House Handle, love hate (mostly love but....)

the possum said:
If you're going to start out with a log, why not start out with a better wood than Ash? I know, I know, it's probably adequate for what you're using it on, but if I was gonna spend all that time and effort, I'd want to make sure I started out with something higher grade.
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I like ash. I work hickory handles all the time.
 
Yeah, I'm kinda curious what the asserted "higher grade" would be. If I could find arrow straight Ash that was otherwise identical to the heart wood Ash that I used on my last handful of projects, I would be happy as can be.
 
So this is my latest, and likely last order from House Handle. After my last order and seeing what crap their FH axe handles are (I still think the FH hammer handles are very good), I tried one last time and ordered AA handles with no lacquer and paid extra for hand selection on the 32" handle. This represents $60 shipped for 7 handles (the hatchet handle was a free replacement). Knowing about my last order and already having to replace things, it blows my mind what happened here. The hammer handles are good as usual, as is the replacement hatchet handle. The 30" curved axe handle is good, as is one of the (STUPID THICK) 28" straight handles. BUT, one of the 28" AA straight handles is loaded with cracks from top to bottom. This was ordered with no lacquer, which means that someone actively had this in hand, worked it, saw all these cracks and still put it in the box. Worst, the 32" AA handle, which I also paid the hand selection fee for, has fungus spalting. Based on these two major flaws on handles that required extra scrutiny, combined with the fact that they know how bad my last order was, I can draw no other conclusion that they literally don't care and will put zero effort into any kind of quality control. I've already given them more chances than is reasonable. I may still order hammer handles as those have been consistently good and well priced, but for the big stuff I'm probably done. I feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football with these guys.




 
JB, they're cracks and spalting when you are buying.

Character when selling :)
 
Wow...those really are garbage, aren't they. Really surprised to see that! :eek:
 
I don't know how much business HH gets from us (probably peanuts in the overall scheme of things) but it does hurt PR when keen folks that are learned and serious about tool handles, and are members of an international forum, stop recommending them outright.
 
No kidding, 300Six.

I'm at actually looking to see if there are any hickory handle makers that ship to Australia. I've emailed Beaver Tooth, and was going to email House, but now I don't think I'll bother. Really doesn't seem worth it.
 
tandanus said:
No kidding, 300Six.

I'm at actually looking to see if there are any hickory handle makers that ship to Australia. I've emailed Beaver Tooth, and was going to email House, but now I don't think I'll bother. Really doesn't seem worth it.
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Square_Peg speaks highly of Tennessee Hickory Products. Now it could be a forum member such as Quinton could be enlisted to supply air-dried hand-picked staves for those brave enough to try whittling their own. When you start with a perfect piece of riven wood likely as not you will be creating and enjoying a lifetime haft.
 
tandanus said:
No kidding, 300Six.

I'm at actually looking to see if there are any hickory handle makers that ship to Australia. I've emailed Beaver Tooth, and was going to email House, but now I don't think I'll bother. Really doesn't seem worth it.
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300Six said:
Square_Peg speaks highly of Tennessee Hickory Products.
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Beaver Tooth is the retail outlet for Tennessee Hickory Products. I was reshaping one of their DB hafts today. They come way too fat but the wood is absolutely first rate 2nd growth white hickory. I'm fortunate to have two local suppliers whose stock I can pick through.
 
Square_peg said:
Beaver Tooth is the retail outlet for Tennessee Hickory Products. I was reshaping one of their DB hafts today. They come way too fat but the wood is absolutely first rate 2nd growth white hickory. I'm fortunate to have two local suppliers whose stock I can pick through.
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That is the real secret to getting good wood! In years past I had the manager of the local hardware store alert me when their annual shipment of handles came in. That way I got to poke through a couple of dozen each of all the sizes and physically be able to choose 'cream of the crop'. Even then there were times I'd come home with nothing.

If we had an insider at HH who stock-picked on our behalf that would help immensely. Choosing a good handle is not rocket science but does involve inspecting dozens of them and when it comes to AA select (or whatever term we want to use) it probably means rifling through a hundred 'sticks'.
 
300Six said:
If we had an insider at HH who stock-picked on our behalf that would help immensely.
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Right, like if there was someone there, that for a couple of bucks would sort through and hand select good handles whenever we wanted...oh wait. Damn.
 
JB, this is just a random thought, if the AA, hand picked and and no lacquer are in limited supply maybe this is what is available to pick from but could it be that the AA lacquered and hand picked would have a bigger selection to choose from.
Like you said that the hammer handles are ok maybe thats thats the reason.

Rick
 
RICKOFF said:
JB, this is just a random thought, if the AA, hand picked and and no lacquer are in limited supply maybe this is what is available to pick from but could it be that the AA lacquered and hand picked would have a bigger selection to choose from.
Like you said that the hammer handles are ok maybe thats thats the reason.

Rick
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That's a good thought, but they are all lacquered, they then remove it upon request.
 
jblyttle said:
That's a good thought, but they are all lacquered, they then remove it upon request.
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What kills me is I see nice looking HH AA boys axe handles hanging in a local hardware store all the time. There is one hanging there right now that I have considered buying just in case anyone comes around needing one - a perfect piece of wood. And when I see a really nice piece of wood on a handle I'm not interested in, all I can ever think is, what a waste. If only I could have had the blank that started out as.
 
cityofthesouth said:
What kills me is I see nice looking HH AA boys axe handles hanging in a local hardware store all the time. There is one hanging there right now that I have considered buying just in case anyone comes around needing one - a perfect piece of wood. And when I see a really nice piece of wood on a handle I'm not interested in, all I can ever think is, what a waste. If only I could have had the blank that started out as.
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Love affair with wood is difficult for a layman or novice to comprehend but fondness and deep appreciation of wood properties improves with experience. Even furniture makers are known to look beyond it's attractiveness. A severe runout table leg won't hold up and no self-respecting gun stock maker will outfit a big game hand cannon with a lousy-grained piece of wood in the grip either.
 
jblyttle said:
That's a good thought, but they are all lacquered, they then remove it upon request.
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I'm knot so sure about the removing it afterwards the un-lacquered ones I have received don't appear to have been, takes me longer to remove the finish on the Loews hafts I've picking up than the 50 cents they charge.
 
RICKOFF said:
I'm knot so sure about the removing it afterwards the un-lacquered ones I have received don't appear to have been, takes me longer to remove the finish on the Loews hafts I've picking up than the 50 cents they charge.
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All of the ones I have requested no lacquer have been sanded and lacquer remnants are visible. Also, I have heard this confirmed by other members. Anyway, I usually don't bother with the 50 cent expense because the handles are so fat I have to rasp them anyway, so it's no extra work.
 
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