Handle issue

[Perrin Aybarra]

I've got some pretty enormous palms, with relatively short fingers. For instance, when placed against my girlfriend's hand, the top joint of my fingers is completely above hers, however, our fingers are almost the exact same length. My question is, If I were to reshape a handle, do you guys have any advice on what shapes I might try? thanks always

[Rich Hale]

When youi begin to forge you will figure it out...Most hammer handls are too big to use..I will cover this in knife chat when it begins, in late october

[Frosty]

Here my favorite hammer handles. They're based loosely on Uri's but improved. <grin> I buy 1" or 4-1/4" clear, straight grained hickory from a hardwood store and saw the blanks on my bandsaw and finish them with my belt grinder. It doesn't show in the pics but the shaft is flat on the face edge and rounded on the pein edge so I don't need to look to tell which way my hammer is facing. The audience at demos is sometimes impressed when I change face to pein or visa versa by giving the hammer a spin in my hand on the back stroke. Doing demos is theater, people being entertained remember what you say and do better.

I made this hammer from a broken Ford pickup axle with Mark, Metalmangler's help, heck it was his pickup. Anyway, the handle is tapered, widening the farther you get from the head and has a round section at the end to act as a stop in case I let it slip. This is a very comfortable handle, it takes almost no grip strength to hold and if it starts to slip it's instinct to stop it as the handle gets wider in the hand. Being a slab handle means it's also instinctive to index it's position in your hand so the only time you'll strike inside or outside, that's tilt the hammer left or right, is if you WANT to.

This handle makes what I call my fencer's grip easy. I hold hammers so they pivot using my second thumb joint and first pointer finger joint as the pivot points, the rest of my fingers keep the handle from flopping freely. As I draw the hammer back on the upswing the hammer swings back sometimes nearly to my arm. Just before impact, I close my hand snapping the hammer. I crack my hammer like a whip and my grip gives my arm a fourth joint, every joint is a force multiplier.



That's what I like anyway, YMMV.

Frosty The Lucky.

[Perrin Aybarra]

Thanks guys. Right now the hammers I've got both have fiberglass handles, but the grip on one is kind of lacking, so I'm thinking of replacing it.

[Francis Trez Cole]

when you consider replacing fiber glass handles. The big issue is weight of the hammer head most long handle wood handles are only rated for a 2# hammer once you get into the 4# hammer the wood handles will not hold up.

[Glenn]

I adjust me hammer handles to fit my hand and my swing. My son can not use the hammer as he is right handed and the hammer is adjusted to left handed. (grin)

[rockstar.esq]

I agree with Rich that most handles are too big to start with. That's a good thing with wood handles because you can trim to suit. I've found that flat sides make it easier to strike a true blow. I accidentally rounded the narrow sides of my rounding hammer too much. I find the hammer torques out of line very easily now which I don't like.

Big palms and short fingers. Makes me wonder if maybe you should look for a handle that's wider on the narrow side and narrower on the wide side. By that I mean a handle that's thicker on the sides in plane with the hammer's striking sides and narrower on the sides in plane with the non striking sides.

[Perrin Aybarra]

it's not a huge problem exactly, but I just wanted to know if anyone else had similarly shaped hands and what works for them. I guess the best thing to do is wait until the handle wears out, make a new handle and see what works. I look forward to the challenge

[Sweany]

Fit the tool to the hand. I always figured hammer handles were thick so you could sand,grind or cut to fit. I usually thin mine a bit , and I do like the ball on the end. I also like to char the hammer handle and brush it down with a wire brush, this raises the grain and makes the handle more "grippy" Thanks to Bill Epps for that one.

Here's the best written article on hammer control and fitting, that I know

http://www.anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor.php?lesson=hammer/demo

[pkrankow]

I adjust me hammer handles to fit my hand and my swing. My son can not use the hammer as he is right handed and the hammer is adjusted to left handed. (grin)

How sinister. You are not the first I know to do this. I presume that one side is more flat and the other is more round... unless you carved specific space for each finger like my wife's grandfather did on many of his tools and firearms.

I like a flat sided oval so it is not left/right with the shape. I use a spokeshave to trim a wooden handle down. I also mark for length with tape, and cut to length after a few uses.

I have destroyed a few handles by taking too much wood off. (Oops!) Take a little material off at a time. The spoke shave tends to leave a surface that is very smooth and comfortable without need of sanding.

As for the rated strenght of the handle, wood handles wear out and break. Rehandling is inexpensive and considered a basic skill...but cheap tools and the disposable attititude of society makes finding handles more difficult to find. Wooden handle size into the hammer eye was determined a long time ago and provides an acceptable service life for most people.

Phil

[ThomasPowers]

If your hands are different shaped than common examples; have you thought of taking some modeling clay and making a cylinder the size of a normal hammer handle and then squishing it in your hand till it's comfortable, smooth that down and use that shape as a starting point to modify a handle to?

[Francis Trez Cole]

thomas that is a good idea

[Perrin Aybarra]

I never thought of that! Thanks!

[Smiddyt]

I like your screen name. I have read the wheel of time too.