Sharpening (Peening) a Scythe Blade

[@ВячеславВасько-э8и]

Спасибо,очень познавательное видео!

[@linalitafarm]

Будь ласка! Дякую за коментар!

[@Musicpins]

Nice!! Just getting my peening anvil and hammer start next week, I like that people use different techniques for this, some hammer straight on and you do the pulling technique :D

[@linalitafarm]

Thanks for your comment. Actually, I do both the pulling and straight techniques. I use the pulling approach at the beginning to create a super-sharp edge, the I use the straight method to "freeze" it, so that it will last.

[@clivesconundrumgarden]

Super interesting!! Definitely save this video for future reference. We're in the burbs atm but looking to move to a more rural life :) Cheers Jason and Colleen 🌱🌱🌱

[@linalitafarm]

Thanks! I am glad that you found the video useful!

[@volodumurboyar7171]

Привіт. Дивлюсь вас з України. Українці це нащядки скифів. Скифи задовго до європейців були землеробами. І користувались цім інструментом. В вас гарна робота. Особисто я розрізняю клепання коси на три варіанта. 1,- молода травичка. Клепаю приблизно так як ви. 2. Ліне сіно. Наклеп роблю ширше ( глчнець після удару молотка) міліметрів 6-8 до ріжощії кромки. Ну і ружущю кромку також. 3- "на хліб" це на жнева. ( Сухостій) Розбиваю до стану мікро пилки. Щомь схоже на серп.. Та зараз в нас війна. Ми миррна нація. І довели свої мирні наміри, відмовившись від ядерної зброї. Війна закінчиться і будем знов хазяйнувати. Вам здоровья і наснаги...

[@linalitafarm]

Величезне спасибі за дуже цікавий і пізнавальний коментар. Мене завжди вражають знання та досвід інших.

[@bonniebon7335]

Mad respect for ambidextrous lefties!

[@linalitafarm]

Many thanks. I wouldn't call myself ambidextrous, but I do have some facility with my right hand.

[@davidalexandermuller5655]

I have used a similar technique to get out small Bumbs out of blades. I use a narrow piece of wood, I place the blade on the face of the piece of wood and gently hammer the bumps out of the blade using the same method as you. After that I sharpen it with a grindstone or sandpaper. Most I use that for blades that are already heavily damaged and would have been tossed. Does not always work, but I have managed to salvage a few blades. I will try peening the next time! Greetings from Germany!

[@linalitafarm]

Sounds interesting, David. As I mention in the video, peening is not advised for every blade. It works great with high-quality metal because it can hold an edge. I was able to peen my machete to a sharp edge, but when I went to use the tool, the edge collapsed very fast. The steel in the blade is low quality and cannot hold the kind of edge that peening creates. Thanks for your comment and greetings from Nicaragua!

[@metalkokorea]

concentration is meditation, which is good for your soul.

[@linalitafarm]

YES! Thanks for your comment.

[@metalkokorea]

doggy man, just show how to do thejob, thanks

[@linalitafarm]

OK

[@bonniebon7335]

I’m having difficulty getting my blade razor sharp. Of course, I’m new at it, but I’ve been scything for a few years now. I’m using an Austrian blade from scythe supply and I wonder if it is the metal. When I do get it seemingly sharp, it dulls quickly.

[@linalitafarm]

Austrian blades are well-known for being good, so it's probably not metal. Are you cleaning your blade regularly with a sharpening stone? This really helps to extend the life of a sharp edge. Here is a rule of thumb that might help you. The thicker the stems that you are cutting, the shorter the life of a sharp edge. Peening is a regular part of scything. There are people in Europe that scythe 3-4 hours per day (sometimes more). They give their blades a peening tune-up every morning before they go out. Finally, the goal of peening should not be to obtain a "razor-sharp edge". You know that's not going to last, particularly if you're cutting any thick stems. Instead, the goal should be to obtain a blade that is sharp enough to do the job.

[@samueldougoud3289]

It is difficult to give a precise advice without assessing your gear directly, but my guess is that many people focus on honing (most second hand blades that you can purchase here in Europe have been honed a lot, but little peened, if at all. By the way, don't believe all Europeans are masters at it...). Or when they peen, they only do the very edge. The goal of the peening is to emulate a hollow groud blade, which has two advantages : maximizing the depth of blade that is very thin, and giving the edge the ideal profile in terms of ease of penetration. I am satisfied with my blades when checking them with a digital display caliper gives the following figures : 1mm from the edge = 0.25mm, 2mm from the edge = 0.4 mm. For a "long" time I thought I could assess a blade by simply touching it, but when one of my blade that I thought was good performed less good than I had expected, I decided to check and compare with a good performer and then I knew better...

[@linalitafarm]

This is great information! Thanks for sharing it.

[@patrickglaser1560]

I got an antique, hopefully it'll sustain a peening

[@linalitafarm]

If it's tempered steel, there should be no problem. I tried to peen my machete but it failed. The steel used in the average one of such a low quality that it cannot hold an edge.

[@xuânlê-o5t]

Good tool!!! Could you tell me its thickness? Thanks

[@linalitafarm]

Do you mean the thickness of the steel itself or the width of the blade? I do not know the thickness of the steel, but width of the blade is 8cm at the hilt and it tapers down to 3cm at the tip.

[@xuânlê-o5t]

@ I mean the thickness of steel…I am from Vietnam, I really like this tool, It is really interesting to cut grass, it good for health and not pollution, but it is not produced in my country, so I try to make it by myself…that’s reason I studied experience from you….thanks

[@linalitafarm]

Scythe blades typically are crafted using high-carbon steel. Blade thickness can vary, but they most often are around 1-2mm in thickness. I hope that this helps.

[@donaldlee6699]

Where did you order your peening jig and hammer? Thanks! I subscribed.

[@linalitafarm]

Thanks for the sub! I order all of my scything and peening supplies from onescytherevolution.com

[@donaldlee6699]

@@linalitafarmThanks!

[@scottleft3672]

Masonry chisels used to be peened before the cheap sets hit town....small exersize weights make good small anvils, just cut them in half and drop one into a slot in concrete or timber.

[@linalitafarm]

Wow! Thanks for sharing the idea about exercise weights!

[@scottleft3672]

@@linalitafarm no worries.

[@chiranagheorghitaeugeniuth98]

you are not even striking the blade as you hold it in the first part of the vid. You are only hitting the anvil. The edge of the blade should be running and following the center of the anvil.

[@linalitafarm]

Thanks for pointing this out.

[@ellenorbjornsdottir1166]

King Arthur is semi-legendary, but the factoid about how he'd have sharpened his blade were he real is real. Have you found yourself to be in a "language shift" with being in Nicaragua(?) now? I noticed you said "Japan" as «Japón» which is notably the Spanish (and with a different pronunciation, French) way of saying "Japan".

[@linalitafarm]

I seem to be in constant language shift. :) My interactions on the the Internet are predominantly in English, whereas my person-to-person interactions are mostly in Spanish. Half the time, I don't even know what language I am speaking :) The other day, I was talking to a guy at the hardware store and I switched to English mid-conversation without realizing it until he pointed it out to me.

[@mauciirozas6874]

🇨🇱

[@linalitafarm]

¡Gracias!

[@user-is6fz9oc9s]

Очень много болтаешь

[@linalitafarm]

Так

[@fatherrussell5303]

Wonderful video. I was wondering if you could do a video recommending a few types of scythes and maybe brands if that’s possible.

[@linalitafarm]

I buy all of my scything supplies from onescytherevolution.com. They have a broad inventory and also have several instructional videos. I hope that this helps.