I have my father's old Craftsman hatchet of late 1940's or early 1950's vintage which I believe is a carpenter's style hatchet. It is severely abused with the poll mushroomed out with cracks in the splayed metal though the cracks don't extend into the sound metal underneath. I am using a grinder to remove the splayed metal, taking care that the steel doesn't get any warmer than what I can comfortably touch with bare skin.
I am looking for a handle and sheath to fit this hatchet and within a 30 mile radius of where I live in rural Wisconsin I could only find one handle that might fit and that one was pretty crappy with the ear of the handle being overly large in diameter when compared to the haft of the handle or the head of the hatchet. The eye of the hatchet is about 1 1/2" long and is roughly 9/16" at its widest point. This is my first adventure with a hatchet or axe. Any thoughts on where I can find a handle and sheath for this hatchet? I would use it for light camp duty a handful of times a year and for sentimental reasons it would be great to be camping with something my father's owned and used for several decades.
I am looking for a handle and sheath to fit this hatchet and within a 30 mile radius of where I live in rural Wisconsin I could only find one handle that might fit and that one was pretty crappy with the ear of the handle being overly large in diameter when compared to the haft of the handle or the head of the hatchet. The eye of the hatchet is about 1 1/2" long and is roughly 9/16" at its widest point. This is my first adventure with a hatchet or axe. Any thoughts on where I can find a handle and sheath for this hatchet? I would use it for light camp duty a handful of times a year and for sentimental reasons it would be great to be camping with something my father's owned and used for several decades.