House Handle buying experience

FortyTwoBlades said:
No I mean for driving the wedge etc. Just makes life easier.
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I do much like you suggested. And the flat part of the handle is great for driveing the head on. I get it started, then turn it upside down and just beat the crap out of it. Fawns foot is last. Just like you said.
 
That's exactly what I do also. Usually no problem but I have chipped off part of the foot before from slamming the head on. Makes sense to have extra material if you can.
 
Hello everyone! First post here on Bladeforums! I just wanted to weigh in on this conversation since I have some experience and a little inside information on the topic.

I order from House Handle somewhat regularly, as I restore old axe heads for collecting and selling. I haven't had too many issues with what they send, except for the consistency of thickness and shape on different handles. I do know, however that these small orders (my last one was 12 and that is still small) only make up about 10% or less of HH's primary business. They sell to retailers around the country in gross. In addition to the fact that we small timers are not providing a huge amount of business for them, we also have extra requests that take time and money to process.

All of their handles are done on copy lathes (I will post a video link at the end for anyone who would like to see how they do it.) which makes a relatively uniform product every time, but it is far from perfect. Then they do a lacquer dip on all the handles because lacquered finish keeps the handles cleaner looking in transit and while they are sitting on the store shelves after a bunch of grubby hands have picked them up and put them back down a hundred times.

Finally, the speed of processing an order depends greatly on what type of handle you purchase. When you pay the extra $2 for "hand-picked" quality, they don't just grab whatever looks ok on the rack and throw it in a box. They wait for the good ones and if they are running low at the moment, it could take a couple of days before they can find the best picks. It's kind of the way the 2x4 stack at the lumber yard operates. When there are only 15 boards left on the stack, you aren't likely to find much good stuff right away. And I can only imagine that they have an account with UPS or USPS, so small boxes cost them more individually than the large bulk orders they send out. I've never been too thrilled with their shipping costs, but I'm still getting better handles than if I went to any hardware store nearby.

Now, I'm not entirely defending them here. 10% of your business is important to keep and make happy. But if you have a problem and you call and talk to them, I've seen many cases where they just send a replacement handle, no questions asked. Of the folks I've seen order and get something they are dissatisfied with, I've only seen one who had trouble getting the problem fixed. They aren't a massive company and so the website is only as good as it needs to be. Calling is always a better option. I've never been disappointed with their customer service and most of the handles I've ordered have been excellent.

Here is a video of their copy lathe in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB8pKR2Nnb4
 
urbanaxeandfarm said:
I do know, however that these small orders (my last one was 12 and that is still small) only make up about 10% or less of HH's primary business. They sell to retailers around the country in gross. In addition to the fact that we small timers are not providing a huge amount of business for them, we also have extra requests that take time and money to process.
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I posted earlier on that this is what I had suspected was the case. I think we forget sometimes what we are working with are tool handles and not fine finish carpentry. I see the handles I get from them as a replacement for doing them myself and that they come with enough extra-stock to be able to tweak them and get them just so. I'd like to check out what kind of stuff you do if you get a chance it would be great if you posted pics are a link.
 
urbanaxeandfarm said:
Hello everyone! First post here on Bladeforums! I just wanted to weigh in on this conversation since I have some experience and a little inside information on the topic.

I order from House Handle somewhat regularly, as I restore old axe heads for collecting and selling. I haven't had too many issues with what they send, except for the consistency of thickness and shape on different handles. I do know, however that these small orders (my last one was 12 and that is still small) only make up about 10% or less of HH's primary business. They sell to retailers around the country in gross. In addition to the fact that we small timers are not providing a huge amount of business for them, we also have extra requests that take time and money to process.

All of their handles are done on copy lathes (I will post a video link at the end for anyone who would like to see how they do it.) which makes a relatively uniform product every time, but it is far from perfect. Then they do a lacquer dip on all the handles because lacquered finish keeps the handles cleaner looking in transit and while they are sitting on the store shelves after a bunch of grubby hands have picked them up and put them back down a hundred times.

Finally, the speed of processing an order depends greatly on what type of handle you purchase. When you pay the extra $2 for "hand-picked" quality, they don't just grab whatever looks ok on the rack and throw it in a box. They wait for the good ones and if they are running low at the moment, it could take a couple of days before they can find the best picks. It's kind of the way the 2x4 stack at the lumber yard operates. When there are only 15 boards left on the stack, you aren't likely to find much good stuff right away. And I can only imagine that they have an account with UPS or USPS, so small boxes cost them more individually than the large bulk orders they send out. I've never been too thrilled with their shipping costs, but I'm still getting better handles than if I went to any hardware store nearby.

Now, I'm not entirely defending them here. 10% of your business is important to keep and make happy. But if you have a problem and you call and talk to them, I've seen many cases where they just send a replacement handle, no questions asked. Of the folks I've seen order and get something they are dissatisfied with, I've only seen one who had trouble getting the problem fixed. They aren't a massive company and so the website is only as good as it needs to be. Calling is always a better option. I've never been disappointed with their customer service and most of the handles I've ordered have been excellent.

Here is a video of their copy lathe in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB8pKR2Nnb4
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That is excellent, valuable info. I certainly am going to give them a chance on that house axe handle.

I think that in the future, I will order from them if I need a few handles, or if I need a specialty handle that the stores don't carry. They certainly do have selection. However, if I just need one handle and it's a common type, I've looked at my local Home Depot and never had a problem being able to find a good quality 36" Link handle for $14-16. for one or two handles I think this is probably cheaper. If only they carried 28" straight handles for 3.5lb heads or 20" handles for 2.25lb heads or even a regular old boy's axe handle! ;D Actually, around here HD doesn't even carry replacement hammer handles or even regular old hatchet handles.
 
chuxwan said:
I simply cannot understand the shape of the swell on those handles, it is completely unusable and wastes the last 2" of the handle.
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I think they go too thin with their octagoning. The crick they put in the haft at the turn to the swell is a little much. The widening into the swell should be more abrupt, not so gradual.
 



Things are getting worse. What looked good at first doesn't look good at all after lining up an axe head on the boy's handle. Once the head is lines up you can see an obvious tilt that has the blade way off center from the handle. In reality, it looks much worse in person than in the pics. The head is not fully seated, just starting to seat up high. This is a AA hand picked handle, I'm very discouraged.
 
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That really looks like the head is off not the handle.... take more wood off the side it leans towards while fitting it. That is operator error not the handle
 
I know that its tough to see when you don't have the handle in person, but its not me. I just lined up the head, have not seated it yet. The eye and the wood are symmetrical and a close match. When they are aligned properly, the head aims the wrong way. Its obvious in person. I've sent pics to House Handle, will see what they suggest. I'm willing to work it, but worried that if I take off enough to straighten it, there won't be enough left for a snug fit. I'll keep things updated.
 
It's hard to pass judgement on a handle when the head isn't seated, especially one as far from it as that. It appears maybe half way through the eye? And the kerf looks closed to me - can't see much of it, but that would suggest to me that right now it's simply tight in whatever cockeyed position it might be in, and the slightest move could change everything about how it looks.

It may be surprising how little material you have to remove to straighten it up. It may also be worth taking a look to be sure the bit is actually straight on the head. I do know what you mean about pics making it look less severe than it is because I have also tried to capture really crooked heads and hangs and it never shows up the same as in person. With that said - it certainly looks crooked, no question. I am also detecting the crooked swell which is very common - if you picture the handle as an egg shape in cross section, it is not uncommon at all for the peak of the egg to be off to one side and a crooked handle can really be a visual problem more than a real problem ... if that makes any sense.
 
I've had the same problem with handles from house. Just rehanged a head last month that looked about the same; bit facing off at an angle. Definitely was not my rasping that was the cause of it.

If it's not off too much it's not a real problem, but with it off that much it's potentially very dangerous; feels like you're swinging the axe with enough angle to bite only to have the cheek glance off the log with a lot of force...
 
I'll work on it and also see what House Handle says and keep the thread updated for those that are interested. I just picked up a decent looking Link boy's handle on the way home and may do a side by side thread, and if I need help seating this stupid thing I'll ask advise from the experienced members in another thread as well. This thread I would be more comfortable keeping to it's original purpose, which is a report on my ordering experience and impressions on the product.
 
For quick comparison, here are the two from the same angle. I tried to sight straight down the handle, as that's where my hands will be and that is the functional center line. I don't want to go picture crazy, but I will post any specific angles or shots that people might be interested in.

House Handle


Link


 
So I have it on, ready for the wedge. The black marks are from the rubber mallet and will be cleaned off. This is where my inexperience is playing games with me. From some angles it look not perfect but more than ok. Perfectly usable and a good job by a non expert. Hey, I wasn't into this stuff 6 months ago, but I'll get there. From other angles it looks like crap. I can't tell it it's just a bad handle, or all of my perception and visual cues are being thrown off by the asymmetrical bulges below the head and also on the swell. It could be that simply reshaping those will make it look great, or the head may still be tilted. I simply don;t have the experience yet to have a feel for it. I will say this, I am surprised by the amount of work that it takes to get a prime handle into shape. My feeling is that this will be a good user if not a show piece. If that is the end result I will be happy for the learning experience.

Seated. Natalie the Newfie says thank you in advance.





If I sight down the blade it looks off but close enough.

If I sight down the handle I don't like it.


Comments and opinions welcome. I have no ego here and want to learn if it's me and not the handle. Maybe I'm being to picky? Also, I/m hoping that this isn't just for me, I'm hoping that enough info comes out of this to help other re-hafting novices just getting into the hobbie.
 
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I'd cut it off and send it back or see if HH would send a replacement.
 
This is sort of a repetition of my post above but...

Your 5th photo there doesn't look so bad, but your 6th photo worries me. You can compensate for a head being slightly off, but if it's as bad as the 6th pic shows you could get into some serious trouble using the axe. Swinging the axe you're going to have the tendency to hold the handle as though the bit were in line with it. Say you're bucking a log and you're swinging on the chip side (if you're right handed this is the left side of the cut), if your hands get tricked by the handle into thinking your coming down at about 45% the bit won't bite, and the cheek might bounce right off of the log. IF this happens your on a full swing the axe could bounce back and do you some serious damage.
 
If you aren't happy with it, just pull the head and rework the haft (you have plenty of wood to work with there), going slowly while fitting and refitting the head a few times. The scuffs from the head should tell you where some material may need to be removed. Or if you want to re-align the head, simply rasp away material from the haft in opposition to each side (i.e. front left, rear right) to get the head to "turn." You have a lot of material to play with, and a thicker wedge can always be used to compensate. Also, these handles will never be perfect...some variation is to be expected. Or, if the haft is really that twisted, just contact HH for a replacement. I would echo the above though...no one wants to use a mis-aligned axe. So if you know it's wrong, and you're anything like me, you won't use it and it will just sit there. I say re-work the handle as much as you can until you're happy with it, and if it's just a matter of a bad handle, send it back.
 
It's hard for me to tell from the pictures but I have recently had a similar experience. When you are removing material from the opposite side it should allow the head to move in that direction. I had to do that for one recently and it acted like it did not want to move no matter how much I shaved off one side until I stuck a wedge in it slightly. Kept thinking, "I am removing material and it's not moving in the direction I want it to". Nice newfie by the way. They are pleasant dogs.
 
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