How to make a hatchet handle

My small hatchet just doesn’t have enough weight to it. My long ax is just too much for sitting and splitting. An in between is what I need. I just need to make a short handle and use a full size ax head. Not an ax, not a hatchet- what do I call it? A Hax?

[@johnschlesinger2009]

That axe looks wonderful. And your toolbox is a thing of beauty.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Thanks John. I have a hard time tossing a restorable tool. How many axes do I need? Always room for one more!😊

[@fargley001]

Impressive shop/tools. You have good taste, Blair. This project is a nice contrast to the "office work" I normally see on your channel.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

You mean my “branch office”?

[@fargley001]

@@arboristBlairGlenn That'd be the one :)

[@elffirrdesign2063]

An inspiration Blair! Some ash splits await some shaping down in my shop! The unsung hero here is that beautiful vice holding your work.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

I didn’t mention the wood but you are right about ash. From a tight grain Modesto ash

[@samuelluria4744]

@@arboristBlairGlenn - "Modesto Ash"???🙋🏻‍♂️🤣🙋🏻‍♂️😜

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/lXmzaX1-hbaXm9E

[@nigelwylie01]

Thanks for this video Blair. I love your tool videos. I’ve tried this once, and need to get some more tips, as I’ve got a couple of axes half-finished. Great timing.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Start with a nice piece of Ash

[@nigelwylie01]

@@arboristBlairGlenn I’ve started well. Got some good first principles, ash, grain, pomel, but your tips about bandsawing the wedge hole and fitting the head first, should get me to the end hopefully. I’ve ruined many hours of work right at the end on those two points and found it very frustrating. The wisdom of experience!

[@TheHypnotstCollector]

In 1974 three of us bought an unfinished Hortsman Trimarand, 3 hulls and a lot of wood to finish the boat. As I recall there was a stack of Ash for the mast. The wood was was 30 rings per inch.... The mast was to be 30 feett. They were tight and close and straight. ..... And we had lots of mahogany and other nice exotic woods to finish the boat. And All the wood burned on Last Chance Road......

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Sad story. Did you ever sail it?

[@patrickdykes9709]

Very cool, I can always count on learning something new when I watch your videos

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Thanks Patrick. I like to teach

[@MichaelWilson-xf8le]

Great video. I like to use 2 inch masking tape on the bottom of the eye of the head. And cut it out. Now I have a stencil of that head eye. And thank you also. I need to buy a spokeshave now. Lol With my draw knife, I sometimes take too much off the eye. I think a spokeshave will fit my process better.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

That was as well

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Thanks for supporting my channel. My daughter is helping me build a merch store at Etsy. More items will be added over time but please check it out. Your continued connection is appreciated. www.etsy.com/shop/ArboristBlairGlenn

[@feathershed]

Best sound in the world? A handle singing as the wedge is driven in to secure the head.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Satisfying to do it as well

[@nena4215]

I enjoyed that and learned a few things, beautiful job!

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Very relaxing as well

[@anemone104]

Nice. Thoughtful, like your arbs vids! Ever tried your draw knife bevel down? You can alter the angle of attack and take off as much or as little wood as you want - it becomes capable of great precision. I have a wee draw knife that I use for finishing tool handles. I make my own axe and billhook (and hammer) handles and don't use a spoke shave or wood rasp. I cleave them out of green ash and rough them green. When cleft, the grain will 'automatically' run straight through and the shape (a wedge) if axe-handle shape. Leave to dry (fast and if cleft to 1/4 or smaller, it won't split) and finish and fit when dry. With hooks and hammers, you can make several at once out of the same length of ash. Or a hook and a hatchet, Without having to have a bit of waste on each end to clamp your shave horse onto. Yes, I use a shave horse. Much easier than trying to use a bench vice. I like that you just use oil, no stain, no burning it with a blowtorch to 'bring out the grain' (what is that about, I don't understand, but each person to their own). Just oil and let the colour change naturally in work over the years to come. You're right that you can fit your haft to your own hand. I like that you actually fit the haft into the axe eye. I see a lot of KZbin vids where they leave a big gap between the haft and each end of the eye. Just seen a bloke drive his wedge and then actually remove the bit where his wedge protruded out of the haft into the 'void' at the front of the eye. Weird. Going to work loose in use, but perhaps it won't actually get used.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Draw knife bevel up and bevel down as well as reading the grain direction. Very satisfying to make your own handles. Birds of a feather👍🏻

[@jonallaway2002]

Nice job, very satisfying to do this kind of thing. You didn't mention the wood you were using - I guess hickory? In England, the traditional wood for axe handles (and most other tool handles) was ash, but hickory is even stronger.

[@jonallaway2002]

Just seen the other comments, and I see you did use ash - it's a very workable and very resilient wood. I made an axe handle of ash many years ago and if I hadn't let some fool borrow it and split logs on a concrete floor, and keep overshooting and smashing the handle against the logs, it would still be good to this day. Last one I did I used hickory. That must have been 25 years ago and I've used it regularly ever since. The head's still as tight as ever.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

We don’t have hickory where I live (or I have never seen one), but tight grain ash is a good wood for tool handles. Some ash trees are very fast growing and not so good, so look for an old tight grain tree.

[@mattfleming86]

I've seen MANY modern fellers axes (wedge bangers) with polls that are quite mushroomed that have never seen a metal wedge. Even smacking plastic wedges the metal will deform just the slightest amount. Multiply that by many 8-hour work days smacking wedges and you can have an axe that looks like that but has never hit metal.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Hard to imagine flailing the steel by hitting plastic but I’ll take your word for it.

[@matiascamprubi-soms7719]

@arboristBlairGlenn I will testify to that, though I have learned that I should have stopped smashing the wedge a lot sooner than I used to; just isn't gonna move after a point.

[@mattfleming86]

@@arboristBlairGlenn I'm not certain it will happen with every axe. I'm sure carbon content and finish hardness at the poll will come into play. It seems counterintuitive as the hardness of the wedge is lower than the poll, but steel is still a malleable material. The few examples I have laid eyes on were very interesting as the poll was mushroomed but quite smooth on the back- lacking the usual large deep "dings and divots" that you would expect. Even if you are only moving in fractions of a thousandth, that repeated pounding will eventually deform the back.. plus some of the seasoned timber fallers really pound a wedge like it owes them money. A good lesson in perseverance I guess. Anyways.. I know it was tangential to your video. It's a comment for the algorithm none the less 😁

[@mattfleming86]

What was the makers mark on that head?

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

I carve a branch with leaves on projects that I build. Kind of my signature. That ax was not an expensive or rare tool, think it said Master Mechanic brand. I do own some really old axes as well

[@samuelluria4744]

That IS one HELLIFIED NICE TOOL BOX!!!

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

That was my Covid project. Bought the book titled Anarchists Tool Chest. Followed the design but used really nice wood instead of the clear pine that the book called for. Used piano casters to roll it in place.

[@samuelluria4744]

@@arboristBlairGlenn - It's beautiful...enjoy it for many years to come!!

[@ryandelcourt4774]

I am waiting for a white ash removal so I can get some awesome tool handles!

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Thanks for supporting my channel. My daughter is helping me build a merch store at Etsy. More items will be added over time but please check it out. Your continued connection is appreciated. www.etsy.com/shop/ArboristBlairGlenn

[@JohnBare747]

Some people just can't Handle it!

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Morning chuckle

[@kirkshar]

Beautiful! I need to do that for an extremely old sledge hammer I have. I put it on a purchased handle, but I don't trust it.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Some folks say, “why bother, just buy a new one” lots of older tools are just better made and finding handles to fit is sometimes difficult.

[@samuelluria4744]

That mushroom doesn't come from pounding wedges. That's some knucklehead hitting the axe with a hammer.

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

That too but hitting a steel spitting wedge also mushrooms the ax head. Another comment said that plastic wedges will mushroom the ax over time. Not seen that.

[@samuelluria4744]

@@arboristBlairGlenn- Found wedges less and less necessary over the last 30+ years...certainly don't whack them enough to screw up an axe...

[@jackdawg4579]

Very nice job, you seemed to run the slot for the wedge quite deep, must of been close to to or even longer than the depth of the head?

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

No I positioned the ax with about 3/4” that I cut off. Worked out fine

[@hosocat1410]

Great project. Thanks! Did you mention the type of wood you used for the handle?

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

I was going to title this a “Nice Piece of Ash” but that felt like click bait

[@hosocat1410]

@@arboristBlairGlenn 🤣🤣🤣

[@erickuehne4194]

Very nice as always Blair. What is the wood species? Did you rive it?

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Modesto ash or should I say, “A nice piece of ash”🙄 yes, I did

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Thanks for supporting my channel. My daughter is helping me build a merch store at Etsy. More items will be added over time but please check it out. Your continued connection is appreciated. www.etsy.com/shop/ArboristBlairGlenn

[@athmostafa2462]

Did you build that tool chest???! Is there a video for it???!

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Yes, I call it my Covid project. I work all the time so when Covid hit, I stopped working for six weeks and built this. There are three videos so far but let’s start with the initial carcass. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJrZnYCEjrSZhpI

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

And the next one kzbin.info/www/bejne/lXmzaX1-hbaXm9E

[@mattlloyd9054]

Lmao a nice piece of ash! Well I can say it's better the racist blue gum tree that you introduced me to not long ago. Lmao I have to ask what's next

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

Racist??

[@mattlloyd9054]

@@arboristBlairGlenn yes the trees name is a racist slur and being where you are I'm amazed that someone hasn't tried to cancel the blue gum tree.

[@FilthyPancakes]

That looks awesome, I'm curious how well you like the heavy Hatchet?

[@arboristBlairGlenn]

I’m pretty strong so heavy is good

[@FilthyPancakes]

@@arboristBlairGlenn That's what I like to hear!