Hewing Hatchet Handled... and Rehandled
#7
You folks will appreciate this little hand tool saga. 
Big Grin

So I have this hewing hatchet, which I use quite a lot when I'm cutting up logs to saw up into boards on the bandsaw.  (Got to have a relatively flat face to sit on the bandsaw table, after all.)  

[Image: 46375114291_f91043c72a.jpg]

It's a nice tool and takes a keen edge. 

When I got it some years ago, it had a short handle, and it was mounted on the handle such that the bevel was on the wrong side for the work I was going to use it for.  

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Here it is next to the original handle--for comparison.  I made the new handle you see above, and I used it for a few years.  It was the right length, but the more I used it, the more I realized I had shaved it too thin.  My hand cramped every time I used it for more than a few minutes.

This winter, I decided it was time to redo my old work and make a new, thicker handle for this hatchet.   

I selected what I thought was a very nice piece of pecan--straight grained and bone dry.  

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I meticulously laid out the handle shape, planed the blank to thickness, and started shaping the contours with a spokeshave.  I worked slowly and meticulously, trying to get everything shaped just right for my hand.  

As I was shaping the part that goes into the head (there's probably a technical term for it--one of you can enlighten me), I thought the wood was shaving off a little too easily for pecan.  Oh well, I thought, I may as well get the handle fitted since I've come this far.  

I was nearly through driving the head home when this happened: 

[Image: 46375079231_25eb753ae7.jpg]

Yep, the handle broke right off!  
Mad

I'm not sure what went wrong, but this piece of pecan turned out to be too brittle for this application.  I don't know if it has anything to do with the fact that the growth rings are so close together, or perhaps it just stayed wet a little too long before drying out.  In any event, I had to start over (on handle #3).  

Back to the wood pile.  I found a straight piece of pecan from a different tree.  

I worked faster this time, since I already had a good idea of how I wanted the handle to feel in my hand.  It still took me another hour or so before the handle was exactly as I wanted it.  

I started to tap the handle into the new head when I realized that I was putting it on upside down!  

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I drove the head back off the handle in disgust. 
Upset


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Ah, well, I found a spot where I could shave it down a little more in order to make the head go on a little more easily.  

So ONCE MORE I tapped the head on.

And this time, everything went together properly. Finally!

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A little Danish oil to bring out the color and give a bit of protection from moisture, and this hatchet is ready for some cutting action.
Steve S.
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Tradition cannot be inherited, and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour.
- T. S. Eliot

Tutorials and Build-Alongs at The Literary Workshop
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#8
Ah, so the third time was a charm. Looks good.

Did you use a wedge on the top end? If so wood or metal wedge?
Steve

Mo.



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#9
I feel somewhat better now...   This past summer I re-hafted a hatchet, and I also put the head on upside-down
Sad
In my case, it will have to stay that way!   Will pursue another one another time
Smile

Chris
Chris
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#10
BTDT in slightly different circumstances............................ Good job on the handle.
Credo Elvem ipsum etiam vivere
Non impediti ratione cogitationis
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#11
Stwood: Both, actually. After the wooden wedge was in, there was s slight gap on each side, so I put in a metal wedge to finally secure everything.
Steve S.
------------------------------------------------------
Tradition cannot be inherited, and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour.
- T. S. Eliot

Tutorials and Build-Alongs at The Literary Workshop
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#12
(12-19-2018, 01:43 PM)Bibliophile 13 Wrote: Stwood: Both, actually. After the wooden wedge was in, there was s slight gap on each side, so I put in a metal wedge to finally secure everything.

Good thing you did not put the head on the wrong side like a carving hatchet with only one side.
As of this time I am not teaching vets to turn. Also please do not send any items to me without prior notification.  Thank You Everyone.

It is always the right time, to do the right thing.
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