Looking to purchase one for cutting grass and weeds around the homestead. Just tired of gas and oil and exhaust. Would like to purchase a new one but want to make sure I get the right one. Any input is appreciated.
Can be found on Amazon if you don't mind wading through all the BS that pops up on a Scythe search. 2 you might look at are Tidyard scythe with grinding stone 4' 7" for grass weeds. and Seymour Mfg products. Leyman's has them .... always good quality but expensive.
Thanks. That's why I asked here. I saw the one at Lehmans for $250 (ouch). Figured it was high quality, but wanted to see if anyone had any other high quality options at a better price. Will keep looking. Edit: After looking the Lehmans offering over again, it comes with two blades, whetstone, peening jig, scythe book (whatever that is), and snath hardware kit. So, maybe worth it.
When it comes to cutting tools, get the good ones. However, when it comes to scythes, I recommend a cheap one to start. That way, when you find out your back hurts, you won't be as upset with the expense. You will also find that different snathes fit different people differently. Trust me on this, there ain't one in this world that will fit me. You might also consider a long handled sickle, say like this -- Truper Long Handle Grass Hook - GR-HO-12 - Do it Best Sickle or scythe, watch your legs, dem points iz SHARP (or should be.)
Half a dozen different types of blades fit the end of the snathe or handle, shorter heavy ones for brush and ditches, different ones for grass and grain, different lengths for how heavy the growth is, and so on. Easy to get a scythe, seen one in an antique shop today for $49 that was in good shape,"but" the wood may be dry rotted, always a chance. A real one has a crook in the snathe and adjustable handles that you can use to adjust it for your hands, arms, height, pace. etc. The scythe blade is fastened to the snathe or handle with a device that allows you to sit the angle of the blade in reference to the way you hold the blade. You don't just swing them, you swing them as you move forward and if you have the strength, movement and swing sorted out you can cut a lot of stuff in a day, old tale was an acre a day of good grass. Has to be sharp and you carried a special stone to hone it every few minutes, although the old people who came from Europe used to hammer theirs instead of sharpening them, have no idea which is best. Work well if grass doesn't have brush, heavy weeds or bind weed in it, A real pain in the a** if what you are cutting is lodged, want fall free of the scythe. There is a reason that once the mower, binder, corn picker, cotton picker, hay bailer, combine, moldboard plow, etc were invented, in a short time all the old ways died out. I am 81, and not old enough to really have learned how to mow with one and would never try grain. You tube has a video, How to use an American scythe that hits the high spots, don't know how to reference it here. It is all control with the stance, handles and blade, most people never bother to adjust or learn how to use one so most are either gone or hanging a wall somewhere. You will see German ones on You tube and for sale, they are a totally different animal than the American ones, I know they work, just have no idea which is better. A Primer on the Selection, Use, & Maintenance of the American Scythe | The Baryonyx Blog is one of the better discussions. If anyone out there is using one, I would love to see pictures or videos of it, one of those "lost" arts that has 5,000 years thousand years of research in the final model and that would be very handy if you didn't have horses, gas, cast iron, steel, and all the modern things in life. The scythe, wooden toothed hay rake, and 3 tined hay fork were the kings of the world for hundreds of years so they had something going for them, and the grain cradle put the grain in piles that could be tied and shoked. Whole different world, that and the corn planter, chopping hoe,corn knife, husking peg, corn sheller, etc, for corn.
The only lesson I can teach, and hopefully help you avoid, is to use the scythe only in grass that you have seen grow. This became clear in an instant when I got a little off line and hit a small tree stump in mid stroke. The cast iron pieces on my antique scythe that attached the blade to the handle cracked and ended my day of mowing. A swing blade is loads more work, but is more forgiving of mistakes like this.
Lehmans and a lot of other ones for sale are German or Austrian and thus a lot different than American. Seen them but don't know much about them, the people who like then seem to really be into them.
Learning to swing one so it is doing the work and not you is more important than the scythe itself Expect to hurt, you are going to be using muscles that most folks do not use often. Learn how to put a razor edge on the blade. Good tools to have and know how to properly use. I have picked up several good ones at old farm estate auctions. As others have mentioned the right blade for the job is very important as well. Get one with a adjustable fore grip a few inches adjustment up or down the shaft to fit you will make tons of difference in how hard you have to work each swing. Like anything thing worth doing there is a skill to working with scythes. I personally like the Austrian type myself.
I have a couple of antiques ,part of dad's collection. I need to the a closer look at them to see what condition they are in. I use a weed wacker most of the time for the volume of growth I have here in amongst things you can't be swinging a big tool like that . If I convert this land to farming the scythes would be handy, thanks for the tutorial .
