Making a hammer handle

[bugbear]

Lots of good and interesting stuff; I'll pick out my favourites.

Cool - bow saws where the stretcher meets the arms in a bridle joint, not the usual (in GB) mortice and tenon. this would allow the upright to NOT be weakened by a mortice at the point of maximum stress.

Unlike almost all Finnish axes, this one was fitted with two hooks keeping the head on place. They were fitted just as fitting the axe head, with colour. Only that I used red felt-tip pen to colour the hooks, soot would have dirtied the whole handle.

Aah; in the UK those are called "straps". They're normally integral to the head, like in this hammer:

http://www.wdynamic.com/galoots/4images ... ge_id=2831

I've seen protective "straps" used on miners picks, but they're solely to prevent the handle being bashed, not to help the security of the head on the handle.

I've never seen separate straps like those in your picture.

BugBear

 

[Bernhard]

Ahh! "Heartwood" and "sapwood".

Heartwood is the centre, sapwood the outside.

BugBear

Thank you BB, another lesson for me to remember that translation 1 by 1 is not neccessarily right. Sorry for causing confusion.

 

[dedee]

Pekka,
Interesting read, thanks.

On the subject of timber/tree orientation. In Tim Severin's book The Brendan Voyage a recreation of the type of craft that Brendan used to cross the Atlantic used a mast that was chosen from a tree growing on the specific side of a forest and would therefore guarantee that the rings were more pronounced on one side and would cope well with the tension in the mast when under sail. Can't remember the details though #-o

Andy

 

[Pekka Huhta]

Lots of good and interesting stuff; I'll pick out my favourites.

Cool - bow saws where the stretcher meets the arms in a bridle joint, not the usual (in GB) mortice and tenon. this would allow the upright to NOT be weakened by a mortice at the point of maximum stress.

It's actually not a bridle joint (as I understand it), the whole arm is going through the stretcher in a loose mortise. And if you look carefully, one of the arms is already broken. I have about a dozen of these saws with different blades and half of them are cracked as the arms are about ½" thick. There is only a small thicker part on the low end of the arms to fit the handles.

Theoretically a good solution, but not ideal. Could be improved a lot. I have looked at both local saws and UK models and I have to make a combination of both some day. Was this the "tuit" thing?

Pekka

 

[Alf]

Was this the "tuit" thing?

That's the one

Well I see now my choice of a squared off, kiln-dried bit of ash is to your handle making what a ready-made handle was to mine! I hang my head in shame and guiltily wonder where my axe is.

Cheers, Alf

 

[Pekka Huhta]

Well Alf, you of all the people should know that making anything of wood is just up to "taking off the bits that don't look like a hammer handle". I remember them as your own words I was just stupid enough to take the next biggest lump of wood to start with.

I really hope that hanging your head in shame was a good joke, because what I've read of your work is really something not even found on these corners of the world. So really my intention was only to hang around on the subject instead of making a big number of meself

Starting from bigger bits is just taking the next step towards the forest. First is to get whatever wood is offered at a hardware store, next is splitting it up to proper widhts, then being able to start from whatever thickness or width, then going for the logs and trunks and finally going to the forest yourself to cut the tree. Each step may raise some 'wows' and 'oohs', but after having the step yourself it isn't such a big deal. As in just about everything.

We chopped down a 2ft diameter birch and a few apple trees from our garden and I had tons of fun with that wood. Most of it being just sitting beside the fireplace with a book, but there were all kinds of things I made out of that wood as well, including the axe handles.

...And I thought I was being old scrooge for not buying any wood but scraping everything together from firewood

Pekka

 

[Alf]

Gotta admit, there's nothing quite so satisfying as taking a piece of intended firewood and making something useful out of it apart from heat. Makes up for all the times I've taken a piece of board and turned it into firewood I suppose...

Anyway, I've stopped hanging my head in shame now. I just remembered the ash was free. :wink:

Cheers, Alf

 

[bugbear]

Ahh! "Heartwood" and "sapwood".

Heartwood is the centre, sapwood the outside.

BugBear

Thank you BB, another lesson for me to remember that translation 1 by 1 is not neccessarily right. Sorry for causing confusion.

Interestingly this site:

http://www.woodworking.de/woerterbuch/woerterbuch-ed

has heartwood == Kernholz
and sapwood == Splintholz

BugBear