So a friend of mine has been working on bringing some handles to market. He met an Amish wood worker through work who made some smaller handles on a copy lathe and finishes them on a belt sander. He's been working on getting templates for additional sizes available so we have options not currently available in high quality handles. He made the templates for 20" and 24" handles himself. A 28" boys axe based on a NOS Link handle is in the works, as well as a full sized 28" based on an old Elwell (English axe company, top notch axes) handle. There will probably be additional options in the future if things go well.
I have been talking with him about this project for a while. He's put a lot of time, money, and effort into getting templates together, working with the maker to ensure they are high quality, and purchasing stock to get things going. A while back he sent me a 14" and a 18" to check out and get my opinion on, mainly because I'm very picky about axe handles for my personal axes. These are probably the best current production handles I've had the chance to get my hands on.
Here is the 14" hatchet handle compared to a vintage haft on my favorite carving hatchet. The vintage haft is very thin with an excellent palm swell/fawns hoof.
Hatchet Handles by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Hatchet Handles 2 by MJGEGB, on Flickr
14" with vintage by MJGEGB, on Flickr
I added in a 16" hatchet handle from House Handles to the mix.
Hatchet Handles 3 by MJGEGB, on Flickr
You can see just how much of a fat club the House Handles are from the factory here. The one sent by mister West in comparison has far more in common with the vintage haft.
HH VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
HH VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is the 18" haft compared to a 19" house axe handle from House Handles. Keep in mind that the HH handle here is sized for a full sized eye. Still the comparison is night and day here.
CT VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
CT VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Palm Swells by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is the 18" next to a Council Tools Boy's Axe handle. CT is known for having nicely shaped handles, and they are a cut above a lot of the competition. You can see that the 18" is a slimmer handle though both are nicely shaped.
Shoulders by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is a comparison of the shoulders on all of the different handles. Left to Right, 16" HH, 18" West Woods, 28" CT, 14" West Woods
And some pictures of the finished product after hanging two heads on the handles.
14" handle on a Plumb National BSA hatchet head
BSA National Side by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National BSA Stamp by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National Profile by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National Side in Block by MJGEGB, on Flickr
I have been talking with him about this project for a while. He's put a lot of time, money, and effort into getting templates together, working with the maker to ensure they are high quality, and purchasing stock to get things going. A while back he sent me a 14" and a 18" to check out and get my opinion on, mainly because I'm very picky about axe handles for my personal axes. These are probably the best current production handles I've had the chance to get my hands on.
Here is the 14" hatchet handle compared to a vintage haft on my favorite carving hatchet. The vintage haft is very thin with an excellent palm swell/fawns hoof.
Hatchet Handles by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Hatchet Handles 2 by MJGEGB, on Flickr
14" with vintage by MJGEGB, on Flickr
I added in a 16" hatchet handle from House Handles to the mix.
Hatchet Handles 3 by MJGEGB, on Flickr
You can see just how much of a fat club the House Handles are from the factory here. The one sent by mister West in comparison has far more in common with the vintage haft.
HH VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
HH VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is the 18" haft compared to a 19" house axe handle from House Handles. Keep in mind that the HH handle here is sized for a full sized eye. Still the comparison is night and day here.
CT VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
CT VS Amish by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Palm Swells by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is the 18" next to a Council Tools Boy's Axe handle. CT is known for having nicely shaped handles, and they are a cut above a lot of the competition. You can see that the 18" is a slimmer handle though both are nicely shaped.
Shoulders by MJGEGB, on Flickr
Here is a comparison of the shoulders on all of the different handles. Left to Right, 16" HH, 18" West Woods, 28" CT, 14" West Woods
And some pictures of the finished product after hanging two heads on the handles.
14" handle on a Plumb National BSA hatchet head
BSA National Side by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National BSA Stamp by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National Profile by MJGEGB, on Flickr
BSA National Side in Block by MJGEGB, on Flickr