Despite having the "instructions" and the book, we struggled to put the scythe together. Step 1 was "attach the blade". Um.... how, exactly? They're not telling. No pictures to show which part is which or what goes where. It may be intuitive to someone who already has a scythe, but we had not used one before. After a while, and after a good deal of searching online, we were fairly sure our handle was missing a hole where the blade should be attached to it. I called customer service, but the young woman on the phone had no idea what I was talking about. She didn't know what a scythe was, couldn't direct me to anyone or any online resource for more detailed instruction on assembly. By now, hubby was pretty convinced that, yes, there should definitely be a hole there... How about a replacement part? The young woman said they were on backorder, and there's no way for her to be able to say when we might be able to get a properly shaped handle. So we awkwardly used a drill to create an oblong hole where we thought it should be on the pole and into which the blade would fit. Never did get it quite right, it seems, but good enough that it should hold. Once we had spent an hour and a half on all this and had finally completed "Step 1", it was smooth sailing. So, 5 stars for the scythe itself, but 1 for clarity of instructions, improperly shaped piece requiring modification with a power drill, and a clueless customer service rep. If you already know what you're doing and how to put together a scythe, I'm sure this will be easier for you than it was for us.

I want to thank you for the time and effort you put into offering such a great scythe kit. Everything needed to use the scythe successfully is there. The snath is a work of art.

The website is still showing 'out of stock', but I got my kit in about 2-3 weeks. The kit goes together very easily. It includes an allen wrench for attaching the blade, but you need a wrench for attaching the handles. I may change the hardware to wingnuts for ease of adjustment and tightening out in the field. The wood is machine-processed and unfinished, so some sanding and a coat of oil are in order. The snath is very light and the blades are also lighter than one might expect. My first try 'scything' in the backyard and I think I'm hooked. No noise, no more numb hands and no more grass spray from the weed-eater.

I got my snath today--didn't need the whole kit. It got here a few days before I was expecting it. Really well made, feels good in the hands. Gave it a nice coat of protective oil, can't wait to give it a go. I can already tell I won't have the sore hands and wrists I kept getting from my other, less ergonomic snath. Thank you for carrying this product!

Really nice kit with everything you need to get started mowing by hand. This design works really well and was fairly easy to learn to use. The wood was unfinished, so I put on 3 or 4 coats of boiled linseed oil before I put it together. Works great!