DAMMERR Handles
The first 23
DAMMERRs were mounted on handles from various manufactures.
Most of
these were wood but a few were mounted on fiberglass
handles. The wood handles all
had to be modified by turning down the end on a lathe to fit
into the heads. I didn't like
the wood handles I could find because the only handles I
could find that were fat enough
at the head end to fill the hole in the head were mallet
handles and the cross section of
the grip was nearly round. A round handle section does not
give feedback about which way
the head is pointed. Although functionally fiberglass
handles may be the best, I think they
are ugly and they are a pain to mount on the heads and
get everything square.
I decided to make
my own handles out of hickory. I got a big slab of hickory
and ripped it
down into 1 inch thick strips. The strips were cut to rough
length and then a handle was
shaped from each piece after aligning the handle pattern to
the grain as best I could. The
shape was cut out on a trimming router bit using a template.
The edges were then
rounded with a round over router bit. Lastly, the the handle
was mounted in a lathe to
make the round part that fits into the head.
The latest
modification was to ream out the head so I can fit a steel
tube into the head and
over the handle making an extra strong and robust handle.
#'s 25, 26, 27 & 28 on shop made
handles
#31 with reinforced handle
#31 with reinforced handle
#37 with a protective steel collar below
the head, the Klutz
The most recent modification to the handle was to expand the lower portion of the tube to fit a fatter and thus stronger handle.
Stronger
handle with swaged steel tube
Fiberglass
handles cost ~$10-15 but are hard to find. Ordered from
websites often take 3-4 weeks since they usually drop ship
them and they can't find them either. What you want is Nupla
part number 59853 or product number A8513 which is a 13"
handle that is 0.85" in the large dimension of the cross
section. It has the regular grip not the weird grip that the
Omega Pacific hammer uses. They are a pain and somewhat
tricky to put on.
#25 fitted with a fiber glass handle
I have some heat
shrink handle grip which I think is really great. It is very
grippy
even when wet. It won't last forever but should last longer
than tape. If you get
a DAMMERR, ask me to put some on the handle to try out.
Shrink grip handle wrap
DAMMERR #14 on an early wood handle with a Chouinard
hammer for comparison
Hickory
slab
1-3/4
inches thick