How To Replace A Pick Axe Handle?

The pickaxe started its journey as an agricultural tool, which had a purpose in agriculture. People used to plow their land with the help of pickaxes.

It doesn’t limit itself to only doing stuff as a cultivating tool. It can serve other purposes too, such as mining tools, construction tools, or even weaponry.

In a lot of circumstances, knowing how to replace a pickaxe handle can be beneficial. Let’s take a look at the ways one by one.

How To Replace A Pick Axe Handle – Here’s the Details Guide

In today’s world, no one likes to repair tools; they’d rather buy a new one. That is why replacing the axe’s handle is a skill that a few people have right now.

Although the process is not that complicated, why buy a new one when you can replace it with less effort?

Things You Will Need To Replace The Handle

There are a couple of things that you will need to replace the handle. And they are as follows:

• 180 grit sandpaper
• Standard premium wood glue
• Two metal wedges
• One wood wedge
• A hammer 
• A punch 
• Drill
• A saw

When Your Pick Axe Handle Needs A Replacement

It will surprise you to know that not knowing when to replace the handle can be extremely dangerous for the users. A loose handle can even cause death or leave a severe injury. 

Many workers get injured because they didn’t take it seriously enough to replace the loose handle in time. 

So, if you feel your pickaxe head is loosening up from the handle, don’t wait any longer and replace the handle before starting using it.

Best Pick Axe Handle

Choosing the best pickaxe handle is all-important if you want a perfect grip and to make the most of your tool.

Hickory and ash are the most popular woods that are used in pickaxes. Hickory has the most shock-absorbing quality, which gives you less strain on your hand. 

While choosing your handle, make sure the wood stick is not varnished. It will give you blisters and is completely inappropriate for use.

And don’t forget to look at the wood quality as well. The wood should be completely white, and granulation on the wood is what you should look for. Avoid wood that has any color and knots in it.

Now that you are aware of the wood quality, let’s focus on the length and weight of the handle.

The ideal length of a pickaxe handle is nearly three feet, and it should weigh about 2.5 pounds.

The fiberglass handle is no less durable than the wooden one. It sometimes produces better results than wooden ones.

It doesn’t expand in the summer or shrink in the winter. The size remains the same in all seasons. And no humid environment can degrade the quality as much as the wooden one.

This is a great alternative to your wooden handle.

Pick Handle Eye Sizes

While replacing it the right way, you must know the exact size of the eye in the head. Measure the length and width from the inside and shape your wood accordingly.

Let’s Follow The Steps

Now that you know the primary basis of the things you should know before replacing the handle, let’s get started with the course of action.

• So, the first thing we are going to do is cut off the old handle. Take the saw and cut it down carefully.
• Now take the head and remove the remaining part inside the eye. Take the punch and hammer and hit the wood inside the handle.
• Mark the top side if you get confused about which side is the upper and which side is the downside. But for a pickaxe, it is quite easy to determine. 
• Push the head back and forth to mark the right fit. You see, the wooden part doesn’t go the whole way. That is why you need to shape it according to the head size. 
• With the sandpaper, shape your wood to make it fit for the eye. 
• Place the pickaxe head with the bottom pointing up on a hard surface. 
• Take the wood and push it through the eye hard enough to let it get through the eye properly. 
• A pickaxe handle comes with a kerf cut in the wood and pickaxe handle wedges. Now place the wedge in the kerf cut with the wood glue and cut it accordingly to fit inside the kerf cut. 
• Now cut the extra part of the wood that is popping out of the upper side of the head and smooth it down with the sandpaper.
• Finally, take the metal wedges and hammer them down through the wood at the right angle. 

Now, take the sandpaper and run it through all over the handle to smooth it out. And you have successfully replaced the handle.

Fiberglass Pickaxe Handle Replacement

Along with the wooden handle, there is fiberglass pickaxe handles too. And the replacement is also very convenient.

• Remove the previous handle likewise we have mentioned before. 
• Take the fiberglass handle and push it through the eye. 
• The head of the pick axe should hold hard once put in position, and the force of this will help significantly in retaining the head fully in place on the handle.

FAQ

Final Verdict

Hopefully, learning how to replace a pick axe handle was both entertaining and educational. Now you know what to look for in your pick axe while buying a new one or replacing the old one. It makes no difference whether you use a classic wooden pick axe or a fiberglass pick axe; both will do the job perfectly.

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