Raw wood to handle

Kevin Houtzager said:
If its prunus avium (cherry), i would only recommend it for hatchets. It's about the Same as Wood from an Apple tree. It's slightly weaker then birch. So with the bilnass it could Be tricky, because of the length and the headweight.

as for drying it: Best to clamp it or to hang it with a weight on the end. Fitting the Head loosely on it should do the trick. That way It's less likely to warp!
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The majority of us hobbyists will never over-stress a handle enough to have to beg for the very best. As long as there is no runout and no knots most of us could get away with Poplar or Willow. Cherry is soft (Apple is not!) and has an amazing amount of flex and I don't see this as being a liability on a short handled (or hatchet length) axe.
 
Kevin, I think that yew will make for a fine handle for a pretty intact 61.3 carving hatchet. At least one longer/thinner handle for the hatchet and maybe a solid handle for nicer 3lb hammer that I can't seem to part with.

Still getting to know the wood. It may not be Hickory, as strong as Ash or Beech but for some reason it feels good. I could keep it meaty, center the head, and hang or weight the handle to dry some with the basic form. Maybe even treat/pay attention to the end grain - keep the moisture as stable as possible while the length "settles"
Probably would make for the most stable end result.

Working the wood is just for the fun of it. It gets more intuitive every time I try it. If it warps or otherwise becomes maligned it will be a great pattern to scale up or down on.

I think if it is left thicker, where it needs to be, it will present a solid edge.

It was free + labor. :thumbsup:
 
@ Agent H
I recall when you first found that wood. I think we concluded it must be either bitter cherry or choke cherry.

The fruit on the other tree looks alot like the wild plum we have here. I ate a similar piece today.
 
Kevin Houtzager said:
I wouldn't be to sure about that? You know headweight of that bilnass is rougly 3 pounds right? (actually a little over in most cases) Apple is to brittle (bendability is ok, but not great although it's a bit stronger then birch) and cherry has a lower mass (although bendability is great). I have it growing locally and could get as much as I want as well as plum, pear and chestnut trees. Very nice texture, but going over 1kg /2lb is going to give problems and going over a length of say 50cm/20" has the same effect. Although with the latter I must say I prefer slim handles. The only club I have is the one on the skeggox, and that still needs rehandling.

So if you leave it thick enough it could probably survive. And as long as you don't mind the time and its free wood its allright!

I've checked for Oregon and the list of trees with the usable wood is:

Maple
Birch (european birch is a bit stronger, but as long as the grain is good it doens't really matter)
Hawthorn (used for clubs in Ireland, so should be allright)
Ash (european ash is a bt stronger, but it should be allright even as you slim it down)
Holly (it's heavier then Black locust or hickory. Bendability is about the same als black locust. Maybe a little less) You can recognise it from the red berries an spiked leaves, so good luck with foraging it ;)
Walnut
Tanoak
Sycamore
Plum (hatchet size)
Cherry (hatchet size)
Apple (hatchet size)
Pear (hatchet size)
Oak
Black Locust
Yew (european Yew is stronger, but its still very good. It's a pine tree with berries on them. Don't taste that, you will die! Dont lick the wood either: You will die! So dont get the sap close to your mouth via your hands )
Elm

I crossed referenced it with the latin names just to be sure you don't have some weird genus thats totally different!
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I'm betting that list is a little shorter for Kansas
 
Kevin Houtzager said:
I wouldn't be to sure about that? You know headweight of that bilnass is rougly 3 pounds right? (actually a little over in most cases) Apple is to brittle (bendability is ok, but not great although it's a bit stronger then birch) and cherry has a lower mass (although bendability is great). I have it growing locally and could get as much as I want as well as plum, pear and chestnut trees. Very nice texture, but going over 1kg /2lb is going to give problems and going over a length of say 50cm/20" has the same effect. Although with the latter I must say I prefer slim handles. The only club I have is the one on the skeggox, and that still needs rehandling.

So if you leave it thick enough it could probably survive. And as long as you don't mind the time and its free wood its allright!

I've checked for Oregon and the list of trees with the usable wood is:

Maple
Birch (european birch is a bit stronger, but as long as the grain is good it doens't really matter)
Hawthorn (used for clubs in Ireland, so should be allright)
Ash (european ash is a bt stronger, but it should be allright even as you slim it down)
Holly (it's heavier then Black locust or hickory. Bendability is about the same als black locust. Maybe a little less) You can recognise it from the red berries an spiked leaves, so good luck with foraging it ;)
Walnut
Tanoak
Sycamore
Plum (hatchet size)
Cherry (hatchet size)
Apple (hatchet size)
Pear (hatchet size)
Oak
Black Locust
Yew (european Yew is stronger, but its still very good. It's a pine tree with berries on them. Don't taste that, you will die! Dont lick the wood either: You will die! So dont get the sap close to your mouth via your hands )
Elm

I crossed referenced it with the latin names just to be sure you don't have some weird genus thats totally different!
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On paper many species appear to be suitable for handles until you start seeking out a suitable diameter round that is straight and has no knots. That's when the selection process narrows considerably. I'd love to try making a pulpwood (boy's) axe handle out of Apple but in 20+ years of rummaging through orchards that are being cut down (to make way for housing) I have yet to find a 2 1/2 foot long piece of an upright trunk that is blemish free and straight (and also doesn't twist).
 
Kevin, thanks for the suitable tree woods list. I need to look for Elm I recently saw Holly being used for a nice handle on Dubois’ site – Finnish hatchet actually. We have it around ornamentally and wild but you are certainly right on it being a prickly thing to process.

The head is 2lbs 7+oz and the handle is 23” before fitting. I am going to make it as slim as I can. No question on my part about the wood. Makes for a fun project.


Let it play through - you won't be sorry - this song is running through my head as I work on this thing lol.

Cherry Flavored Kemi 3 by Agent Hierarchy, on Flickr


I do have some help as well. “Followed me home” 2wks ago. He’s deaf. Likes the shopvac. Not very sage advice though.

Cherry Flavored Kemi 3 by Agent Hierarchy, on Flickr
 
Agent_H said:
Kevin, thanks for the suitable tree woods list. I need to look for Elm I recently saw Holly being used for a nice handle on Dubois’ site – Finnish hatchet actually. We have it around ornamentally and wild but you are certainly right on it being a prickly thing to process.

The head is 2lbs 7+oz and the handle is 23” before fitting. I am going to make it as slim as I can. No question on my part about the wood. Makes for a fun project.


Let it play through - you won't be sorry - this song is running through my head as I work on this thing lol.

Cherry Flavored Kemi 3 by Agent Hierarchy, on Flickr


I do have some help as well. “Followed me home” 2wks ago. He’s deaf. Likes the shopvac. Not very sage advice though.

Cherry Flavored Kemi 3 by Agent Hierarchy, on Flickr
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As a rule, all-white animals are predisposed to deafness. But I see lots of pigment going on there. Who knows.

However, the little bugger seems fun to have around :). I guess any mouse that can be seen is going to be in a world of trouble.
 
Agent_H said:
I recently saw Holly being used for a nice handle on Dubois’ site – Finnish hatchet actually. We have it around ornamentally and wild but you are certainly right on it being a prickly thing to process.
Click to expand...

Take all the holly you can! It's a terrible invasive and it's going to cost our timber producers, both public and private, a lot of money over the next several decades. Best if you rip up the roots and monitor the site for suckers for a couple years. Even better if you poison the stump with herbicides.

This stuff is gobbling up parks and timber land in the Puget Sound basin. It's been doubling it's foot print every 10 years for the last 40 years. In 20 years it will rob us of a lot of good timber.

http://www.kingcounty.gov/services/...-weeds/weed-identification/english-holly.aspx
 
Agent_H said:
Kevin, thanks for the suitable tree woods list. I need to look for Elm I recently saw Holly being used for a nice handle on Dubois’ site – Finnish hatchet actually. We have it around ornamentally and wild but you are certainly right on it being a prickly thing to process.
Click to expand...

Elm is wonderfully strong, hard as a rock and difficult to cleave. I brought home a straight fat round of American Elm (the vase shaped one also known as White Elm) last year and was surprised how soft and lightweight it was, relative to hardwoods such as Beech, Oak and Sugar Maple. All of the elms, mind you. are a SOB to split. Turns out the Elm that is most desirable for tool handles, sleigh runners, plough bodies etc is Rock Elm (U. thomasii / also known as Cork Elm). There is quite a difference (weight per cu/ft, hardness and strength) between the two. There are thousands of recently deceased American Elms around here (thank you Dutch Elm Disease which is named for where it was discovered and not where it came from) but I have yet to find a Rock Elm to play with.
 
Kevin Houtzager said:
Weight has a lot to do with the amount of moisture in the wood. Once it dries out, it'll be roughly 650KG/m3 range. Slightly below the 700KG of european ash, and about the same as your local Amercian Ash. The type of Ulmus other then isn't that important, other then the looks of it. I haven't found any difference?
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Perhaps if you don't burn wood in the stove to heat the house! 'Soft' Maple (Silver, Red, Mountain and Manitoba (Box elder)) are worth nothing around here whereas Sugar Maple ('hard' maple or 'rock' maple) is king. Quite a difference between them and you won't find a baseball bat manufacturer or custom furniture maker accepting any other. They look quite similar until you actually heft a piece! That has to translate into something if you're not in the market for Balsa wood.
 
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