New Haft for My Busted Trailhawk

safetyman

safetyman

Joined
Sep 8, 2008
Messages
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I Robin Hooded my hawk haft with my girfriends hawk about a month and a half ago. After leaving the hawk head in my closet for most of that month and a half, I decided it was time to shape a new haft for my Trailhawk. I went down to the local hardware store and picked up what I think was a hickory shovel handle. Using a small block plane I rough-shaped the handle until it was in the general size and shape I wanted. I hit it with some 60, 150, and 220 grit sandpaper, cut it at 26", stained it and this is what I came up with. I also blued the head to give it an "antiqued" look. Hopefully you guys like it...

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Thanks guys, it was a lot of planing and sanding to get the shape just right but I've got it right where I want it now.

Savage, she's a Border Collie/Lab mix...a pound pup. Very easy going temperament, great with people.
 
That looks really nice, very authentic and using a shovel handle is a great idea that i may copy.
 
devilpig said:
Does the head stay on with a friction fit in addition to being held on with the leather?
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Yes that end of the haft is shaped a little bigger than the eye of the head. I tapped the head on with a hammer to make sure it was on tight and then I wrapped it with the rawhide. It looks to be a really tight fit, especially since the rawhide is helping it stay there but I'll find out for sure when I actually throw it.
 
Bushman5 said:
got a tutorial on how to do that leather wrap?

very nice hawk and pup
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I suppose I could do a short tutorial the next time I wrap a hawk. But it's actually pretty simple...

I bought some 1/8" rawhide strips at my local leather store. You're supposed to soak the strips until they soften up and are workable. I then wringed the extra water out and braided three strands together. It took some time to braid the strands together so I had to dip them into a bowl of water so they didn't dry out and harden on me. After I got the length I wanted, I wrapped the braided cord around the haft very tightly and secured the ends with a little super glue. When the rawhide dries, it shrinks and gets rock hard so I'm fairly certain that it will do a good job of keeping the head in place.
 
im pretty sure thats an oak handle not hickory but very nice none the less. i have a custom built oak long bow and its extremely tough and i have know fears of breaking it any time soon so im sure your thick haft will hold up great. love your braided rawhide...
 
justintyme said:
im pretty sure thats an oak handle not hickory but very nice none the less. i have a custom built oak long bow and its extremely tough and i have know fears of breaking it any time soon so im sure your thick haft will hold up great. love your braided rawhide...
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Thanks Justin. Well, I bought it as a hickory handle so I'd like to think that it's hickory. If it helps any, I stained it with some wood stain to darken it. Perhaps that it looks like oak???
 
safetyman said:
Thanks Justin. Well, I bought it as a hickory handle so I'd like to think that it's hickory. If it helps any, I stained it with some wood stain to darken it. Perhaps that it looks like oak???
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no i was thinking oak because of the grain but beings that you bought it as hickory id sure hope it is as well. either way you have a tough hawk and a great looking one at that. thanks for the raw hide info as well. im working on a hawk and was inspired by your rawhide work to add some style to the gripping area on mine.
 
WOW! This looks great! I need to do something like this. Thanks for sharing this. Great looking Trailhawk and cute pup!
 
I'm a big fan of the length of the handle and the leather wrap. About how long were the leather strips when you started?
 
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