[TheForge] Dewalt new hammer and sledges

[Bruce .]

Good to hear from you, Frosty.

Perhaps I should share an experiment I tried some years ago and found
satisfactory, but  never perfected.

I took a sponge-rubber ball, about the size of a tennis ball, and notched
it to fit over a hammer handle.  I then wrapped the ball and handle with
friction tape.  (Look that up if you're not old enough a fart to know what
the stuff is.  It formerly was used by electricians, and is not the stuff
used these days on tennis rackets.)  The result was a "lump" on the handle
that I could move anyway I wanted.  I'd generally position it halfway down
the handle or so.  My thumb and index finger then would go around the
handle while the other fingers grasped the ball.  This essentially forces
the user ot use the grip suggested by Hofi.

I found I could swing quite hard without any risk of the hammer slipping in
my grip.  The grip feels quite natural, as does the swing.

What I'd wanted to do was to make the whole thing more convenient, but I
never got there.

Bruce
NJ

On Fri, Mar 23, 2018 at 6:35 PM, jerry Frost <akfrosty at mtaonline.net> wrote:

>
> Oh yeah, hammer handles. I hate factory handles, actually prefer the old
> Estwing integral steel and leather or rubber handles to what's on new
> hammers. Since I started using slab handles I haven't thrown a hammer by
> accident even once. I buy 5/4" straight grain clear hickory from a hardwood
> supply guy and have a couple patterns I based on what Uri Hoffi  likes. I
> taper them about 3/4" from head to the end, it makes them easy to hold
> without gripping and if they start to slip at all your grip tightens.
> They're eaasy to use for hours without tiring. I hold my hammer between the
> first knuckle of my index finger and my thumb so it pivots giving me a 4th.
> pivot point. Every pivot is a force multiplier so I can swing harder
> without
> using as much energy.
>
> I prefer the fiberglass and plastic handle on my 8 lb. sledge to wooden.
>
> Frosty
>