Hi all
I have an old sledgehammer which I wish to press into service once
again. The head is a little loose, and:

(a) the wedges are buried deep inside the head of the shaft;
I haven't been able to remove them
(b) the wedges have clearly been re-fitted a few times in the past;
the shaft head has 'star-shaped' gaps (probably why the head is loose)

I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?

Thanks, J^n

On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk> wrote:

>I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?

I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a bucket of water
before use an option?

Thomas Prufer

Thomas Prufer wrote:

> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk> wrote:
>
>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>
> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a bucket of water
> before use an option?

Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?

On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:42:17 +0100, Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk>
wrote:

>Thomas Prufer wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk> wrote:
>>
>>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>>
>> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a bucket of water
>> before use an option?
>
>Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
>absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?

It's what they did with the 'Mary Rose'
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/181367/conserving-britains-most-precious-antique-ship/

--
Chris

On 25/04/2024 15:14, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> Hi all
>     I have an old sledgehammer which I wish to press into service once
> again. The head is a little loose, and:
>
> (a) the wedges are buried deep inside the head of the shaft;
> I haven't been able to remove them
> (b) the wedges have clearly been re-fitted a few times in the past;
> the shaft head has 'star-shaped' gaps (probably why the head is loose)
>
> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>

Nope. Tried it with a small hatchet, it won't survive the shock.

--
Regards
wasbit

On 25/04/2024 15:42, Andy Burns wrote:
> Thomas Prufer wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>>
>> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a
>> bucket of water
>> before use an option?
>
> Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
> absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?
>
Didn't know that. Thanks

--
Regards
wasbit

On 25/04/2024 16:55, Chris Hogg wrote:
> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:42:17 +0100, Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk>
> wrote:
>
>> Thomas Prufer wrote:
>>
>>> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>>>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>>>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>>>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>>>
>>> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a bucket of water
>>> before use an option?
>>
>> Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
>> absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?
>
> It's what they did with the 'Mary Rose'
> https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/181367/conserving-britains-most-precious-antique-ship/
>
Interesting... thanks for the info.

I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps in
the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.

Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every f
mins or so.

Cheers, J^n

On 26/04/2024 10:11, wasbit wrote:
> On 25/04/2024 15:42, Andy Burns wrote:
>> Thomas Prufer wrote:
>>
>>> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>>>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>>>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>>>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>>>
>>> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a
>>> bucket of water
>>> before use an option?
>>
>> Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
>> absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?
>>
> Didn't know that. Thanks
>
>
Polyethylene glycol is your friend.

Also sold for medical uses as 'macrogol'.
It retains water like crazy stopping wood from shrinking and splitting
and your turds from becoming too hard to shit.

Recommended

--
“It is not the truth of Marxism that explains the willingness of
intellectuals to believe it, but the power that it confers on
intellectuals, in their attempts to control the world. And since...it is
futile to reason someone out of a thing that he was not reasoned into,
we can conclude that Marxism owes its remarkable power to survive every
criticism to the fact that it is not a truth-directed but a
power-directed system of thought.”
Sir Roger Scruton

On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
> have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps in
> the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
>
> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every f
> mins or so.

Can you not make a fresh start?

Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in the
head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use the
timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.

On 25/04/2024 15:14, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> Hi all
>     I have an old sledgehammer which I wish to press into service once
> again. The head is a little loose, and:
>
> (a) the wedges are buried deep inside the head of the shaft;
> I haven't been able to remove them
> (b) the wedges have clearly been re-fitted a few times in the past;
> the shaft head has 'star-shaped' gaps (probably why the head is loose)
>
> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>
> Thanks, J^n
If the head is loose then can you remove it to get the wedges out and
then repair the wood before refitting? Alternatively (if the shaft is
still sound), can you just drive-in some more wedges?
Having said that, a new shaft seems to be less than the cost of a couple
of beers ... against the risk of the head coming off.

On 25 Apr 2024 at 15:14:27 BST, "Jon Nicoll" <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk> wrote:

> Hi all
> I have an old sledgehammer which I wish to press into service once
> again. The head is a little loose, and:
>
> (a) the wedges are buried deep inside the head of the shaft;
> I haven't been able to remove them
> (b) the wedges have clearly been re-fitted a few times in the past;
> the shaft head has 'star-shaped' gaps (probably why the head is loose)
>
> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?

Take it with you for your next shop-lifting outing. You can use it to biff the
security guard, and then if the head comes off, that's less weight to have to
carry as you run away. Win-win!

--
The truth of the matter is that we Scots have always been more divided amongst ourselves than pitted against the English. Scottish history before the Union of Parliaments is a gloomy, violent tale of murders, feuds, and tribal revenge. Only after the Act of Union did Highlanders and Lowlanders, Picts and Celts, begin to recognise one another as fellow citizens.

Tam Dalyell

On 26/04/2024 11:58, Harry Bloomfield Esq wrote:
> On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
>> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
>> have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps
>> in the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
>>
>> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every
>> f mins or so.
>
> Can you not make a fresh start?
>
> Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in the
> head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use the
> timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.

Hi Harry
I've thought of doing that, but the 'heel' of the shaft looks to narrow
down a bit down from where it is at the moment. Perhaps someone has done
that previously?

Thinks ... I have *never* seen anyone use a *new* sledgehammer...

Cheers, J^n

Jon Nicoll wrote:

> I have never seen anyone use a new sledgehammer...

I've fitted a new handle to my old one, think I got it from toolsatan,
but they no longer seem to stock them ...

On 4/27/2024 4:11 PM, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> On 26/04/2024 11:58, Harry Bloomfield Esq wrote:
>> On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
>>> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps in the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
>>>
>>> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every f mins or so.
>>
>> Can you not make a fresh start?
>>
>> Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in the head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use the timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.
>
> Hi Harry
>     I've thought of doing that, but the 'heel' of the shaft looks to narrow down a bit down from where it is at the moment. Perhaps someone has done that previously?
>
> Thinks ... I have *never* seen anyone use a *new* sledgehammer...
>
>     Cheers, J^n
>

I have a sledge with a fiberglass handle. No wedges. Shiny.

That's what a new sledge would look like.

My carpenter claw hammer has a hickory handle and wedges.
Shiny :-) And a tiny bit loose. I don't usually worry about
such things, until the head flies off.

*******

Back home, we used to have a wooden ladder. It was 2.5 storeys or so.
I'd spent many happy hours on that ladder (house painting).
My father and I, used to take it into the house between uses.

After I left home, the ladder somehow ended up stored outside. In the wet.
I came home once, and was headed for the upstairs window, for some
sort of repair. Went up the ladder a bit, but not too far. One rung snaps.
I start to fall. My fall breaks the next ladder rung and the next ladder
rung. I come to a stop.

The moral of the story is, for the wooden objects (like a sledge with
a hickory handle), store them inside rather than leaving them in the
tall wet grass, and things will go a lot better for you. I would immediately
be suspicious of a sledge with an excess of rust on it, because that
indicates the handle may have been compromised by a long stay out of doors.
And I would not want my sledge handle, to fail like the rungs on that
ladder.

If you must use decrepit tools, at least wear your steel toe boots.
And take some practice swings with no helpers in the way, until
you get some idea how rotten the handle is. That's one reason to
replace a handle rather than re-wedge, if the handle threatens
to snap off where it meets the head.

Paul

On 27-Apr-24 21:11, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> On 26/04/2024 11:58, Harry Bloomfield Esq wrote:
>> On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
>>> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
>>> have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps
>>> in the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
>>>
>>> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every
>>> f mins or so.
>>
>> Can you not make a fresh start?
>>
>> Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in
>> the head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use
>> the timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.
>
> Hi Harry
>     I've thought of doing that, but the 'heel' of the shaft looks to
> narrow down a bit down from where it is at the moment. Perhaps someone
> has done that previously?
>
> Thinks ... I have *never* seen anyone use a *new* sledgehammer...

They ought to exist, but they must hide in the same place as baby pigeons.

--
Sam Plusnet

In article <g1wXN.13603$Fmd1.6741@fx13.iad>,
Sam Plusnet <not@home.com> wrote:
> On 27-Apr-24 21:11, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> > On 26/04/2024 11:58, Harry Bloomfield Esq wrote:
> >> On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
> >>> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
> >>> have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps
> >>> in the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
> >>>
> >>> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every
> >>> f mins or so.
> >>
> >> Can you not make a fresh start?
> >>
> >> Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in
> >> the head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use
> >> the timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.
> >
> > Hi Harry
> > I've thought of doing that, but the 'heel' of the shaft looks to
> > narrow down a bit down from where it is at the moment. Perhaps someone
> > has done that previously?
> >
> > Thinks ... I have *never* seen anyone use a *new* sledgehammer...

> They ought to exist, but they must hide in the same place as baby pigeons.

I did have one - once - but it seems to have turned old.

--
from KT24 in Surrey, England - sent from my RISC OS 4té²
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle

On 28-Apr-24 19:15, charles wrote:
> In article <g1wXN.13603$Fmd1.6741@fx13.iad>,
> Sam Plusnet <not@home.com> wrote:
>> On 27-Apr-24 21:11, Jon Nicoll wrote:
>>> On 26/04/2024 11:58, Harry Bloomfield Esq wrote:
>>>> On 26/04/2024 10:30, Jon Nicoll wrote:
>>>>> I think I am going to have another try at getting the wedge(s) out. I
>>>>> have a pair of Mole Grips with thin jaws. Then I would fill the gaps
>>>>> in the wood with new wooden wedges, and re-insert the metal wedges.
>>>>>
>>>>> Or not... currently it's behaving well enough if I tamp it down every
>>>>> f mins or so.
>>>>
>>>> Can you not make a fresh start?
>>>>
>>>> Cut the shaft close to the head, use a drill to remove the timber in
>>>> the head, along with the wedges, then reshape a refit the shaft. Use
>>>> the timber, removed from the head, to make wedges.
>>>
>>> Hi Harry
>>> I've thought of doing that, but the 'heel' of the shaft looks to
>>> narrow down a bit down from where it is at the moment. Perhaps someone
>>> has done that previously?
>>>
>>> Thinks ... I have *never* seen anyone use a *new* sledgehammer...
>
>> They ought to exist, but they must hide in the same place as baby pigeons.
>
> I did have one - once - but it seems to have turned old.
>
I have a wood-splitting maul, but the back of the head functions as a
sledgehammer for my purposes. It, like its owner, shows its age.

--
Sam Plusnet

Sam Plusnet wrote:
> I have a wood-splitting maul, but the back of the head functions as a
> sledgehammer for my purposes.  It, like its owner, shows its age.
As I said, I've re-handled my sledgehammer, and also a mattock that I
found, both come in handy. I have my grandad's old hatchet, which is
really loose, but haven't found the need to replace the handle on it ...

On 25/04/2024 15:42, Andy Burns wrote:
> Thomas Prufer wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:14:27 +0100, Jon Nicoll <jkn+es@nicorp.co.uk>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> I don't want to spend any money on this repair - it's for non-critical
>>> work - but clearly I don't want the head flying off. Would tamping the
>>> head down as much as possible, then packing the gaps with car body
>>> filler, be a reasonable approach for a cheap repair?
>>
>> I don't think so; not enough pressure. Is standing the head in a
>> bucket of water
>> before use an option?
>
> Standing it in glycol/anti-freeze supposed to be better, I gather it's
> absorbed and doesn't shrink back when it dries out?
>

Just tried this on an old hatchet (chopper in my part of the world) & it
seems to have done the job.

--
Regards
wasbit