be interested in seeing what the finish looks like, and I ought to be able to identify the general classification of it for ya.
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Thank you, I have enjoyed with great interest all the information and the wealth of knowledge that you have shared. All I can remember is that the blade appears to attach to the handle like the one M3mphis posted (#203) in his reply. I do remember him telling me that the blade could be adjusted in 3 different positions. I should be back up at camp in the next week or so and I will now get it out and play with it.

Thanks again, Double Ott
 
My pleasure! Like I said, I can't claim to be an expert, but I seem to be one of the only folks researching American scythes right now.

Managed to snap some "After" pics of my new TrueTemper Kelly Works weed blade.

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And a couple of shots of my Rixford grass blade while it was off the snath:

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You can see how the tang on the Rixford is properly angled for a nice level cut. Modern blades have an unset tang. Seymour never responded to my email, so I'll have to call them when I get a moment to see if I can persuade them to angle their grass blade tangs and put out a lighter wooden snath to go with 'em.
 
I could cry right about now. I was just out peening my True Temper brush blade and I cracked it! I don't have a scythe peening jig. I was attempting to do it at the anvil with a ball peen. I got a little too far back from the edge and after applying a solid blow I heard that little 'tink'.
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The crack runs over an inch back from the edge. Plus a 1/4 triangle fell out. It's essentially scrap metal now.
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Aren't you supposed to grind American blades thin instead of peen them? After all the cracking of scythe blades, I know to never attempt peening an american blade. Thank you for your sacrifices, both of you.
 
Square_peg said:
I could cry right about now. I was just out peening my True Temper brush blade and I cracked it! I don't have a scythe peening jig. I was attempting to do it at the anvil with a ball peen. I got a little too far back from the edge and after applying a solid blow I heard that little 'tink'.
tonofbricks.gif


The crack runs over an inch back from the edge. Plus a 1/4 triangle fell out. It's essentially scrap metal now.
bawling.gif
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Dude--TrueTemper blades are American pattern, which means you don't peen them. I've only taken a hammer to an American blade twice. Both times it was in an attempt to repair damage, and one those times resulted in the crack that I posted earlier. :o The real question now is where on the blade did the crack occur? If you were lucky like me and it was near the tip you might be able to regrind it and still have something ugly but useful. Just NEVER take a hammer to an American pattern blade unless you're willing to run the risk of destroying it.

American pattern blades are much harder than European pattern scythes, and do NOT require peening--just sharpening and an occasional regrind on a treadle powered grindstone (traditional) or on a 1x30 or 1x42 belt sander with fine sharpening belts (modern) to remove nicks, dings, and unevenness in the edge from angle variation during field sharpening. Typically you can mow all day with an American scythe without having to sharpen it, so long as you don't hit dirt. TrueTemper blades seem to be especially glassy hard. Remember--one of their axe lines was called "Flint Edge" after all! The blade I cracked was a TrueTemper as well.
 
Square Peg, That's really sad. I sorry for your loss of that brush blade. I guess, being a True Temper blade that it was tempered and hardened like all their other tools. Tempered steel doesn't like peening. Your loss is a warning to the rest of us.
 
I was able to get away with GENTLY peening out a wrinkle in the edge of my Maine-made bush blade, but the heat treatment was not nearly as glassy hard as on the TrueTemper. They hardened those things like giant straight razors, apparently! :eek::D

Mind posting a photo of the damage?

In other news, researching Rixford scythes I guess they came from Vermont and were well known for being of extremely high calibre. They were founded in 1837 and closed their doors in 1951. Below is an excerpt from a period publication.

books


My apologies for the small print. The document is on Google Books and can be found here.

It reads:

Good Reasons for Fixed Re sale Prices

Bearing in mind that in the last analysis as far as the manufacturer and jobber as well as the retailer are concerned goods are not really sold until they are in the hands of the satisfied consumer Let me ask what does the maker of a trademarked nationally advertised article put into that article beside the material and labor that it takes to produce it What does the maker sell when he sells his product And to whom does he sell it

Take for instance a Disston saw a Maydole hammer or a Rixford scythe and the maker puts something of his own character into the tools which he makes and that character makes for service

What the consumer Teally buys is not merely a saw or a hammer but the service that these tools will give him

If he had no lumber to saw the saw would be useless and if the saw had no quality or character the service it would be able to give him would be limited and of poor quality

The maker sells this service not to the jobber nor to the retailer but to the consumer Then why should he not be allowed to fix the price for this service the same as the labor unions fix the price that he is compelled to pay for the service they render him

If the price is reasonable and just and competition would keep it so the consumer knows it and is willing to pay the price If not he looks elsewhere for the service To lower the price of an article of established reputation beyond a legitimate figure cheapens the article in the eyes of the consumer and casts suspicion on the quality
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I can't gauge the overall length of the blade, but it looks like you should be able to do a cut-and-regrind job like I did with mine. Draw the new tip profile on it (I like keeping it close to the original) with a sharpie, then just use a Dremel with a cutoff wheel and go slow. After making the cut (you can just get almost all the way through and then snap the nose off in a vice!) use either a sander or some files to clean up the nose. Shortened blades are still useful even if they aren't as pretty!
 
I appreciate the thought. It would mean taking 4-1/2 off of a 16" blade. Pretty extreme. :(
 
Still better than junking the blade. ;) Just use it for clearing heavy brush. Maybe even on a modern Seymour aluminum snath.
 
Kudos to all involved with this thread!


There is more information about American Scythe here in this thread than anywhere on the web
It would be well worth to document and organize this material
 
I've been slowly working on it, actually! It's just a lengthy process since I don't have much spare time. :)
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I've been slowly working on it, actually! It's just a lengthy process since I don't have much spare time. :)
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I recently read & scanned through the 16 pages. I picked up a nice scythe last year while hunting for crosscut saws. There is a wealth of information here. It has peaked my interest and I'll have to dig my scythe out of the shed the next time I'm up at our camp in the U.P. MI. I had just put it in the shed and forgot about it. Now, I can't wait to get it out and assemble it to play with it.

It would be fantastic to have the information here organized and made a sticky....

Fourty2 Blades, thanks for all the information you have shared.

My regards, Double Ott
 
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No problem! Just sharing what I've figured out between research and personal experience. I've been figuring out more and more little tricks lately as well--it's been the one good thing about the buttercup infestation I've been dealing with. :D
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I've been slowly working on it, actually! It's just a lengthy process since I don't have much spare time. :)
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As a Technical Writer I truely understand the amount of the work involved to turn this in to a full article

You could go to other site involved in Scythes and link, since all this material is now public
 
I think for readability's sake a single article is ideal, and I enjoy working on it--I just don't ever have as much time or energy as I'd like! :D
 
Update: Called Seymour but the guy I needed to talk to was on lunch. I left a message with my number. Let's hope I get a call back shortly.

Got in touch with the fella' at Seymour. He's sending along my suggestions to their engineering department and if they have any questions they'll give me a ring. :D
 
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