Russian variations

When it comes to scythes, the Russians evidently do some things differently (compared with the typical Western European ways).  Some of these Russian methods are presented below. Seeing different approaches to familiar problems can benefit one's understanding, creativity, and improvisation potentials.

The drawings appearing below are linked images from the Russian site Pandia.ru and originated from a magazine article titled кoси, кoса by Н. Н. Рoдиoнoв, appearing in the journal Сделай Сам (Знание) 1992-02 [journal name translated as DIY (Knowledge)].

Here is a Russian scythe with a moveable grip. The advantages of such a grip include having a wide range of adjustments possible for different conditions or different users.

The grip is made from a freshly-cut branch that is bent around the snath and secured with a piece of twine.  Willow or wild cherry is suggested, with a diameter of 25-30 mm and a length of 350-400 mm.  The size of the cutout portion in the middle depends on the diameter of the snath, but is typically around 80 mm, with a depth that's less than half of the branch diameter. A groove is made within the cutout portion, removing the pith and the center of the branch to accommodate bending without breakage.  Grooves are carved around each end of the branch to hold the twine in place, once the handle is bent around the snath.  A thin piece of rubber (like a scrap from an inner tube) between the grip and the snath will make the connection more secure during use.

Although one-grip snaths seem to be the norm in Russia, this unusual style of two-grip snath was shown as an example from Lithuania: 

The blade attachment method (shown in the first drawing above) uses one or two non-adjustable rings in combination with a substantial wooden wedge. This type of wooden wedge is used with a snath having an acutely tapered end. The snath taper is evident in the drawing below which illustrates an alternative grip arrangement:

Having the snath end taper like this, instead of being squared off, will effectively make the blade perform like it has a steeper tang, which can be good for low tangs and/or tall folks. Here's a photo from Peter Vido that shows a blade attached to a tapered snath using a wedge and simple ring (with no set screws):

From ScytheConnection.com: A snath with a very acutely tapered end. For this arrangement the common set-screw type rings do not work well. However, the simple ring in the picture, held in place by a thick wedge, is a very common way of attaching a blade; many East European and other mowers prefer this method. It is in this manner that most Russian-made blades (the tangs of which are approximately 23-24 degrees) have been used on the straight one-grip snath in Slovakia by tall mowers. For this ring/wedge to hold better, the upper side of the snath’s end remains square, i.e. flat on top, instead of rounded as it would be in order to take the set-screw ring. http://scytheconnection.com/snath-and-blade-fitting/

Another method of blade attachment is this clamp, which has a lever arm and a cam:

Peening the blade is done while on the snath or off, with anvils and hammers similar to those used throughout Europe:

The Russian-style peening jig, however, is different. Instead of having a hammered cap that fits over and around a central post, the Russian jig has a hammered post that fits within a round guide:

While the design of this jig is more complex, one apparent advantage is that without a fixed central post, the part of the blade being peened is not butted against anything during the deformation, and therefore would not be dulled by the hammering. This jig has two set screws, one to hold the bottom anvil piece in place, and the other to align the hammer post and keep the up and down movements within limits.

Along with a whetstone, some Russian mowers will carry a smooth, hard steel rod into the field with them to use like a butcher's steel (labeled 2, below).

The function of the steel is to realign the edge and recover some sharpness without having to wear down the edge with the stone. During normal use of the scythe, some of the microserrations in the edge become folded over, dulling the blade. Using the steel can reposition portions of the bent edge back into the original position, restoring the sharpness to a certain extent. Some of the regular honings in the field can be replaced by steeling the edge, effectively prolonging the life of the edge. Another Russian site suggests making this scythe sharpening steel from an old triangular taper file that has been smoothed to remove the file teeth.


Below is a Russian design for grain cradles, made from durable, dry wood, with 3-5 "teeth" (depending on the height of the grain):

1 = Teeth, fitting into 12x12 mm holes in Base
2 = Rawhide straps
3 = Base, 20x20 mm wood, length 350-600 mm
4 = Ring
5 = Twine

The wooden base is firmly attached to the snath with a steel bracket, with one end of the bracket attached to the base using two screws, and the other end of the bracket clamped between the snath ring(s) and the blade tang. The lowest tooth is slightly shorter than the blade, and each upper tooth is 50-70 mm shorter than the tooth below. The teeth are sanded smooth to avoid burrs. Dry rawhide straps are twisted to connect and separate the teeth. Wet rawhide straps are used to help firmly secure the teeth to the base, tightening as they dry. The ring is attached to the snath about 15 cm below the grip, and strong twine is stretched between the teeth and the ring, for additional stability and adjustment potential. All of the teeth should be arranged parallel to the cutting edge of the scythe blade. Fabric or netting can be added,if desired, using a U-shaped frame attached to the snath (not shown).

Sources:

Article titled «Коси, коса...» by Н. Н. Родионов, from the journal Сделай Сам (Знание) 1992-02, pages 45-69
Reprint and images from the article provided by:
Pandia.ru http://www.pandia.ru/text/77/398/102961.php
Original article appears at:
http://zhurnalko.net/=sam/sdelaj-sam-(izdatelstvo-znanie)/1992-02--num45

Wedge attachment photo from Snath and Blade Fitting page at ScytheConnection.com

Painting (upper): Haymaking by Nikolay A. Sergeyev (1855-1919), dated 1887, [Public domain] via Wikimedia Commons

Painting (lower): From Mowing by Pyotr Konchalovsky (1876-1956), dated 1948, linked from Wikipaintings.org

Universal Scythe

Is there an off-the-shelf scythe which can be adjusted to fit anyone, regardless of height?  Is this even possible?  The answer is "Yes".
Here is a method of blade attachment which, when combined with an adjustable one-grip snath, can be adjusted to fit any height person for virtually any blade (regardless of tang steepness).  


A one-grip snath can be made at home from hardwood lumber, as detailed on the ScytheConnection website:
http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/snathmaking/index.html


To make this type of snath adjustable, the method of grip attachment can be changed from the mortise and tenon connection (shown in the instructions) to a bolted connection, using a hanger bolt to secure the base of the grip into a dado in the snath.  Some examples are shown at the ScytheConnection site, with dadoes made on the snath for two grip locations:
http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/retail/outfits.html


To make the snath adjustable to fit anyone, a number of dadoes (six or more) can be made on the snath for additional grip locations, and the total length can be more than six feet (with a longer rounded section for the left hand position).

Now that the snath can fit any person, it must now be fitted to the blade.  With this "Universal Scythe" design, the blade is bolted to the snath, requiring a hole in the tang of the blade.  Some blades already have a hole in the tang, such as blade #00 from the ScytheConnection catalogue, pictured here.  A hole can otherwise be drilled into the tang of a blade to make it work with this attachment method (I've previously had a local machine shop drill a hole in a scythe blade for a few dollars).


The chosen blade (in this case, the pictured blade #00) will have a certain tang steepness which in most cases will be different from the required tang steepness for a one-grip snath.  For details on the required tang steepness, refer to my previous post here or the discussion at:
http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/snathmaking/snath2.html#steepness


The "Universal Scythe" design can accommodate a wide range of wedge sizes for adapting the snath to a specific user/blade combination.  In this example, let's use a blade with a tang steepness of 25 degrees (such as blade #00), and let's assume that a tang steepness of 45 degrees is required for a given user of the one-grip snath.  A 20 degree wedge (45-25=20) would then be used to adapt the blade to the snath and user.  

The blade and wedge are bolted securely to the snath using a special "Piesslinger patent" metal plate which has been modified for this purpose.  (The Piesslinger patent attachment was mentioned in a previous post here.)  This photograph show the modified Piesslinger plate, with the wedge and two bolts used for this example of the "Universal Scythe".  This method can accommodate a blade with a single hole and a wedge of any angle. With the two bolts tightened, this blade attachment is extremely strong.  No ring clamps are needed.

In these photos, the snath has been reduced to seven inches in length for simplification.  The snath section is left square at the blade end, since there is no need for partially rounding it. Because of the added angle of the wedge, the end of the Piesslinger mount needs to be bent to conform to the snath end.  It is not necessary to nail the Piesslinger mount to the snath, as it is held quite solidly without nails.


The wedge is connected to the snath by the two bolts. The lower bolt also holds the blade against the snath. Since the bolt is a quarter-inch diameter, and the tang hole is a half-inch, a piece of white nylon bushing is used to hold the blade solidly.  

Since the nuts protrude from the snath at an angle, the tops of the holes were countersunk to provide flat contact with the wood.

A washer is used under the blade, and smaller washers and lock washers are used with the two nuts.

A groove was made in the back of the wedge to hold the knob of the tang.  Hafting angle considerations for the specific blade will influence the location of this groove.  I cut the corresponding end of the Piesslinger mount with a hacksaw and bent the metal flaps into the groove to hold the knob more securely.  I figured that this would be stronger than simply cutting a keyhole into the metal (i.e., cutting away the flaps).  The flaps were easily bent by putting the cut Piesslinger mount and wedge into a vise, and gently hammering the tang knob into place.


When the blade is being mounted to the snath, the upper bolt is first attached (since this is located under the tang near the knob).  Then the Piesslinger mount and tang are put into place and the lower bolt is attached.  The nuts are tightened with a small wrench.




















A wide range of wedges with various angles can be made available for a precise fitting of the "Universal Scythe" to the user.  This type of blade attachment can also be used for other snath designs, including the Oregon Snath (described here).








(Source:  Photo of  "Spiral Galaxy M100", from NASA, HubbleSite,
 http://hubblesite.org/gallery/album/the_universe/pr1994002c/)  

Q&A: Tang angles for tall folks

Q: I have a pretty basic question. As an upright 6'-5" tall man, I should be considering blades with a tang steepness of 30 degrees plus?

-Mike

A: Peter Vido asked me to address your question, as I am 6'-8" tall and have faced the same issue.

In general, you could say that the taller you are, the steeper a tang you need, but the tang steepness you need depends mainly on the snath you will be using.

For example, the first scythe I got was from Johnny's Selected Seeds. The blade's tang angle was about 25 degrees. The snath was woefully too small for me. I modified it as shown in a photograph on this webpage:

http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/docs/retrofitting.html

The snath modification now allowed me to mow with a straight back. With this modified snath, 25 degrees was the right tang angle for someone of my height (but the ergonomics of the snath were far from ideal).

I later made a one-grip snath for the same 25 degree blade. I followed the instructions listed here:

http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/snathmaking/index.html

To make the one-grip snath work for me with a 25 degree blade, I had to use a piece of wildwood for the shaft (instead of sawn lumber) which was specially selected to have a curved bottom. (The wood was from the prunings of an ash tree in my backyard.) I sawed the curved bottom at just the right angle to accommodate my height and the 25 degree tang angle. With this snath, a 25 degree tang is the correct one for me, and it works remarkably better for me than the same blade with the modified Johnny's snath. (For example, with the Johnny's snath, I can't get a full swing with enough control to cut well at the end of the stroke.)

Without a curve at the bottom of the one-grip snath, in other words with a straight shaft, the tang angle would have to be much steeper. Exactly how steep can be calculated by the method quoted from the following webpage:

"To estimate the required tang angle [for a straight-shafted one-grip snath] for anyone, regardless of height, a scale drawing can be made on graph paper, or a bit of trigonometry can be applied. Assuming the person is right-handed, measure the the height of the right hand in the mowing stance (usually with the right arm almost completely straight), and divide this number by the theoretical distance between right grip and end of snath (following the instructions for making the one-grip snath), and find the arcsine (or "inverse sine") for this quotient. The result is the approximate tang angle required for both the one-grip snath and the Oregon snath."

-from http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/toolmaking/index.html#oregon

I wanted to make a straight one-grip snath and this method resulted a tang angle of about 50 degrees! Luckily for me, Peter happened to have some suitable blades in stock (he has many blades not listed in the catalogue).

I later wanted to try these same blades with a two-grip snath (homemade from straight lumber), so I designed the "Oregon Snath", as shown in the above link.

If I had a two-grip snath with curves in the right places, I could use a less-steep tang angle. How much less of an angle depends on the specific snath design (the location and amount of curvature, the grip arrangement, etc.)

The adjustable two-grip snaths that are available from various sources are only adjustable for a certain range of heights, and this doesn't really address the blade fit. Each adjustment of the snath might change the angle the snath makes with the ground, theoretically requiring a different tang angle.

For a given user/snath combination there is an optimal tang angle. (The desired use for the scythe can be reflected in the snath design and influence the optimal tang angle.) The available blades may not match this optimal tang angle. There is some leeway possible since the user can adjust his/her stance and arm positioning a bit to make a blade work, up to a certain limit. Beyond this, a wooden wedge can be used between the tang and the snath, to simulate a decrease in tang angle, up to about 5 degrees less than the actual tang angle. Modifications are sometimes made to the bottom of the snath, tapering (cutting a wedge off) the snath to simulate an increase in tang angle.

The use of wedges and tapering to affect the lay of the blade is explained in this webpage:

http://www.scytheconnection.com/adp/snathmaking/snath2.html

A recap of the last couple points: A snath can be fitted to the user. The resulting snath will need a blade with a certain tang angle. The curvature of the snath affects the required tang angle of the blade. A blade with a tang angle that is too high for the user/snath combo (up to about 5 degrees too high) can still be used with a wedge. A blade with a tang angle that is too low (up to a couple degrees too low) can be used if the snath end is tapered.

With the Oregon snath, I took a different approach by starting with a given blade. The Oregon snath is then made to fit the user (and blade) without the use of wedges or tapers.

The blade/snath/user each have an influence on the other two factors. For example, you cannot determine the tang angle for a given height user without considering the specific snath.

The maker of the snath should have this all figured out, but this isn't always the case. I think that there may be some fudging done, such as one or two tang angles used for a range of users, instead of having a wider range of tang angles available to properly fit the range of users.

So I hope that you now understand how a 25-degree blade and a 50-degree blade can both fit the same tall person, and how the answer to your basic question depends on the specific snath.

-Steve