Newbie struggling with re-handling

Col Defender

Col Defender

Joined
Nov 11, 2011
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1,398
Hi - I know many of you can make a new handle fit an old axe perfectly. I'm trying to teach myself and it's not going as well as I'd like. I've done two now and here is a pic of the latest one:


My goal is to get the handle to fit into the head without a gap - flush if you will. I'm using a belt sander as the primary tool to fit the handle to the axe and I test fit it over and over again and at some point or other I think I have it right and then when I put the head on it ends up as in the picture and now I cannot get it off without serious damage to the handle.

Please help! What do I need to do differently?

Thanks

Steve
 
I'd aim for a smoother transition between the wood that's inside the eye and shoulder of the handle. That will allow the handle to wedge more securely into the eye. Every time I've left a 'shelf' on the handle where it meets the head I've had loosening issues. Also, I do pretty much all my handle shaving with a file, rasp, or a spokeshave or a block plane if I need to remove a lot of material. It takes a while longer but I find I get better results than with power tools. Keep at it. It takes a couple axes to figure out your own best process.
 
nickzdon said:
I'd aim for a smoother transition between the wood that's inside the eye and shoulder of the handle. That will allow the handle to wedge more securely into the eye. Every time I've left a 'shelf' on the handle where it meets the head I've had loosening issues. Also, I do pretty much all my handle shaving with a file, rasp, or a spokeshave or a block plane if I need to remove a lot of material. It takes a while longer but I find I get better results than with power tools. Keep at it. It takes a couple axes to figure out your own best process.
Click to expand...

Thank you - and how tight should the handle be inside the head before I drive it all the way on? What's happening to me is I work the wood down until I think it is about right to go all the way on and then when I try to put it all the way on it goes most but not all the way but is then too tight to get off. Will the hickory wedge tighten the handle up if it goes on the head with just a little wiggle left in it?
 
I'm not sure there is a simple answer. It is a lot of trimming and removing the axe head. High spots are usually visible as dark marks on the handle. I try not to hammer it home (seat it final) until the fit is right and close to where I want the axe head to sit on the shoulder and there is enough handle sticking out the top of the eye (where you wedge). If you are getting a lot of curling of wood on the bottom side of the eye or a big transition of wood thickness (like shown in your picture), you really need to remove more material first. My sense is you may be hammering hard on the handle to get the axe to seat or not removing enough material from the shoulder area of the axe handle . I go slowly on this process. An old axe handle is a great tool for removing the axe head. In my experience (YMMV), once you get the right fit, the axe head should slide on fairly easily most of the way. Some final taps will seat the axe where you want it before wedging. the fit on the bottom portion of the eye should be tight to the handle. I've found that it's also helpful to take the whole shoulder area of the axe handle down as well. It makes for a smoother transition.



hope this helps.
 
I finally feel like I've rehandled enough axes to put in my two cents on the matter.

To me, t looks like a pretty easy fix to your technique. I'd say it seems that you're trying to establish the shoulder preeminently yourself rather than letting the head create one on its own. If you do a smoother transition (more a lump than an abrupt change) between the eye-portion and the rest of the handle, you can just get the head partially onto the handle, turn it upside-down and keep smacking the butt of the handle until the head bottoms out, finding the natural shoulder on its own. At that point, you can then just rasp off the excess thickness off the shoulder if you so desire. A lot harder to explain in words than as a demonstration, but here's some quick MS paint drawings that might help.

What you're currently doing:
Current_zpsd5bad0c7.jpg


What you should try:
Natural_zpsfeac7c94.png
 
Col Defender said:
Hey guys thanks! All the above will help for sure. :o
Click to expand...

No problem mate. And so long as the fit is good and the heads actually did bottom out onto the shoulder, there's no problem whatsoever with taking a rasp to the area just under the eye. The problem with the axe you posted a picture of seems predominantly aesthetic and rasping it clean will not only improve appearances but actually help with the overall strength (smoother transition between head and shoulder means less strain on the grain structure during impact and a lowered chance of cracks developing)
 
It's ok for there to be some gaps at the top of the eye when the head is seated on the handle. The wedge will take up that space. However it's not ok to have space between the handle and the head at the bottom of the eye. Cooper's photo shows a good clean tight fit in that region. Having a tight fit at the bottom of the eye will hold the head securely and keep it from coming out of alignment with the rest of the handle once it's wedged. Here are before and after wedging photos on one of my last rehangs.



 
nickzdon said:
It's ok for there to be some gaps at the top of the eye when the head is seated on the handle. The wedge will take up that space. However it's not ok to have space between the handle and the head at the bottom of the eye. Cooper's photo shows a good clean tight fit in that region. Having a tight fit at the bottom of the eye will hold the head securely and keep it from coming out of alignment with the rest of the handle once it's wedged. Here are before and after wedging photos on one of my last rehangs.

That is VERY helpful nickzdon! FWIW I have taken the axe with the pic at the top of this thread and followed killa_concept's suggestion by using a draw knife (actually a Becker BK4 Machax), a rasp, and sandpaper and fixed the handle behind the axe head without removing the handle. Huge improvement in the "aesthetics" and I will be satisfied with how it is now - it will be a user - and in the process of all this you guys have helped me a bunch; the next one will hopefully be better on the first try. "After Picture" will be up later today; right now I'm waiting for another coat or two of Tung Oil to dry.;)
Click to expand...
 
I do most of my shaping with a coarse wood rasp and a 4-in-hand rasp. Take it slow and re-fit the head many many times.

And I think the others are correct that you've been forcing the head on too hard. It should come on and off with relative ease. I seat the head by tapping the end of the haft with a rubber mallet. This draws the head up onto the haft gently. To remove it I use a soft face (plastic face) hammer and tap on the bottom of the head, alternating from bit to heel.
 
Nickzdon----I was ready to call B/S when i saw your first picture..then I scrolled down to the second and WOW!!!! What great work..I really like the wedge and the way it is shaped and the way it fills the front of the socket...I feel like I'm in 7th grade again and I just got schooled... :-) Is a custom handle and wedge?
 
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