After my last cross project I decided that I need to buy or build a flatter. I've seen alot of tools that have the standard wooden handle through an eye in the head of the tool. Not as many but I have also seen some that have a rod or heavy wire handle. Is there an advantage one way or the other or are most tools handled with wood because it's always been done that way?

the main difference IMO are two things:1 with a "rod handled" flatter you don't have to punch and drift a handle eye which can be challenging without a striker,2 a "rod handled" flatter can "float" on the material and find high spots easier.all in all i think it all comes down to what you have available for materials,help etc;

Wire loop handles don't burn, or dry out.

 

Edited October 4, 201510 yr by BIGGUNDOCTOR

An Idea I've been toying with is making a drift the same size as a hockey stick cross section,  always seems to be plenty at yard sales etc,  and talk to the right group of adults or kids and there should be plenty of broken ones as well.   I know of a few hammers in Dads shop that have been re-handled with them and they have lasted years. 

The wire was an adaption of chestnut wips. I like chiping hammer handles

Chestnut wips? Those were the answers i was hoping to get, thanks guys. Don't think I'm up to making a drift yet for the eye.

An eye drift doesn't have to be anything more than a tapered round punch of an appropriate size. For the last few hammers I made I just punch them round and then hammer the cheeks in flat which gives you a nice oval.

Hadn't thought of that, thanks FoxFire. Makes sense though.

An Idea I've been toying with is making a drift the same size as a hockey stick cross section,  always seems to be plenty at yard sales etc,  and talk to the right group of adults or kids and there should be plenty of broken ones as well.   I know of a few hammers in Dads shop that have been re-handled with them and they have lasted years. 

You mean like this? I just grabbed a handful out of the trash barrel behind the high school ice rink after asking permission. I had to meet the coach at a local coffee shop to show him the Francesca Wasilla. It'd be a bit much to take to even an Alaskan high school you know.

Made the drift from a RR rail clip it only needed a little forging to match the hockey stick. A little light and whippy for hammer handles but they're fine for top tools.

Good idea, my compliments.

Frosty The Lucky

 Don't think I'm up to making a drift yet for the eye.

It's not really all that hard to do. Made this flatter and set hammer in my 2nd blacksmithing class. I had help punching the original hole in the 1 1/4" stock and it helped to have someone to hold the stock while I swung the sledge to drift the eye. Eye was made from simply 1" round mild steel I flattened and tapered. I looked at the replacement handle on my cross peen and guessed how close I needed to be to match that handle. It came out pretty close.

 

 

 

 

 

If you punch and drift round you might have less material in your cheeks than you want. Most good eye punches are long and thin in a cross section, for this reason.

then we forge the cheaks down thinner so they don't bulge... Acualy Weygers acualy showes just that method of hammer making under the powerhammer. 

More than one way to skin a cat(fish) 

I make hammer handles from hickory lumber I get from a local specialty lumber supplier. the same one Mark, the Metalmangler buys his handle stock from so the owner knows better than I what the best handle wood is. It's 5/4" x 4"-6" rough cut. I band saw the blank and fine tune the pol end in the belt grinder. It's fast, easy and I really prepare a slab handle.

I taper my handles from the head wider to the far end and leave a small bulge. I've discovered from use the tapered handle completely eliminated the occasional thrown handle a straight handle and tired or too relaxed grip can cause.

The slab handles are not only easier to grip they are much easier to index by feel than oval handles. This makes it much easier to know exactly at what angle I'm striking the stock so all operations where hammer marks are a factor are faster and easier.

Frosty The Lucky.

pretty much just like that Frosty.  If I remember right its  a smaller ballpein and a shorter handled claw hammer.  So the whippyness is less of a factor.  but should be great for top tools