Oh another tip, I sharpen many woodworking saws and I always use a file card (a fine wire brush essentially) to clean out the files so they don't clog up and they last longer this way.
You can also sharpen your files in vinegar soak the blades for about 1 day, and it makes a really nice difference tho you gotta clean em good after the operation to stop rusting from the acid via sodium bicarbonate water mix and drying properly
Thanks for this! I've got a handful of old scythes on the cheap and wanted to take a crack at this. If I can get it working, I'd happily take the silent and slower method of cutting my lawn than the noisy, fussy hand-me-down riding mower I got. My main blocker was how to sharpen it, but this looks like a great way! I'll be taking a look at the course as well, thank you!
Thanks for the video, confirms my choice of sharpening scythe blade with a 2H file. Here in Bavaria, with a new blade on an old alloy scythe. File works best to get a nice micro serrated edge for cutting weeds and heavy stalked grass.
Great video, thank you 😊. Here is another tip...wear gloves cos after following the instructions to the letter I nearly chopped off the tip of my finger🤦🏼♀️😂
Good old bastard file does the trick again as it has for many years! Another great application for a kydex sheath if leather isn't your thing with all the sticking. Kydex long lasting plastic, a drill some grommets and a heat gun and some boards, foam and a clamp press and in five minutes you have a nice holster.
Hmm, I consider the file a good tool for repairs, if you get a dent i the scythe, and then correct with peening. But as a sharpening/honing tool uggm, it removes alot! But it can work in a pinch, most people has a file and I dont see why not if you want some grass cut :)
Good Morning! It all comes down to practice, but since the blade is so thin this makes the job easier. The trick is to use the file at just enough of a steep angle to sharpen the edge, but no more. It sounds like you may have to increase the angle of the file a bit. Try this while paying attention to the angle visual. You'll need to learn that angle by eye. It's one of those things that takes practice, but anyone can learn how. Please keep me posted on how things go. Drop by my website baileylineroad.com for a visit sometime. You'll find lots of stuff there, including tool giveaways, articles and videos of interest to hands-on, how-to people. Bye for now and thanks for watching! Steve
@@kriegjaegerpretty sure that is a European blade. Normally the Americans are much stiffer metal and don’t flex like he showed. I have several European and only one American blade that was made in Austria, but that one blade is much thicker.
No matter what, you peen a Continental European blade (like Austrian) and then you hone the edge. Peening doesn't give a sharp edge, it just thins and hardens the metal that will form the edge once you hone/sharpen it.
Hone until it no longer works well and then peen to reproduce a thin edge again. Only works on European blades which are soft steel. American blades are high carbon steel and won't peen.
@@yclept9 I think it's less about steel composition and more about hardening/ tempering. If you took the temper out of a US blade, I bet it'd peen. And I bet if you tried to heat treat a European blade, it'd have enough carbon to harden. Could be wrong though; I haven't done an experiment like that on my Austrian scythe.
Hello! Thanks for commenting? Have you ever tried using a file to sharpen a scythe? I've used stones before, but I can assure you that the edge created by a file is more effective and takes less time and skill to create. I've used this method for 30 years and the microscopic serrations left by the file make the scythe cut incredibly well.
You must use the method that works for you , and everyone is responsible for their own safety .not the bloke doing the film who assumes the one brain cell is working
@@baileylineroadhoning would be the more correct term when using Stones. Peening is the key in terms of using Stones. The blade has to be quite a lot thinner when using Stones - so thin that the edge flexes, with moderate pressure from a nail. I can easily mow for 3-4 hours, doping a quick hpne every 4-5 mins before mowing on😊 But hey, your illustration of how to sharpen a scythe, is a great help to many newbie, so they can get going👍 thanks for sharing👍👍
I used a diamond sharpener to sharpen my scythe in the field and it was sharpened scary sharp. If you just touch the edge you would bleed without feeling it. Diamond sharpeners came after what was traditionally used so now there are better tools to cut with and better tools to sharpen with.
Sorry my friend. I hate to be the pooper in the Pablum. Files DO NOT cut properly in a back & forth motion. It'll f--kup the file and will not make for a good edge...Spend a couple bucks and get the right kind of stone to do the job correctly. Learn the PROPER way to do it, then, re-post a video... C-
@@annaal7480 Files are designed to cut only in one direction. Scrubbing the file on the work piece dull the file which are nearly impossible to sharpen again. In a serious situation file will become difficult to replace.
Click here to learn more practical tool-sharpening tips: bit.ly/sharpening101
Oh another tip, I sharpen many woodworking saws and I always use a file card (a fine wire brush essentially) to clean out the files so they don't clog up and they last longer this way.
You can also sharpen your files in vinegar soak the blades for about 1 day, and it makes a really nice difference tho you gotta clean em good after the operation to stop rusting from the acid via sodium bicarbonate water mix and drying properly
Thanks for this! I've got a handful of old scythes on the cheap and wanted to take a crack at this. If I can get it working, I'd happily take the silent and slower method of cutting my lawn than the noisy, fussy hand-me-down riding mower I got. My main blocker was how to sharpen it, but this looks like a great way!
I'll be taking a look at the course as well, thank you!
Thanks for the video, confirms my choice of sharpening scythe blade with a 2H file. Here in Bavaria, with a new blade on an old alloy scythe. File works best to get a nice micro serrated edge for cutting weeds and heavy stalked grass.
dengeln ist die richtige methode ;)
Thanks from Bonnie Scotland
Great video, thank you 😊. Here is another tip...wear gloves cos after following the instructions to the letter I nearly chopped off the tip of my finger🤦🏼♀️😂
Careful! Glad your finger and scythe are doing well!
Good straightforward information. Thank you.
Good old bastard file does the trick again as it has for many years! Another great application for a kydex sheath if leather isn't your thing with all the sticking. Kydex long lasting plastic, a drill some grommets and a heat gun and some boards, foam and a clamp press and in five minutes you have a nice holster.
Time spent sharpening the scythe is not wasted time.
Hmm, I consider the file a good tool for repairs, if you get a dent i the scythe, and then correct with peening. But as a sharpening/honing tool uggm, it removes alot!
But it can work in a pinch, most people has a file and I dont see why not if you want some grass cut :)
scythe blades like that one one uses a peening avil and hammer and a wetstone
Is there an easy way to sight the angle? I'm getting it maybe half of the time
Good Morning! It all comes down to practice, but since the blade is so thin this makes the job easier. The trick is to use the file at just enough of a steep angle to sharpen the edge, but no more. It sounds like you may have to increase the angle of the file a bit. Try this while paying attention to the angle visual. You'll need to learn that angle by eye. It's one of those things that takes practice, but anyone can learn how. Please keep me posted on how things go.
Drop by my website baileylineroad.com for a visit sometime. You'll find lots of stuff there, including tool giveaways, articles and videos of interest to hands-on, how-to people.
Bye for now and thanks for watching!
Steve
leather gloves are highly recommended
I’ve always seen scythes sharpened via peening
European carbon blades would be, yep. Not typical American blades.
@@kriegjaegerpretty sure that is a European blade. Normally the Americans are much stiffer metal and don’t flex like he showed. I have several European and only one American blade that was made in Austria, but that one blade is much thicker.
No matter what, you peen a Continental European blade (like Austrian) and then you hone the edge. Peening doesn't give a sharp edge, it just thins and hardens the metal that will form the edge once you hone/sharpen it.
Hone until it no longer works well and then peen to reproduce a thin edge again. Only works on European blades which are soft steel. American blades are high carbon steel and won't peen.
@@yclept9 I think it's less about steel composition and more about hardening/ tempering. If you took the temper out of a US blade, I bet it'd peen. And I bet if you tried to heat treat a European blade, it'd have enough carbon to harden. Could be wrong though; I haven't done an experiment like that on my Austrian scythe.
now show us how to use it !
p.s. hardly worth mentioning but I don't believe back stroking hurts your file at all.
it's hardened steel. Filing screws and bolts does though.
@@burtreynolds3143 Indeed it does not hurt it Check out the fireball tools file backstroke test video
He forgot the indentation you are supposed to apply to the edge.
oh crap, I just cut my finger off trying to sharpen 😭
Oh !! literally ?? Did you get to medical care in time to restore your finger??? 😢
@@normajeanslagel4633 no I was just mocking how he sharpen towards the blade. I was just kidding.
One less nail to trim
You are teaching people to do the wrong sharpening method, learn yourself from many videos on RUclips, sorry but I have to do this.
Hello! Thanks for commenting? Have you ever tried using a file to sharpen a scythe? I've used stones before, but I can assure you that the edge created by a file is more effective and takes less time and skill to create. I've used this method for 30 years and the microscopic serrations left by the file make the scythe cut incredibly well.
You must use the method that works for you , and everyone is responsible for their own safety .not the bloke doing the film who assumes the one brain cell is working
@@baileylineroadhoning would be the more correct term when using Stones.
Peening is the key in terms of using Stones. The blade has to be quite a lot thinner when using Stones - so thin that the edge flexes, with moderate pressure from a nail.
I can easily mow for 3-4 hours, doping a quick hpne every 4-5 mins before mowing on😊
But hey, your illustration of how to sharpen a scythe, is a great help to many newbie, so they can get going👍 thanks for sharing👍👍
I used a diamond sharpener to sharpen my scythe in the field and it was sharpened scary sharp. If you just touch the edge you would bleed without feeling it. Diamond sharpeners came after what was traditionally used so now there are better tools to cut with and better tools to sharpen with.
Please do NOT file towards the cutting edge, thats how you hurt yourself! I can tell you from experience😅
Yes, I would certainly recommend against that!
Wear pigskin gloves (they don't harden and crack after getting wet, like leather).
Sorry my friend. I hate to be the pooper in the Pablum. Files DO NOT cut properly in a back & forth motion. It'll f--kup the file and will not make for a good edge...Spend a couple bucks and get the right kind of stone to do the job correctly. Learn the PROPER way to do it, then, re-post a video... C-
You just ruined a good file! I'm done with you!
What does he do wrong?
@@annaal7480 Files are designed to cut only in one direction. Scrubbing the file on the work piece dull the file which are nearly impossible to sharpen again.
In a serious situation file will become difficult to replace.