Help on axe hang (first attempt fail) and handle selection

T

tommytman

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Aug 12, 2019
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I have an older craftsman single bit head that I picked up. I cleaned it up and put a hair popping edge on it. It needed a handle.
I picked up a Truper handle at the local store to try it out. I got the handle to fit with a file and rasp and trial and error and that went fine. That's when I had a problem.

I wanted to haft the head proud but could not as the haft did not have enough height to it above the shoulder. I could tell right away that the wedges I have (i have link wood wedges, beaver wood wedges) would probably not be able to displace the wood of the handle enough to fill the eye. At that point I was committed anyways. I drove the wedge in as far as it would go and the wood was not displaced enough. I then used a circular metal wedge and a flat metal wedge to help displace more wood to fill the eye. I cut some wood and the head seems on there but it is a poor job.

Where can I get a better handle that will have more height above the shoulder so I can try to haft this axe proud and have a better chance of filling the eye? Do I need a wider wedge?

Or am I missing something?
 
I kinda stinks. There was a taper on the top of the handle eye from the factory, I assume to ease initial insertion to the head. This taper did not stand proud once hated and was inside the eye making the fit extra troublesome
 
Yeah you're pretty much stuck ordering a handle if you can't find a House Handle or Link handle in your area. Not saying they'll be amazing, just that they are often locally available around the US and better than what you got. Although, if your situation is like mine you'll be stuck with a 36" handle and have to order them anyway. Sometimes you can fudge a boys axe handle to fit a full size but a lot of times not so much. Council Tool sells replacement handles and the Owens replacements sold by Lamaca look to me to be about the best available. But I know there are others, I just can't come up with the names off hand.

Without pictures I'm just spit balling here but if you're out of shoulder to lower the head, and you still don't have wood at the top of the eye, you are at an impasse I'm afraid. I have in the past, sanded a flat on the rear of the tongue and glued a chunk of wood onto it in order to enlarge the tongue. It's probably not a bad idea, it's just not ideal.
 
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