Best wood(s) for 'hawk handle?

Apothecary

Apothecary

Joined
Oct 28, 2000
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Which types of wood make the best hawk handles and why?

Factors to consider are availability, workability, and durability.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge,

Harry
 
Hickory, Ash, and Osage Orange all make good handle materials. I don't know if anyone has ever had any experience with Dogwood, but I used to work on a sawmill, and we used Dogwood handles on cant poles sometimes. Of course, if you don't live where it grows wild you probably couldn't get any of it. Back in the Ozarks, it grows everywhere.
 
:
IIRC Walosi had some information about which was the strongest woods.
Or it may have been on the Combat Cane Forum.
Anyway there was a chart that showed which woods were the absolute strongest and I was pretty amazed that the combat grade of hickory heart came in on top!!!!
I thought sure it would have been
Bois D'Arc or one of the exotics such as the Filipino Escrima Sticks are made from.
 
How about maple? I see a lot of guys like to use this for the presentatoin grade hawks. Is it strong enough to use on a regular basis? It sure is beautiful.
 
What are Maul handles? I assume it is a brand; what type of wood do they use?
 
Traditionally, hawk handles were made from hickory, ash, and maple. I would imagine that bois d'arc (Osage orange) also got used as it is a pretty durable wood.
Hickory is the preferred material for working hawks. It is a very strong reasonably straight-grained wood with good resistance to breakage. It was also the favorite material for rifle ramrods.
Ash also works but is not as good. Curly maple is a beautiful wood and makes a very pretty handle but it is a bit too soft for working hawks. I reserve it for "fancy" stuff that will be displayed more than used. Rock maple, however, would probably make a very durable handle though I haven't had an opportunity to try it.
Try to get the straightest-grained close-grain hickory you can. A good source of commercial handle blanks is Dave Mantz at Big Horn Trade Co. (bighorn@chesco.com). He sells Amish-made handles from Pennsylvania in hickory and curly maple in several sizes.
Hope this information is of use to you.
TWO HAWKS
http://www.2hawks.net
 
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