- Joined
- Dec 5, 2005
- Messages
- 28,064
This hammer head weighs about 3.5lbs and is from the smithy and great mind of Jake James. It came to me, along with 3 sets of tongs, a few months ago when it was just tongs that I needed for my oven. The head was a surprise bonus.
The handle was just completed today, (more or less) and is made from local yew, orange G10 and lignum vitae, with a purpleheart wedge. It has about two applications of linseed oil and I expect several more will be applied. The yew came from a couple local lads who had it for years and kept it nice and dry, and has been with me for probably four years.
The yew on its own felt like it would be just a little bit short, and once I had the tenon carved and the head attached, it also felt too front heavy. I know, it's a hammer- but... balance is everything in life- and in tools.
The lignum vitae was left over from the very first knife I ever made, (there's a thread around here somewhere- it was a WiP) and it's a nice heavy wood, so that plus some steel hardware did a lot to make this hammer feel less sketchy. You might have noticed that I used part sapwood- the reason for that is the contrast the provides a visual index for each hammer face.
As for the orange G10, I like the visual effect and think it might be helpful, it's really a template for the four 5mm threaded hidden pins that extend into the yew and the lignum vitae. There's a lot going on here to hold the butt to the handle, so I won't bore you with the details right now.
Jake has kindly accepted my request to learn some basic blacksmithing technique from him, and making this hammer feels kind of like a test of worthiness or something silly like that. I just hope it doesn't break, (not super confident about those knots...) Looking forward to learning some new things next month! My crystal ball keeps showing me swords and all sorts of crazy shit, so I think this hammer will take me places
If you have a custom hammer, I'd love to see it, so please feel welcome to post em!
The handle was just completed today, (more or less) and is made from local yew, orange G10 and lignum vitae, with a purpleheart wedge. It has about two applications of linseed oil and I expect several more will be applied. The yew came from a couple local lads who had it for years and kept it nice and dry, and has been with me for probably four years.
The yew on its own felt like it would be just a little bit short, and once I had the tenon carved and the head attached, it also felt too front heavy. I know, it's a hammer- but... balance is everything in life- and in tools.
The lignum vitae was left over from the very first knife I ever made, (there's a thread around here somewhere- it was a WiP) and it's a nice heavy wood, so that plus some steel hardware did a lot to make this hammer feel less sketchy. You might have noticed that I used part sapwood- the reason for that is the contrast the provides a visual index for each hammer face.
As for the orange G10, I like the visual effect and think it might be helpful, it's really a template for the four 5mm threaded hidden pins that extend into the yew and the lignum vitae. There's a lot going on here to hold the butt to the handle, so I won't bore you with the details right now.
Jake has kindly accepted my request to learn some basic blacksmithing technique from him, and making this hammer feels kind of like a test of worthiness or something silly like that. I just hope it doesn't break, (not super confident about those knots...) Looking forward to learning some new things next month! My crystal ball keeps showing me swords and all sorts of crazy shit, so I think this hammer will take me places
If you have a custom hammer, I'd love to see it, so please feel welcome to post em!
