Hickory vs ash handle

Birch and maple being diffuse porous woods are less resilient than say hickory and ash, ring porous woods, which for various reasons gives them a sort of cushion effect. Our handles are turned rather than the shaped flat boards. I did expect them to be shaped the same for the head. Hickory ranks first, and american and european ash are in an intermediate position.

One website states that hickory and ash are really the only us. I love working our home grown ash into handles for tools. Overall there are only a few things to keep in mind. Ive bought my share of hickory handles from hardware stores and have no issues with them. It would be perfectly well suited to chisel handles, plane totes and knobs, but then so are many other strong, hard or dense hardwoods as traditionally favoured for these. It cleaves and cuts like a dream, and the grain looks amazing. Axe handle materials full guide to species toughness. Many axe enthusiasts still consider ash or hickory handles to be the best you can have for any type of axe, because they look and feel great in the hands. Hickories are deciduous trees with pinnately compound. Hickory is a very tough and resilient wood but will still last much longer with a. Bt27246 bon tool 36 hickory post maul handle fits bon tool 10, 12, 14 and 16 lb post mauls. Lacquer covers up that fault and makes it look pretty. There are several true hickories and several pecan hickories.

Complete axe handle durability scale based on impact bending tests the most similar to realworld. I know you already know what you have, but an easy way of telling the difference between ash and hickory is the leaf arrangment. Whether that be ash handles can only handle 23rds the length that a hickory could or whatever the averages of all types of hickory and all types of ash is pretty big though but most all ash we buy is white ash 43, and usually we buy bitternut, shagbark, or pignut hickory avg 69 so thats pretty close to 23rds. Fiberglass handles need a 18 space around the handle to allow for glue. Place the handle into the head, and secure the handle to a jig. Come check it all out, link to the full fiskars handle test at the end of. Heartwood is also good in quality but it suits best for knobs and chisel handles, not for axe handles. I use ash for lathe tool handles and have used it for file handles as well. Choose an option ash black locust curly ash elm hickory north american beech osage orange quarterriftsawn red oak quarterriftsawn white oak sassafras walnut.

That is a can of worms, but today ill give you a few ideas you can test for yourself. Recently i made a hatchet handle out of osage orange hedge. The definition of best wood for axe handle differs from person to person as it depends on personal choices and the area you live in. Pecan hickories are not considered true hickory trees, but because pecan is the female hickory tree and the wood looks the same, the law permits pecan to be sold as hickory. Ash tool handles are available for lawn and garden tools, contractor applications, and agriculture tools. Replacement handles available for your hammer at the. Hickory sapwood, heartwood or a combination of the two all make a fine axe handle. Wood handles are great at absorbing shocks, which can be annoying or even hazardous to your health if you have joint problems. What are some suitable woods to use for tool handles. Even though the three types of wood are used in a similar manner, differences in hardness, density, grain patterns and color can affect the final outcome. Although it is strong and flexible, as its key traits, for what folk vote for it, it does not last outdoor as much as hickory does. The worldwide hickory genus includes 1719 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and large nuts.

Oregon ash has a janka rating of 1,160, and pumpkin ash rates 990. Ash, beech, cherry and black locust are strong, heavy hardwoods that are sometimes used in handle construction, but hickory has historically been the most prized wood for shovel handles, as well as the handles of other hand tools. I have had to do more shaping than i expected to get my cold steel tomahawks to seat properly. A few weeks ago steven at skillcult posted a video on his axe handle oiling system and wrote. Furniture, flooring, doors, architectural millwork and moulding, kitchen cabinets, paneling, tool handles, baseball bats, sporting equipment, and turnings. Long, straightgrained woods such as hickory or ash are traditionally chosen for axe handles because they are strong and produce long. Hickory is the most popular option, since it is more dense than ash and has a higher flexibility threshold. Striking tool replacement handles made from tennessee hickory wood, including axe handles, hammer handles, wooden sledge handles, carving tool wooden handles, furniture dimension and. Axe handles axe handles are traditionally made of hickory or ash. Make your own axe handle autumn 2011 knots and bolts.

After thorough testing we have concluded that a shorter handled axe does not impart enough force for parallel grain to be advantageous in handle performance. Without a handle, an ax is only an awkward chuck of steel. Lacquered vs bare wood axe handles and the demise of. An ash has opposite leaf arrangment and hickorys are alternate.

Why is it so hard to find a quality hickory axe handle. Now hickory heartwood is fine wood, but not ideal for handles of this type. The most familiar may be the janka hardness test or crush strength test. Most of my new hammers have hickory or ash depending whether they are european or chinese manufacture, my old hammers and axes, top tools, etc are all ash as far as i can tell. Ash the best axe handle wood ash is the most common wood in european countries, and european people prefer this wood because it has long fiber that has a nice impact absorbency. What is the best wood for baseball bats bear valley bats.

Part of the workshop companion, a collection of information on wood, woodwork, woodworking skills, woodworking materials, and woodworking plans that together form the core knowledge needed by woodworkers, furniture. The model 271 is probably the most popular bat in use today. Trees in the genus carya from ancient greek for nut are commonly known as hickory. A number of hickory species are used for products like edible nuts or wood. It is used in industrial settings, for tool handles, athletic equipment and home decor. Other woods used for axe handles include ash, hophornbeam aka. Find a perfect fit for your helko axe for easy replacement. Hickory is a type of tree, comprising the genus carya, which includes around 18 species. Its very difficult to find a high quality purpose built axe or hatchet. But, outdoor enthusiasts still refer to some specific options because wooden hatchet handle made from the wood of these trees last for a long time many people use ash axe handle due to its longevity. White oak like a poor mans hickory, it has pretty much all the same characteristic of hickory but seems slightly less affected by moisture. North america has the overwhelming edge on the number of native hickory species, with a dozen or so 1112 in the united states, one in mexico, while there are five or six species from.

Among them was a fine, straight grained white ash tree, a portion of which i set aside for. The standard handle materials seem to be hickory and ash. The differences between oak and hickory are typically defined by application. If you see dark heartwood streaks in a hickory handle, its no good, just a handle with a builtin fault. Ash has very good overall strength properties relative to its weight. We stock a vast range of handles so you should find what you are looking for, our range includes broom handles, axe and log splitting handles, hoe handles, hammer handles, slasher, sledge and maul handles. Wood strength, including the relationship between grain direction and strength, specific gravity as an indication of wood strength, and additional ways to measure wood strength. The handle of splitting axe is normally made of wood or composite materials whereas that of a splitting maul it is usually made of composite materials like fiberglass, hickory or plastic. This is a short video on where to buy replacement handles and what to look for in a good handle. The first is if youre buying an axe or sledge handle it should be pale in colour. It has excellent shock resistance and is good for steam bending. Thus after going through splitting axe vs splitting maul it can be said that both are equally good for splitting wood.

Hickory is prone to splitting, but it is tough and strong. Hickory solid hardwood hardwood flooring the home depot. Ash is a strong and flexible wood, but it generally doesnt last as long as your hickory or oak. Many axe enthusiasts still consider ash or hickory handles to be the best you can have for any type of axe, because they look and feel great in the. The a to z of choosing the best wood for axe handle. Use the tabs at the left to find the items you need or the store search bar.

America, and youd better hope its white or green ash rather than black ash, they dont sort by species in lumber yards. Comparisons between oak and hickory should include both types of oak. Tape the bottom of the hammer head with masking tape. It took me many years to finally arrive at a very simple but effective system for oiling axe handles. An assortment of ash and hickory axe replacement handles, finished with boiled linseed oil. Answer canadian yellow birch, true northern white ash, and true hickory. Hickory blanks and dimension are manufactured and sold by charles o. What splitting maul with hickory handle do you like. Spike maul handles, hickory mallet hammers, adze handles, file handles and tomahawk. Gingerwood 1600 ash, domestic white 20 goncalo alves 2160 amendoim 60 grapia 2053 white oak, north american 60 heart pine 870 910 cypress, australian hard 75 hickory 1820 walnut, caribbean 1400 imbuia 950 walnut, mayanaztec 1400 irokokambala 1260 maple, hard north american 1450 ironwood, green 3680 mahogany, african, sapele 1500.

Of the timbers classed as handle timbers, american hickory has the. Choosing a piece reddish in color means that you have picked up heartwood. Ash is by far the best wood for handles, and the best ash with straight grain and no faults will last a very long time if not abused. Hickory or red oak may not be available all the time model 271 shown in maple with natural barrel and black stained handle. We also keep hay fork, manure and spade, shovel and fork handles. Birch is probably the most common handle wood for axes in northern scandinavia but thats only because other hardwoods are scarce or dont grow that far north. The handle of a traditionalstyle axe will typically be made of wood. Five or six species are native to china, indochina, and india, as many as twelve are native to the united states, four are found in mexico, and two to four are from canada. The romans preferred holly due to its springyness aparently. Hickory wood is an exceptionally heavy, hard and strong substance that also offers amazing bending properties.

All models are available in ash, birch, hard maple, hickory or red oak. Our personalized ash and maple handles are made to fit specific axes using straight grain. Most of the axes you find in hardware stores are a poor substitute. Elm is a very tight wood and makes nearly as good if not as good a handle as hickory, ash, or oak. Birch wood is quite popular in several scandinavian countries. To see all of our items at once click the link at the bottom of the categories list. The lowest janka rating for an ash wood is black ash at 850.