So we all swing a hammer, and im sure we all have tried many different types of wood to make a handle. I was clearing brush in my back yard last year and if over grown with mountain lorrel bushes. generally they dont get to big but they are tough. very springy and dence. As i was cutting some down i came across a really big one. the main stalk was 6 inches wide. as i was cutting it down i had a thought if i could find a straight peice ill let it dry and test a handle. its very hard to find one big enough and straight, they dont like to grow straight, but i managed to get a 20 inch section that was straight enought.
So a year has past and it was nice n dry to start cutting into a hammer blank. the ends didnt crack bad at all almost no cracking what so ever. it came as a suprise that it was extremely light as well. not much lighter than hickory, but still lighter. I was starting to get a little concerned that it would break on the first swing, iwasnt putting it on a light hammer either, a 4lb brazel style rounding hammer.
it has been almost 2 months and its still going strong. i guess i could have made this a bit shorter and my spelling is terrible but i figured maybe someone else can give this a shot. i dont like buying handle i prefer to make em but hickory is scarce were i live, like there everyware but ive only managed to find 3 near my house and boy walking a half mile thru the woods carrying hickory is not fun. great workout tho.