Nordic 175-179 cm

A Swedish-Made Beauty

The Nordic snath as well as our optimized peening jigs are exclusive to Slåttergubben and are not available anywhere else.

Learning to mow with a properly adjusted and sharp scythe is, for many, an almost religious experience. Mowing with a snath designed for optimal ergonomics takes the experience to a whole new level.

I am proud to offer my self-designed snath for sale. It is an exclusive snath with a unique design that you won’t find anywhere else.

Efficient and Ergonomic Design

Nordic has been developed and optimized over many years of professional mowing for the most comfortable use possible, even during many hours of work. With Nordic, you can work comfortably with straight wrists even when mowing among obstacles and stones, cutting hanging branches, or trimming a hedge. The snath needs to withstand the force of each stroke. It should also work for different people of varying heights and physiques and be safe to use in any situation that might arise. To maximize your body’s potential in mowing and also be kind to it, it’s important that your left hand doesn’t end up too high and/or your right hand too low. This has been addressed with the unique steam bending and curving of the snath!

DURABLE & TORSIONALLY STIFF

Thanks to the steam bending, the shaft of the snath follows the grain of the wood and thus becomes many times stronger.

A custom-designed metal plate provides a strong and proven attachment of the scythe blade to the snath, and with two holes, it offers more flexibility in setting the cutting angle. Linseed oiling gives the snath a beautifully golden patina as it ages.

MINIMAL STRAIN

The snath has been optimized to be as lightweight as possible, and both the shaft and handles are adjusted to the user’s height. The curvature of the snath brings the lower handle up high enough that you don’t have to lower your shoulder to reach down, saving many strained backs and shoulder blades. The left hand ends up at the perfect height so you can powerfully and fully move the snath around your body! The wing resting on the left forearm provides tremendous relief for the wrists. The handles are tried and tested over thousands of hours of practical mowing and are very comfortable to hold – every detail in them exists for a reason! You can easily rest your hands on the return swing. The handles come in 6 different sizes. The snaths are available in 16 different lengths. You should never have to compromise due to your height! For your children, you only need to buy the first snath, then we help you replace it with new ones as they grow.

FULL CONTROL

The handles are adjustable along the snath with three holes and are rotatable. The design of the handles allows for a sliding grip for mowing at different angles and positions. The lower hand slides off in case of sudden impact with stumps and similar obstacles. Thanks to the wing that rests against the forearm, you have full control over the tip of the blade with your left arm, minimizing strain on the wrist. You can fully rely on your right hand to push forward and downward in the stroke. The wing is pointed so the snath grips the ground well during sharpening. The wing is also designed to serve as an extra grip for the left hand. The handles are designed in the smallest detail for the well-being of your hands. You can always use your hands dynamically, without having to grip tightly during the stroke, and can fully relax on the return swing. These handles are beautiful in their organic forms – but the beauty is a result of thousands of hours of practical mowing analysis.

Material

Our Nordic snaths are made from ash wood, primarily sourced from Skåne, near our workshop, and secondarily from Europe. Ash is a durable and torsionally stiff material that only becomes more beautiful with age and use.

Manufacturing in Sweden

The Nordic snaths are produced in a small workshop in Skåne. The shafts are sawn straight from planks and steam-bent in a specially designed fixture to achieve their unique curved shape. This increases durability and brings the lower handle closer to the hand without an extra shaft. The snaths are then milled, sanded, oiled, and prepared for the attachment of handles and scythe blades.

What’s Included? Handles, screws for the handles, the ring for attaching the blade, an Allen key for the ring. A 5mm Allen key for the handles is NOT included.

NOTE!

The holes for the knob in the Nordic scythe snath are smaller than in, for example, the Austrian snaths. This is to increase the strength of the snath at a sensitive point and provide two distinct possibilities for placing the knob. For the scytheblades we sell together with the Nordic snath the ground-down adapted tang is included. 

If you want to use other scythe blades, such as the common blades from Fux, the tang must be significantly ground down with an angle grinder or a regular metal file.

How to use an angle grinder:

1. Clamp the blade in a vise.
2. First, use a grinding disc. Grind off a significant amount from the top and bottom with the grinding disc and round off the edges a little.
3. Then switch to a cutting disc and carefully work along the knob towards the tang so that the "corners" become distinct. Bring the snath with you and test while you grind; it is best if the tang just fits into the hole to avoid looseness.

See pictures here of how a ground tang should look.