Ways to protect the Neck

B

blase1682

Joined
Apr 23, 2010
Messages
58
Hi everyone! I have been searching and searching trying to find advice but now its time to pull over and ask directions LOL. I have recently purchased my first SFA and want to preserve the neck as long as possible. I'm kind of a newbee with axes and during my first trip with it, I noticed some dents in the handle right at the neck (assuming I missed a couple times). Well, I have seen many fine axe/hatchet makers on this forum with awesome looking neck guards they have made. I have tried wrapping mine with leather cordage and paracord, but am having a hard time securing it so it won't unwrap. Can anyone provide me with some guidance? Thank you in advance for your time :D
 
blase1682 said:
Hi everyone! I have been searching and searching trying to find advice but now its time to pull over and ask directions LOL. I have recently purchased my first SFA and want to preserve the neck as long as possible. I'm kind of a newbee with axes and during my first trip with it, I noticed some dents in the handle right at the neck (assuming I missed a couple times). Well, I have seen many fine axe/hatchet makers on this forum with awesome looking neck guards they have made. I have tried wrapping mine with leather cordage and paracord, but am having a hard time securing it so it won't unwrap. Can anyone provide me with some guidance? Thank you in advance for your time :D
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Here's something I have done in the past that works well. Get a large rawhide dog bone (unless you have heavy rawhide hanging around)). Soak it in warm water till it gets soft, cut a piece that wraps around the handle and fits edge to edge rather than overlap. Use a baseball stitch ( punch the stitch holes ith a pointy awl so they're not big holes that will stretch to bigger holes when drying) to join the edges together and then let it dry, it should shrink onto the handle nice and tight. If you buy a big bone the rawhide will likey be pretty thick and strong. The stitching goes on the top side of the handle ;-)))

Best regards

Robin
 
blase1682 said:
Robin, you ROCK!!! This will totally work, thank you very much:).

Respectfully,

Shaun
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Hey Shaun
Glad to help. When you soak the dog bone untwist it after it gets nice and soft. When doing a baseball stitch I usually cut the hide a bit short of joining around the haft, like an 1/8th of an inch then pull it together with the stitching ( use good heavy synthetic thread like sinue). Punch the holes side by side on each side of the edges and do a couple of thread wraps where you start and finish (NOT around the handle, just through the holes that you punch. Big bones are usually thick and will do a couple of handles, maybe more. You can let it harden and then resoak for the next project. BTW, if you want to, you can glue the piece in place when it's wet, use good carpenters glue and don't glue it right up to the edge you are going to sew, leave the edge unglued so you can get the needle under the edge of the hide. Sew from under the hide. Under one side then across and under the other side. Hope this is clear, if not, Email me and I'll send you a couple of pics to show what I mean. songofthewoods@hotmail.com

Best regards

Robin
 
Rawhide dog bone idea - gonna have to try that.

I'm lazy and what I've been doing is just slicing open some busted bicycle tire tubing, wrapping that around the neck a few times (pull it taut), then electrical taping it. Not as pretty, but seems to get the job done, and will fit any size and shape helve.

Tubing's just useful for wrapping all sorts of stuff, plus it's cheap and easy to work with.
 
Thank you everyone for responding with good advice, I really appreciate it! I'll post up pics in the next couple days... we could all use a good laugh!
 
I feel your pain, I am rough on handles( cause I don't throw very well) Here are some wrapped with rawhide, it is tuff as nails. I also use the "Baseball" stitch which actually predates baseballs.........Randy

handles.jpg



http://churchandson.wordpress.com/
 
church&son said:
I feel your pain, I am rough on handles( cause I don't throw very well) Here are some wrapped with rawhide, it is tuff as nails. I also use the "Baseball" stitch which actually predates baseballs.........Randy

handles.jpg



http://churchandson.wordpress.com/
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Nice stuff Randy, we love the same sort of look. I am/was a sailmaker by trade, the "baseball stitch" is actually called the herringbone stitch ;-))

Glad you posted pics of your great looking hawks.

Regards

Robin
 
Well it won't be as nice as some of the hawks shown, or Pipeman's work, but you could go to the Thrift Store and buy a used braided belt. The leather is already cut into strips. You may have to wet it to get the marks out of it. Taper the starting end at the head and place a small brass tack. Wrap on down and taper and tack the opposite end. If you break your handle, you can reuse your wrap. I know this is a poor man's fix. A different way, although it would not look as nice, a leather wrap then a piece of bicycle inner tube over the wrap would protect the wood. It's just what you want in looks. If you had done the rawhide method of wrap, and the handle broke, you could maybe soak the stitched rawhide, pull it off as a tube, and slide it back on the new handle.
 
Besides leather dye, is there another way to color the rawhide? Is dogbone rawhide the same as normal rawhide?
 
Dog bone rawhide is fairly thick Cowhide. You can use shoe polish to colour the hide but most browns are made with a red base that usually dyes the hide a pinkish tone. If you use shoe polish put it on thick and leave it for a few days so it sinks in. Fiebings dye is not much more than a can of shoe polish though. I use oil dye, usually either medium brown which has a redish tone and dark brown that is a dark chocolate colour.

Regards

Robin
 
I have wondered about cutting a 4-6" section of bike tire inner tube and slipping it over the handle, and in loose enough, a second layer. Not wrapped like mentioned above, but slipped over like a sheath. Any thoughts on that?

Edit: I am thinking a forest or felling Axe not a cool hawk. I think the OP also is talking Axe SFA, I believe is Scandinavian Forest axe.
 
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Pipeman said:
Here's something I have done in the past that works well. Get a large rawhide dog bone (unless you have heavy rawhide hanging around)). Soak it in warm water till it gets soft, cut a piece that wraps around the handle and fits edge to edge rather than overlap. Use a baseball stitch ( punch the stitch holes ith a pointy awl so they're not big holes that will stretch to bigger holes when drying) to join the edges together and then let it dry, it should shrink onto the handle nice and tight. If you buy a big bone the rawhide will likey be pretty thick and strong. The stitching goes on the top side of the handle ;-)))

Best regards

Robin
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that's a great idea but my dogs would find it and chew the handle off -- :D
 
cckw said:
I have wondered about cutting a 4-6" section of bike tire inner tube and slipping it over the handle, and in loose enough, a second layer. Not wrapped like mentioned above, but slipped over like a sheath. Any thoughts on that?
Click to expand...

I'm sure it would work. Just not very "old school" for traditional hawk. If I had a tactical hawk, I'd use the inner tube, or paracord.
 
BFH44 said:
that's a great idea but my dogs would find it and chew the handle off -- :D
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Funny you should say that. Last year I was doing an outside show and a Rotti made off with one of my rawhide rattles.:D It was an easy sale.:D:D

Regards

Robin
 
Pipeman said:
Here's something I have done in the past that works well. Get a large rawhide dog bone (unless you have heavy rawhide hanging around)). Soak it in warm water till it gets soft, cut a piece that wraps around the handle and fits edge to edge rather than overlap. Use a baseball stitch ( punch the stitch holes ith a pointy awl so they're not big holes that will stretch to bigger holes when drying) to join the edges together and then let it dry, it should shrink onto the handle nice and tight. If you buy a big bone the rawhide will likey be pretty thick and strong. The stitching goes on the top side of the handle ;-)))

Best regards

Robin
Click to expand...

You could also overlap the rawhide and use upholstery tacks instead of sewing it together.
 
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