I was splitting firewood this morning and I cracked the handle on my axe. I know this is not exactly a fine woodworking question, but -- how do I get the head off so that I can put on a new handle?
I've tried banging on it with a hammer. No luck.
I seem to remember hearing a while back that you could toss it into a fire and let the wood either burn out or char out. I'm not sure my memory is good on this. Even if true - I also don't know if there are any steel hardness issues to take into consideration.
Can anyone offer any suggestions. I'd certainly appreciate any help. Thanks
>...saw the handle off BELOW the head. Drill a few good size (1/4"-3/8") holes down through the remainder of the wood. Drive out the rest with a drift punch from the top down.
...when replacing with a new handle test fit it first. They're usually a bit too snug and I take 'em down with a belt sander or other. Axe handles are somewhat curved so it you try the usual approach of hammering them on a solid surface to drive the head on it usually winds up off perpendicular unless you prepare the handle first.
Addy Protocal: No expert but replacing handles on striking and other tools one of my more satisfying and, usually, rewarding tasks
....good luck
...oh and BTW....I'd never put one in a fire like the Boy Scout manuals say.
>Thanks, guys, for the advice. Drilling it will be. I thought I had heard about drilling some time in the past, too, and, in fact, had already drilled one hole when I posed my question. However, I wasn't sure this wouldn't end up being counterproductive or something - so I stopped and posted my question. Also I wasn't sure how big (or deep) the wedge went, so I wasn't sure how far down to drill.
Another advantage to drilling is that I can work on it tonight. I didn't have any plans to light any fires any time soon.
>I saw the handle off, as John does, and I drill holes from below, as he does, but then I drive out handle fragments from the bottom up - there's a reason that you wedge the top: the axe eye is either tapered outward toward the top or it's waisted, narrowest in the middle. Either way, driving the wedged portion of the handle out the top is easiest.
If you don't have a drift punch, take some rod or, in a pinch, the largest spike you can find, and cut an approximately square end on it to use as a punch.
>Modern Axes as Bill points out have a eye that is larger at the top.I remove alot of handles because I sell a good many axe heads and always take the handles off to make it easier to ship.With about 80% I don't do any drilling all you have to do is cut it off and then drive the peice out of the eye from the bottom.I open up my leg vice jaws lay the head across and then drive the wood out with a big copper punch using a large hammer and hitting it hard. Most times this is all it takes and I would try it befor going to the trouble of drilling holes etc.
Antique axes almost always have eyes that are smaller at the top,I have some where the eye is just a slit at top.Not quite sure why this is , not a good way to keep a head on a handle but when I made axes that was the way I had to make to make them as well.One thing I discovered was that when making the eye and you drifted the eye to shape it is easier to do it from below as you didn't have to worry about the ears getting deformed on the anvil. Maybe that was why they had smaller eyes at the top.......Todd
Thanks for your ideas on this, too. I didn't have a drift punch so I used a piece of hardwood dowel and a wooden mallet. I did a bit of drilling since I was using the dowel, and while it didn't just "pop" out, it did come out with a bit of persuasion.
>I seem to remember hearing a while back that you could toss it into a fire and let the wood either burn out or char out.
This is one of those great myths. It is obviously(?) a terrible idea; you will ruin the head's temper.
And yet, if you raise the question of axe handle removal in a group (e.g. an auction), there's always an old boy who'll come out with (something along the lines of)...
"You want to know the smart man's way to remove a handle?"
(pause - he'll insist on being prompted)
"Just put it on a good fire" (with a knowing grin and a wink)
>Knew a fella who favored cutting the handle flush,drilling a blasting cap sized hole(don`t get ahead of me)and using a blasting cap to remove the waste.Said he had done it dozens of times.
During the demo(it has his ax)where he used a different brand of cap than he was used to,a rather large crack appeared in the cheek of said ax rendering it useless.Ray,always the teacher,looked at it and said"there`s a lesson to be learned here".Without thinking I said"You can only be stupid for so long before it catches up with you".Evidently Ray thought it was to use your regular brand of blasting caps.
You would have thought Ray would have learned from the pig feeder incident.
Mainely,Bob-Remembering the demolition school motto"There is no problem so great that it cannot be solved by the use of high explosives"
>Better get comfy,this may take awhile.Get something cold to drink while you`re at it.
Seems Ray had won a fleet of pigs(If they can call a group of fish a school,or a group of crows a murder,I`m guessing a group of pigs could be a fleet)in a card game.Being one to make the best of any situation Ray decided to become a part time pig farmer(a self appointed admiral,so to speak).
Ray soon found that feeding those pigs is a real chore so he went looking for an alternative and found a LARGE metal bin type feeder with doors over the feeding stations to keep vermin out.Ray takes out a second mortgage to fill the thing after setting it in place and relaxes till he discovers that when a pig is done feeding it backs away and lets that metal door slam shut with a loud bang.
Now Ray`s new pigs soon become wise to the fact that the new fast food place in town is open 24/7 and take advantage of this fact.Ray grinds his teeth and puts up with it figuring they`ll quit as soon as all the food`s gone.
Most folks don`t have any idea how smart a pig really can be,Ray would be in that group.
When the food ran out the pigs got pissed and started using those slamming metal doors to vent thier frustrations.After afew sleepless nights Ray decides enough is enough and throws a stick of dynamite into the feeder in a late night fit of anger,killing the feeder and more than afew pigs.You see,when the pigs saw Ray coming out to see them in the middle of the night they all crowded around thinking they were going to be fed.
Wouldn`t you know that at least one of those doors would survive the blast and one of the smarter(?) pigs would find it about an hour after the massacre.
The bad news is that Ray quickly went through the rest of the fleet with alittle assist from his 10 gage shotgun.Seems rage improves your night vision.
The good news is we had alot of meat to dispose of by way of the smokehouse and community BBQ`s.
Just another day in rural Texas.
Mainely,Bob-Who never did figure out how Ray kept getting those explosives.
