Who else uses a scythe?

FortyTwoBlades said:
Isn't this cute? Runs a bit counter to the advantage of peening being low-tech, though. :D
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8:15 for folk that wanna just see the thing in action. I don't blame anybody for using any kind of peening jig or machine or gizmo. I tried peening on a peening anvil... could not get a feel for it. Probably the hardest sharpening-related skill I've ever attempted.

I haven't used my scythe in a long time (largely due to some failed attempts at making my own snath), but I use a sickle a lot in lieu of a whipper-snipper for post-mowing cleanup around treetrunks, steps, etc...

 
Finally got around to getting revised rings done up so I could finish this snath. The snath, including all hardware, weighs 2lb 8.6oz and the complete unit as shown with the blade on it is 4lb 6.4oz though I'd pair this one with a slightly lighter blade since it's so springy.

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Not just the ring, but the heel plate and bearing plate as well. It's all my design, though inspired heavily by both vintage Sta-Tite snaths and Nordic clamps that use the same principle. :)
 
Excepting the bearing plate is sorta 'PlainJane' compared to elegance of its heel plate. That looks great !
I expect those snaths are intended for scythe enthusiasts who view the tool as equal (or nearly so) artistic extension of the labour of its use.
Wonder what might make for a touch of bearing plate artistry without alot of extra manufacturing effort ?

I expect its nibs are off the shelf Seymour parts ?
Being nibs are where a touchy-feely human connects to an otherwise cold inanimate tool, Perhaps room there for simple artistic flourish also...

Just brainstorming here.
A great percent of sales success is based on a paintjob...
 
It happens to have a nice, clean aesthetic, but the form is purely function-based. It's geared towards folks who want to be able to get the security of an American style clamping mechanism on an end diameter as small as is common for Euro snaths. The hardware weighs just an ounce or two less than a Seymour No.1 collar but allows for a significant reduction in diameter at the business end so there's a weight savings in wood.
 
Steve Tall said:
From a 1955 catalog:
Boker "Tree Brand" American-style scythe blades
"...steel blades securely riveted to forged heels..."

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from the Boker Tree Brand Garden Tool Catalog, 1955
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That explains who made those, then. I've got several of those blades in the collection in various lengths. They're heavy as hell, largely due to the heel/tang piece being crazy thick and chunky. The blades are still forged, but possibly roll-forged, as their form is greatly simplified.

By contrast, the only truly stamped blades I've come across were made by the Bartlett All-Steel Scythe Co., the blades of which are press-formed steel with a seemingly drop-forged tang that's riveted on. I recently came into a lot of NOS ones.
 
I found these two recently, the one on the right is stamped on the blade, Made In Austria, it looks like.
The smaller bladed scythe has a stamp, N25 at the clamp area.

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The smaller bladed scythe just needs some adjusting to my height and a good going over.
The larger may need replacing the handles, hoping the entire handle will be good to go still.

I hope to have one or both in good operation for spring and summer.
 
Miller '72 said:
I found these two recently, the one on the right is stamped on the blade, Made In Austria, it looks like.
The smaller bladed scythe has a stamp, N25 at the clamp area.

kgRqYQT.jpg


The smaller bladed scythe just needs some adjusting to my height and a good going over.
The larger may need replacing the handles, hoping the entire handle will be good to go still.

I hope to have one or both in good operation for spring and summer.
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Man--that corrugated corn hook on the left is a real looker!

The snath on the left is a Derby & Ball No.50 and the one on the right is almost certainly a Sta-Tite, possibly their No.50~I.B.S., if it has a hollow wedge-shaped heel plate on the underside.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Man--that corrugated corn hook on the left is a real looker!

The snath on the left is a Derby & Ball No.50 and the one on the right is almost certainly a Sta-Tite, possibly their No.50~I.B.S., if it has a hollow wedge-shaped heel plate on the underside.
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That's great info and thanks forty two!
I hope I can take a closer look tonight, definitely tomorrow, at the heel plate.
I am grateful for the insight.
I have viewed what you have on your site and have found it, and the few other sites I ended on from there, very informative and helpful.
Thanks again man :thumbsup:
 
As far as the blades go, the Euro blade is definitely made by Redtenbacher from what I can tell. The American one may be a private-labeled Emerson & Stevens or David Wadsworth & Son. Their blades look very similar to one another in many cases, and ones that I've seen with that sort of tang marking follow their stylings. It was common for hardware stores to have blades made for them with their own brand on them, in which cases the manufacturers wouldn't stamp the tangs with their maker's mark, but often still had some marks on the tang for internal identification purposes.
 
oh dang miller, that euro style reminds me of something i saw a few weeks ago. it was an american snath converted to take european blades. i thought it was interesting but not $35 interesting. also i found out harrow blades are not particularly practical for mowing
 
phantomknives said:
oh dang miller, that euro style reminds me of something i saw a few weeks ago. it was an american snath converted to take european blades. i thought it was interesting but not $35 interesting. also i found out harrow blades are not particularly practical for mowing
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There were several American companies that made snaths for European blades. Sta-Tite and Seymour both did, and if I'm remembering correctly, so did Derby & Ball. Not sure what you saw, but it may have been one of those. They were typically straight and single-gripped, with an American style nib.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
...the only truly stamped blades I've come across were made by the Bartlett All-Steel Scythe Co., the blades of which are press-formed steel with a seemingly drop-forged tang that's riveted on. I recently came into a lot of NOS ones.
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Interesting that W.C. Kelly (Kelly Axe Mfg Co., Charleston WV) got a patent in 1918 for a somewhat similar design, with a flat stock (stamped?) blade that's riveted to a tang piece which partially extends along the rib.

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https://patents.google.com/patent/US1279354A/en
 
Steve Tall said:
Interesting that W.C. Kelly (Kelly Axe Mfg Co., Charleston WV) got a patent in 1918 for a somewhat similar design, with a flat stock (stamped?) blade that's riveted to a tang piece which partially extends along the rib.

US1279354-0.png


https://patents.google.com/patent/US1279354A/en
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Thanks for that--I'll have to cross reference it against the blades that I have and the Bartlett patents. I hadn't turned up this patent previously, and it looks more similar to the ones I've got than the Bartlett patents, so it's possible I misattributed it. There are no markings on the blades themselves that indicate a brand, and patent drawings often don't match the final product. Kelly usually did a pretty good job of putting their name on stuff, but perhaps not in this case. They just bear the patent date, but not a name nor number.
 
Those are the ones assigned to the Bartlett All Steel Scythe Co. in specific, but I had found that Mr. Marcus M. Bartlett, one of the three founding company members also had this visually similar one assigned to himself in 1915, the company itself having been founded in 1912.

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