How to re-handle an Axe

[jbett98]

You need a metric size replacement handle.

 

[mjbskwim]

And a metric wedge?

 

[jbett98]

Of course, any other size won't fit.

 

[01rednavigator]

I found an old an axe in my Grandpa's shed last year, the handle was broken off and just the piece of would was left in the hole, I hammered and chiseled the heck out of it to get it out. I got most of it out but their was one good sized chunk that did not want to come out so I had to torch it out!

I sharpened it real good and put a new wood handle on it, the hand was new but it was an older handle that my Grandpa had and never used so it was not finished or anything. I stained it with a with a Minwax cherry color, it almost looks like a Winchester 94 stock and then I gave it several coats of Helmsman spar urethane.

I also painted the head of the axe with some rustoleum silver hammered finish, kinda looks like the tin mans axe with a wooden handle, I know the paint will wear off but it looks cool.

It is the best axe I have ever had, it cuts through wood like butter!

 

[Sabertooth]

Bucket of antifreeze. 2 inch's above the head. leave it for 7 days. Boiled linseed oil, heated, needs to soak for several hours.
Splitting maul 6 pounder is about right.
Polanski, Double bit, timber falling and bucking, Adz, looks like a heavy duty hoe, good for taking your toes off, Broad Axe, Scoring Axe, hewing axe, left and right side.
Short list of axes.

 

[BoonDocks36]

Did you warm up the oil, or just do it cold? Soaking seems challenging considering tye size of a axe handle.

sorry for delay in replying, was caught up in work, and then relaxed with a movie or three!!!

the linseed oil was in a One Gallon paint can, cold, and the hammer head rested on the bottom of the can for about a week.... the oil actually socked up to the end of the handle.... then I spent hours, it seems in my memory, (recall this is seven year old boy memory) trying to wipe the handle clean!!!

from 1957 it still is tight, lots of drying checks in the handle over the years, and I only pull small nails, but I will swing it at any Nail up to 16d

I don't need to use larger nails than that, and seldom that size... 10d nail, tacking stuff while the glue sets, etc.

But using that hammer brings me great joy, it has a perfect balance, and a very nice head design.

philip

 

[thorborg]

At one time, nearly everyplace sold axe handles. Now in this throwaway world only a few with the selection slim. Take your axe head with you, pick a 24 inch minimum length with an end that is close to (or larger)the inside shape of your head. Look for one with wood shims not metal or plastic, slight curve for single and straight for double bit with grain that follows the handle shape. Carefully reshape your end with a medium coarse bastard for a snug but removable fit keeping a sharp perpendicular shoulder for the head to sit on (if it applies) but taper the handle six inches back from the head with file and sand paper, spoke shave or block plain so no part of the handle is thicker than the head on the sides or it will eventually splinter off. Clean and degrease the head. I learned to re- handle tools with hide glue but now I use epoxy. Slather glue on your reworked axe handle end working some in the wedge cut. start your head on (facing the right direction) and tap the but of the axe on a hard surface until the head is firmly seated. coat the wedge with adhesive then hammer in the wedges and tap the axe but on the floor a couple more times. Wipe of excess epoxy especially off the head to handle area, (and your hammer) let it set. after curing, trim the wedge flush and file off adhesive. Set the axe by the stove to warm the handle, generously apply paste floor wax, or Hubbards boot grease with rubber base wipe, clean.
As far as splitting mauls go, screw old school, get yourself a rubber coated fiberglass handled bonded head thing from Home Depo or the like, and a good splitting wedge, your arms and hands will thank you many times over.

 

[BoonDocks36]

thorborg, I forgot all about my Epoxy re-handled framing hammer!!!!

Thanks for the memories...

My favorite is when I re-handled a Kleen Kutter shingling hatchet...

I was in location where you could find handles for old tools... Found a Perfectly Grained Hickory Handle, with Wooden wedges, carefully shaped to needed. I have packed that to a Mile high (Mt. Margeret) (sp) Washington, that was Labor Day Weekend 2001, was Rained on, hail, and then Snowed for the NIGHT. The only wood tool for fire, was that Kleen Kutter... And it did its job, WELL.

For camping, I carry that, plus a folding saw now... Lessons Learned!

But yes, Epoxy that Handle, if the METAL is really clean, and maybe even do some Dremeling with a grinder tip, to scratch the axe head for Epoxy to grab... !

philip

 

[Oregonhunter5]

At one time, nearly everyplace sold axe handles. Now in this throwaway world only a few with the selection slim. Take your axe head with you, pick a 24 inch minimum length with an end that is close to (or larger)the inside shape of your head. Look for one with wood shims not metal or plastic, slight curve for single and straight for double bit with grain that follows the handle shape. Carefully reshape your end with a medium coarse bastard for a snug but removable fit keeping a sharp perpendicular shoulder for the head to sit on (if it applies) but taper the handle six inches back from the head with file and sand paper, spoke shave or block plain so no part of the handle is thicker than the head on the sides or it will eventually splinter off. Clean and degrease the head. I learned to re- handle tools with hide glue but now I use epoxy. Slather glue on your reworked axe handle end working some in the wedge cut. start your head on (facing the right direction) and tap the but of the axe on a hard surface until the head is firmly seated. coat the wedge with adhesive then hammer in the wedges and tap the axe but on the floor a couple more times. Wipe of excess epoxy especially off the head to handle area, (and your hammer) let it set. after curing, trim the wedge flush and file off adhesive. Set the axe by the stove to warm the handle, generously apply paste floor wax, or Hubbards boot grease with rubber base wipe, clean.
As far as splitting mauls go, screw old school, get yourself a rubber coated fiberglass handled bonded head thing from Home Depo or the like, and a good splitting wedge, your arms and hands will thank you many times over.

Mr. Detail! Thanks.
So epoxy... Is that the stuff that drys clear and is hard as a rock? I found a handle that's wife enough, but front to back it's loose. Will epoxy full in that area good enough? And why does the inside of the head need cleaned so well? Will the epoxy not hold? You believe in linseed oil?

 

[BoonDocks36]

Mr. Detail! Thanks.
So epoxy... Is that the stuff that drys clear and is hard as a rock? I found a handle that's wife enough, but front to back it's loose. Will epoxy full in that area good enough? And why does the inside of the head need cleaned so well? Will the epoxy not hold? You believe in linseed oil?

Specifically, use JB Weld, Slow Set.
Yes, this will fill gaps!!!!
Also drag a saw sideways across wood, to ~Scar~ it, that, and engraved metal (just an orange or pink colored mineral wheel... Oxide whatever you have for your dremel, even a Diamond burr but Scratch that steel!!!

Mix that epoxy EQUAL PARTS, until it is even in color, No grey off color streaks!!!!

Have PVC electric tape ready to wrap the head, where any Epoxy can drip out, and try to have the Top part of the wood, Below the axe head!

Fill any wedge areas that are voided, shove Epoxy with the tip of your knife... Fill the head to the top of the rim, so Zero Wood shows, Or so All Wood is Covered, which is the same thing!!!!

If your Axe Handle Ever breaks, heat the Epoxy with a small flame from a Propane torch, the Epoxy will smell terrible, so Inhale Great Amounts, or not, depending on how crazy you are... (I use a Respirator, as I am certifiable, just ask Stomper)!!!!!

Enjoy your knew Axe,

And change your log on to DaAXEman!

philip

 

[thorborg]

Mr. Detail! Thanks.
So epoxy... Is that the stuff that drys clear and is hard as a rock? I found a handle that's wife enough, but front to back it's loose. Will epoxy full in that area good enough? And why does the inside of the head need cleaned so well? Will the epoxy not hold? You believe in linseed oil?

The short;
Rarely and sort of.
Maybe.
For best adhesion.
Not as well, to no.
I believe in God, Linseed oil is useful.

If you have time to kill.
I was taught A properly fit handle did not need glue to retain the head so was just used to seal it from moisture. That said, a properly fit head to a quality handle requires some expertise hard to come by if only done every decade or so using a good epoxy and its obvious beneficial attributes level the professional playing field.

Most epoxy's properly mixed are not brittle hard, that's good. Flex is good. If you want to fill gaps, plug the lower portion with clay as it will run out before the thixotropic action begins making it unlikely you will be able to refill the space. Color is not mechanically important.
Yes degrease for adhesion. Epoxy has too much viscosity to penetrate, take a white rag wetted with solvent, wipe it on the ax head, is it still white? That discoloration represents contaminants already stuck to the metal. Best most adhesive can do is stick to it, not the metal. It must be removed. Those contaminants are not good adhesives.
Mr. BoonDock36's suggestion to use JB Weld is an excellent choice and recommended for large gap filling albeit an over kill on a well fit handle for two reasons; it has a metal binder inhibiting access to extremely close fits voids and traps air more readily, plus you nearly need a machine shop to clean it up if you don't get to it before full cure.
Epoxy is not really a glue in the traditional sense of the word. When used with very tight close fitting joints, clamping can extrude it from the mating surfaces reducing its effectiveness. for well fit surfaces an epoxy without a binder is preferred. The epoxy does help "glue" the head to the handle, but more importantly it fills the voids, minimizing the chance of your enemy "moisture" from doing its expand and contract damage.
When the wood expands and has no where to go it compresses then shrinks when it dries causing the head to loosen. By installing a tightly and slightly compressed head to begin with then sealing it, you're minimizing the impact of moisture.
Linseed Oil is fine, I use it for a variety of applications mainly kitchen related . Wood cracking stems from the absorbing or expulsion of moisture too rapidly. The wood is made up of cells, in rough ballpark terms, some cell structures are open and can be forced dried in short time while others are more closed and can take years to dry without cracking. Hardwoods are typically closed cell. I like the floor paste wax or Hubbards since they both have a light solvent base which enables penetration on warm wood then the solvent quickly dissipates plus are fast in application.
Personally, use what ever protects the wood from moisture you have available, though I would avoid petro chemicals..
Whether linseed, carnauba, Thompson water seal, or bear fat, timely reapplication is required to maintain your tool. Though with bear fat you may find critters gnawing on your handle.
And no, I am unable to be succinct, verbose is what you get, and the older I get the worse it is.
Thor

 

[BoonDocks36]

Thor, I stood Under every word you wrote... Veracity you have! And a Vocabulary, to match!

Not all HardWoods are ~hard~ nor "solid", however, Hickory has been used as tool handles for eons ... Due to it being both of above!!!

An example of Not Solid yet Hard, is White Oak. Its cellular level is sort of tubular, so that you can actually "push" air through its body, say a 5, 6 inch length, blow on one end, you can feel the air coming out the other end, yet its Structural stronger than its cousins Red Oak Valley Oaks etc!!!

philip