What do a sledgehammer, an ax and a hammer have in common? Operating principle. They need a swing to strike. That’s why a handle is needed, and the heavier the tool, the longer it is, as a rule.
During the swing, a centrifugal force acts on the metal part of the instrument, which tends to tear it off the handle. Moreover, this force is greater, the more massive the head and the longer the handle of the axe, sledgehammer or hammer.
Traditionally, to strengthen the head on the handle, a wooden wedge is driven into its end after the metal part is seated. Sometimes one or two smaller metal ones are driven in at an angle to the main wedge.
But there are alternative ways to securely secure the parts of the above-mentioned tools relative to each other. Below we will consider and practically implement one of them.
Place the hammer on the handle without a wedge using rubber
The handle can be purchased at a hardware store or made yourself from hard wood, which includes: oak, birch, maple, rowan, beech, ash, dogwood and others.When choosing, you just need to pay attention to the end of the workpiece and choose the one whose annual rings are located longitudinally and not transversely. Such a handle will be stronger and last longer.
It is believed that the slot in the handle for driving in the wedge weakens it. If you use rubber to securely attach the hammer head to the handle, then loosening does not occur, since there is no need for a wedge fastening, and therefore no need for a slot.
It is necessary to prepare the handle blank for the attachment. To do this, we adjust the side with a smaller cross-section to the hole in the head using a carpenter's knife, a wood file or an emery wheel. The seating part of the handle should fit freely into the hole in the head without tension and correspond in length to it.
Next, we cut out a strip from a bicycle inner tube or any elastic rubber, the length of which should provide a girth around the seat of the handle with some clearance, and the width should have a margin of about 1 cm in both directions.
Lubricate the outside surface of the rubber with lithol to facilitate the attachment process.
To do this, hit the opposite end of the handle on a stable surface. It is best if it is a massive wooden block.
After making sure that the hammer head is in place, we remove the squeezed out excess lithol with a rag and cut off the ends of the rubber on both sides of the hammer head with a sharp knife, so to speak, flush.
Then carefully cover the joint between the mounting hole of the hammer and the handle with glue (PVA, “Moment” or something similar). We do this, on the one hand, in order to strengthen the connection, but, mainly, to ensure that moisture does not penetrate into the connection between the hammer head and the handle.After all, water, once in an unprotected gap, can over time cause rotting of the wood and oxidation of the metal, which will inevitably lead to weakening of the fastening and failure of the tool.
What else is the advantage of fitting the handle into the head of the hammer this way? The presence of a rubber layer between the parts of the tool, as it were, isolates the handle from the head and the force of impact of the striker on another hard surface is damped and the hand does not experience all the energy of a hard and sharp contact.
All of the above can be repeated one to one, both with an ax and a sledgehammer. The glue, of course, may come off in places over time, so you will have to restore it. The handle can be burned with a blowtorch or gas torch and then wiped thoroughly with a rag. This will give the handle a noble appearance and ease of use.
In custody
Grease of mineral origin, which includes litol, has a bad effect on rubber over time and it begins to deteriorate. It is better to replace it with thick soap jelly. It also makes the attachment easier, but after the water evaporates, it loses its sliding properties and further strengthens the connection.
To seal joints, instead of PVA and other adhesives that harden and become brittle, it is preferable to use silicone sealant, which remains always flexible and less prone to cracking.
Since attaching a hammer, ax or sledgehammer with rubber requires considerable effort, the opposite end of the handle should be strengthened while attaching, by clasping it with a clamp and tightening it tightly. The clamp can be replaced with construction tape or vinyl insulating tape, tightly wrapping the handle in several layers.
Also, instead of rubber, you can use a tube made of galvanized sheet metal with a seam, which is put on the handle and inserted into the hole of the hammer. Next, as usual: a few blows and all the parts take their places, and very firmly and reliably.
