I'm just getting started with collecting the stuff I need to pretend to be a blacksmith. I picked up 5 hammers yesterday at a local estate sale. None of them is anything special but they were $1 each so how could I not buy them?! All of them need new handles and a couple of them could use a little minor cleanup on the striking faces but overall I think they'll be a nice addition to my collection of junky old tools. I figure they can either be used as hammers or as a starting point to reshape them into something else. 4 of them are various sized sledge type hammers and one is a straight pein.

[The pipe cutter and pipe threading stuff with a basket of usable dies was from the same seller. I only paid $20 for everything in the picture!]


My question is about finding replacement handles...

I'm not sure I've ever re-handled a hammer before. I've replaced a few ax handles and I just went to the local hardware store and picked up a handle. I think I'm okay on the "how to install the handle" side of things but I'm unsure where to get the handles other than walking into my local Ace Hardware or Tractor Supply and seeing what they have on the shelf. I found a couple things on ebay and Amazon that looked like they would work but I'm a little nervous to buy sight unseen without someone else's recommendation.

Where do you buy handles for hammers? I probably lack the woodworking skill to make my own so I'd prefer to start with ready made handles and simply tweak them as needed. Any advice is appreciated.

Any decent hardware store should have bare handles. Find one that's got the grain aligned well, just like you would for an axe.

I prefer to sand any new handles until I get rid of the finish the factory puts on them. It's too slippery and will cause you to want to grip too tightly when your hand gets sweaty. After removing that stuff, I soak the handle overnight in a mixture of 1 part Boiled Linseed Oil and 2 parts Thinner (Lacquer Thinner, Acetone, or Mineral Spirits). The thinner makes the BLO just that, a whole lot more runny, and it can soak deep into the pores of the wood. This minimizes the wood's shrinking or expanding with humidity and gives you a good grippy surface.

look through here
http://www.iforgeiro...ry-for-handles/

Phil

VaughnT has a great tip, I would only add to not be afraid to shape the handle to fit your hand better while you are at it.
Also you can check out your local farm store or "mom and Pop" lumber yard. Our local yard has more types and sizes of handles than I have seen in any of the franchise stores.

Thanks for all the great responses. After checking several local hardware stores and Tractor Supply I was disappointing to find pretty much nothing usable. They all stopped carrying the handles because you can buy the whole hammer for $12-$15 so no one wanted just handles anymore. I think I'll order some from HouseHandle and see how that goes.

The handles from handlehouse are great. Took a little time to get them sanded and fitting just right but they feel really good and the handles are blemish free.

That gloss worries me though as finished handles seem to cause more blisters to me than sanded raw wood ones. I tend to scrape and sand the grip section to suit myself...

That gloss worries me though as finished handles seem to cause more blisters to me than sanded raw wood ones. I tend to scrape and sand the grip section to suit myself...

I considered throwing the handles in my sandblast cabinet to strip them and refinish with boiled linseed oil or some other hand-friendlier wood preservative but I opted to try them "as-is" for a bit. I like to wear "mechanics" gloves when I work with any kind of handled tool from hammers to shovels so blisters aren't usually a big problem for me. I guess only time will tell if the slicker coating causes grip problems and sends hammers flying across the workshop though. :wacko:

I'm a "no gloves smith" as I find wearing gloves tends to make me grasp harder which is rougher on the arm than a very loose grip----I often let the handle slip in my hand while raising it to switch positions of my hand on it.