Decent Handle For A Sledgehammer

mikefoxo · 30-07-2015 10:09pm #1

Broke the old handle a year ago. Fair enough it had been in it for a few years. Got a new one in the co-op I think it was, have broken it three times in the last 12 months:mad: All it's done is hammer a wedge through a (small!!) amount of knotty timber and put down less than 30 4 inch posts. Is it just a bad handle, made from the wrong timber or what? It's really p!ssing me off now. What sort of wood should they be made from??

Jimlh86 · 30-07-2015 10:13pm

mikefoxo wrote: »

Broke the old handle a year ago. Fair enough it had been in it for a few years. Got a new one in the co-op I think it was, have broken it three times in the last 12 months:mad: All it's done is hammer a wedge through a (small!!) amount of knotty timber and put down less than 30 4 inch posts. Is it just a bad handle, made from the wrong timber or what? It's really p!ssing me off now. What sort of wood should they be made from??

Get a plastic one I have a dargan one I think, yellow and black handle give it dogs abuse never any problem

cute geoge · 30-07-2015 10:14pm

I just drive a 2' length of heavy gal. inch pipe in to sledge and weld it

Username John · 30-07-2015 10:15pm

cute geoge wrote: »

I just drive a 2' length of heavy gal. inch pipe in to sledge and weld it

Jesus, would that kill you with the shock from it

Genghis Cant · 30-07-2015 10:29pm

Hickory is what's normally used.
Some lads would break a crow bar in a bog, other lads are easy enough on handles.
Nice steady clean strikes are often better that a frenzy of savagery :-)

td5man · 30-07-2015 10:39pm

Username John wrote: »

Jesus, would that kill you with the shock from it

Have 1 1/4 steel handle in my sledge no shock from it.

farmerjj · 30-07-2015 11:04pm

cute geoge wrote: »

I just drive a 2' length of heavy gal. inch pipe in to sledge and weld it

+1

mikefoxo · 31-07-2015 7:18pm

Jimlh86 wrote: »

Get a plastic one I have a dargan one I think, yellow and black handle give it dogs abuse never any problem

Where would you get a plastic handle? Seen hammers in DIY with plastic handles but never just the handle itself.

The first time it broke I will admit it had one or two chips out of it, but the last three times it just broke right at the base of the head, not a scratch on it

Count Mondego · 31-07-2015 8:23pm

"There's nothing like a nice piece of Hickory"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyjrUAimzZg

whelan2 · 31-07-2015 8:28pm

cute geoge wrote: »

I just drive a 2' length of heavy gal. inch pipe in to sledge and weld it

have one of them too, never gets lost as no one uses it:o

Genghis Cant · 31-07-2015 9:09pm

Count Mondego wrote: »

"There's nothing like a nice piece of Hickory"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyjrUAimzZg

Much obliged.......

Jimlh86 · 31-07-2015 9:38pm

mikefoxo wrote: »

Where would you get a plastic handle? Seen hammers in DIY with plastic handles but never just the handle itself.

The first time it broke I will admit it had one or two chips out of it, but the last three times it just broke right at the base of the head, not a scratch on it

Sorry apologies, I doubt you can get the plastic handle on it's own the bought the whole sledge.. It's a great job though I can't see how it would break with "normal" farm use

td5man · 31-07-2015 10:05pm

Jimlh86 wrote: »

Sorry apologies, I doubt you can get the plastic handle on it's own the bought the whole sledge.. It's a great job though I can't see how it would break with "normal" farm use

Asked in local hardware and they only come complete thought I saw them separately somewhere.

Sam Kade · 31-07-2015 10:09pm

cute geoge wrote: »

I just drive a 2' length of heavy gal. inch pipe in to sledge and weld it

I've 2 of them after getting fed up of buying timber handles

Markcheese · 31-07-2015 10:09pm

I saw them in the the local co-op - must get a splitting maul with plastic handle- because I 'be a major habit of taking the head off that -

Sam Kade · 31-07-2015 10:12pm

Username John wrote: »

Jesus, would that kill you with the shock from it

Wrap silage tape around it if you have tender hands

Username John · 31-07-2015 10:43pm

Sam Kade wrote: »

Wrap silage tape around it if you have tender hands

How did you know Sam

I dunno, if you wanted to break up stones around a post, or break a piece of concrete (as I have with the sledge in the past) or hit anything else heavy and metal, then I'd prefer a timber handle... But each to their own

Sam Kade · 31-07-2015 10:53pm

Username John wrote: »

How did you know Sam

I dunno, if you wanted to break up stones around a post, or break a piece of concrete (as I have with the sledge in the past) or hit anything else heavy and metal, then I'd prefer a timber handle... But each to their own

Breaking stones jaysus :eek: Are you in the chain gang by any chance? I only use a sledge for breaking down tractor tyres or driving stakes

If I want to break concrete it's down to the local plant hire for a kango hammer

Username John · 31-07-2015 11:03pm

Sam Kade wrote: »

Breaking stones jaysus :eek: Are you in the chain gang by any chance? I only use a sledge for breaking down tractor tyres or driving stakes If I want to break concrete it's down to the local plant hire for a kango hammer

Ah, the joys of farming Sam, maybe worse than a chain gang - I've no release date

Ah, if I was hanging a gate, I'd put in the post and break stones around it. I think the breaking concrete was just taking a corner off...

Sledge is a bollox for driving stakes - get a mallet (oh, just remembered I need to out a new handle in ours - and a steel handle would prob work well on that)

selectamatic · 31-07-2015 11:18pm

Neighbor has the old axle of a cart welded into a lump of a head

no danger of breaking that! Lifting it is enough of a challenge. That said it was mainly made as a joke but it has seen action when lesser sledges and indeed lesser men have failed :P Also seen a small length of piping slotted down over a handle and welded to the head to act as a sort of collar seems a fairly decent job too.

Jb1989 · 01-08-2015 1:11am

Count Mondego wrote: »

"There's nothing like a nice piece of Hickory"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyjrUAimzZg

Well said Clint

ganmo · 01-08-2015 9:46am

I wouldn't be the kindest to handles but the one that closest to coming apart is the pick and that doesn't get used too much

Reggie. · 01-08-2015 10:36am

Sam Kade wrote: »

Wrap silage tape around it if you have tender hands

Or the tape for the top of the hurley

frazzledhome · 01-08-2015 10:47am

Jimlh86 wrote: »

Sorry apologies, I doubt you can get the plastic handle on it's own the bought the whole sledge.. It's a great job though I can't see how it would break with "normal" farm use

We broke one but it got driven over

Jimlh86 · 01-08-2015 11:51am

frazzledhome wrote: »

We broke one but it got driven over

Reggie. · 01-08-2015 12:54pm

frazzledhome wrote: »

We broke one but it got driven over

That'll do it alright

MickeyShtyles · 01-08-2015 1:22pm

Reggie. wrote: »

Or the tape for the top of the hurley

Yep, that's what I've done with the axe here. Savage altogether!

01-08-2015 11:20pm

td5man wrote: »

Asked in local hardware and they only come complete thought I saw them separately somewhere.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-New-Sledge-Hammer-Handle-Fiberglass-S-284-ATE-Tools-Replacement-Fiber-Glass-/331485354034?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4d2e111832

The only problem is they are coming from the states

01-08-2015 11:22pm

Genghis Cant wrote: »

Hickory is what's normally used.
Some lads would break a crow bar in a bog, other lads are easy enough on handles.
Nice steady clean strikes are often better that a frenzy of savagery :-)

Ive seen lads get a piece of tight fitting water pipe about 3 inches long and put this on the handle before the head of the sledge. When you miss whatever you are hitting the water pipe protects the handle

dzer2 · 02-08-2015 9:58am

Hickory handle and learn to swing the sledge
Should come from behind your leg over your head on to the object being hit, never broke a handle here.
Used to sledge for a blacksmith you would learn quick enough

Decent Handle For A Sledgehammer

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