Favorite handle manufacturor?

[Square_peg]

So you are not just thinning the sides, but the whole circumference?

Mostly from the sides. I octagonalize them so I'm taking a little off the top & bottom, too.

 

[killa_concept]

..They're like a damned bat as they come from the factory. I bet I remove close to 20% of the total mass when I reshape one.

This has been my experience with their full sized handles as well. Their boy's axes tend to be the right thickness for me. The other day I actually hung a 3.5lb HB double bit on one of their 36"ers and the stock was so thick that I was able to knock the shoulder down 3-4” and make it a 32.5”er overall. Also probably took off a third of the thickness when reshaping and octagonizing. But if you have the time, tools and patience, TH has great handles with awesome grain and plenty of stock to make customization a forgiving venture.

As for HH, they're pretty solid as well with much more ready-to-hang handles with proper thickness. I do have two gripes with them though. The first is their smaller selection.. their full sized handles jump from 28" up to 36" for straights and from 30" up to 36" for curved. I feel like this is a very popular length range and they're simply not accommodating the need. Secondly, I feel like whoever is providing the extra features does not know what "Octo" means. Their interpretation seemed to be "give it flat faces. Whether that's 8 or 11, it doesn't really matter". For some of my handles, it wasn't that bad. But for others, there were 11 or so sides with a 45 degree face on one side of the centerline and a 20 degree on the other. If you use the faces to get an idea of where the bit is mid-swing like I do (what I consider the main benefit of octagonzing a handle) this can really throw you off unless fixed. The next time I need handles, I probably won't pay the premium for a half-assed octagonizing..

 

[sywagon]

This has been my experience with their full sized handles as well. Their boy's axes tend to be the right thickness for me. The other day I actually hung a 3.5lb HB double bit on one of their 36"ers and the stock was so thick that I was able to knock the shoulder down 3-4” and make it a 32.5”er overall. Also probably took off a third of the thickness when reshaping and octagonizing. But if you have the time, tools and patience, TH has great handles with awesome grain and plenty of stock to make customization a forgiving venture.

As for HH, they're pretty solid as well with much more ready-to-hang handles with proper thickness. I do have two gripes with them though. The first is their smaller selection.. their full sized handles jump from 28" up to 36" for straights and from 30" up to 36" for curved. I feel like this is a very popular length range and they're simply not accommodating the need. Secondly, I feel like whoever is providing the extra features does not know what "Octo" means. Their interpretation seemed to be "give it flat faces. Whether that's 8 or 11, it doesn't really matter". For some of my handles, it wasn't that bad. But for others, there were 11 or so sides with a 45 degree face on one side of the centerline and a 20 degree on the other. If you use the faces to get an idea of where the bit is mid-swing like I do (what I consider the main benefit of octagonzing a handle) this can really throw you off unless fixed. The next time I need handles, I probably won't pay the premium for a half-assed octagonizing..

They will make 32" curved for you if you ask. I do wish their were other sizes in that range, and shorter boy's handles and longer hatchet handles.

I think I would do the octagonalizing myself in the future (now that I have spokeshaves).

 

[bearhunter]

Here are a few handles I got from House. 3 32" octagon and I 30" full size eye DB...

 

[cooperhill]

I choose Tennessee Hickory as they seem to have the best quality axes. HHS and J Hollywood edge (both sellers of TH) 32" racing axe handle is a favorite. Lots of work to get it down to size but worth it in the end. Pictured in the first photo on the top.







My handle maker of choice is local to NH and Maine. They are ash handles are very nice.

 

[chuxwan]

Didn't vote, I'd rather make my own. Handles like OPLink will have to be modified anyway. Gransfors makes a nice handle but I'd like to have more hoof at the bottom. The only handles I've seen online that look right are the best made handles, but I've never handled one so I can't comment on it.

 

[filedog]

Didn't vote, I'd rather make my own. Handles like OPLink will have to be modified anyway. Gransfors makes a nice handle but I'd like to have more hoof at the bottom. The only handles I've seen online that look right are the best made handles, but I've never handled one so I can't comment on it.

I'd like to try making on from scratch, my carving skills are returning/improving, but where do you get your wood,
harvest it yourself?

 

[filedog]

This has been my experience with their full sized handles as well. Their boy's axes tend to be the right thickness for me. The other day I actually hung a 3.5lb HB double bit on one of their 36"ers and the stock was so thick that I was able to knock the shoulder down 3-4” and make it a 32.5”er overall. Also probably took off a third of the thickness when reshaping and octagonizing. But if you have the time, tools and patience, TH has great handles with awesome grain and plenty of stock to make customization a forgiving venture.

As for HH, they're pretty solid as well with much more ready-to-hang handles with proper thickness. I do have two gripes with them though. The first is their smaller selection.. their full sized handles jump from 28" up to 36" for straights and from 30" up to 36" for curved. I feel like this is a very popular length range and they're simply not accommodating the need. Secondly, I feel like whoever is providing the extra features does not know what "Octo" means. Their interpretation seemed to be "give it flat faces. Whether that's 8 or 11, it doesn't really matter". For some of my handles, it wasn't that bad. But for others, there were 11 or so sides with a 45 degree face on one side of the centerline and a 20 degree on the other. If you use the faces to get an idea of where the bit is mid-swing like I do (what I consider the main benefit of octagonzing a handle) this can really throw you off unless fixed. The next time I need handles, I probably won't pay the premium for a half-assed octagonizing..

That's crazy, 11 sides yipes! Have any of you guys spoke to them, and offered helpful suggestions? : )
They have nothing in the 20" "small forest axe" range, if they were to offer one, it would sell well.
I have considered trying to talk to someone there to suggest it.

 

[filedog]

Lots of great pics, thanks guys!

 

[killa_concept]

They will make 32" curved for you if you ask. I do wish their were other sizes in that range, and shorter boy's handles and longer hatchet handles.

I think I would do the octagonalizing myself in the future (now that I have spokeshaves).

I asked them for a few 32" straights when I ordered a few months back, but I got a very brusque answer essentially saying "no" and that my options were between 28" and 36". It was roughly during the time a member on here was complaining about a 5+ week turnaround time for some 32"ers he ordered. I'm under the impression that they do in fact take custom orders, but you might run into delays depending on how big a backstock of orders they're working on...

That said, my issue is not with their special orders - it's that they don't have 32" as a set piece of their product line, being offered in their catalog, with some already made and set aside like the other handles they offer. When it comes to full sized SBs, I'd say it's probably the most popular overall length so it just perplexes me why they wouldn't include it

That's crazy, 11 sides yipes! Have any of you guys spoke to them, and offered helpful suggestions? : )
They have nothing in the 20" "small forest axe" range, if they were to offer one, it would sell well.
I have considered trying to talk to someone there to suggest it.

They do. Item 1419 on the first page of their product catalog is 19" OAL (same as the GB SFA) and fitted for a boy's axe head (13/16" x 2 7/16"). My GB SFA has an eye of 7/8" x 2 1/4", so the handle would need to be shaped down to fit.. but stock removal is certainly easier than stock addition.

 

[killa_concept]

Oh and here's what I meant since everyone else seems to be posting pictures in this thread. Probably the worst offender of what I was saying about House Handle's octogonizing. A 30" curved handle that I used for my 3.5 lb Bluegrass Jersey. It doesn't actually impact my swing and overall accuracy, but I really can't use the "feel" of the faces to know exactly where the bit is in relation to the handle as I'm swinging. Somewhat hard to explain. Still, my main issue is that I paid a premium for a half-assed job...

 

[filedog]

Oh and here's what I meant since everyone else seems to be posting pictures in this thread. Probably the worst offender of what I was saying about House Handle's octogonizing. A 30" curved handle that I used for my 3.5 lb Bluegrass Jersey. It doesn't actually impact my swing and overall accuracy, but I really can't use the "feel" of the faces to know exactly where the bit is in relation to the handle as I'm swinging. Somewhat hard to explain. Still, my main issue is that I paid a premium for a half-assed job...

I see what you mean, especially since some of the faces seem pretty thin, you wonder why they were done at all.

 

[garry3]

My take on House octagon handles is it costs me an extra buck for them to get the handle closer to were it should be and will be when I am done with it. Don't like octagon just nock the corners off and you are back to round in no time.

 

[chuxwan]

I'd like to try making on from scratch, my carving skills are returning/improving, but where do you get your wood,
harvest it yourself?

I've tried a couple harvested pieces but I jacked the last one up (a perfect piece of hornbeam by not not sealing the ends earlier). My most recent handle is a piece of ipe a friend had in his scrap bin. It was a little bit of a pain to work but turned out real well. I can try and get pics in a week or so since I lent it to my dad.

I like a bit of octagonal facing so I cut the basic profile with a bandsaw first, plane the sides to a thickness I like, then drawknife the corners to where it feels good. After that I sand sand sand until somewhere between octagonal and round.

 

[filedog]

Well, house handle is winning "handily" so far. Great responses, thanks everybody!