I bought a froe a while ago. It came without a handle. I managed to get a near perfect sized handle out out of an old hay fork. But it keeps slipping. I need one of those things to hammer into the end. Is it called a 'cleat'? I need to know because I'm going to go to the hardware shop and I'm afraid they won't know what an earth I'm talking about...
Need to know what this is called
- Thread starter woodlander1
- Start date
-
Come along to the amazing Summer Moot (21st July - 2nd August), a festival of bushcrafting and camping in a beautiful woodland PLEASE CLICK HERE for more information.
Dont go in and ask for fork handles..they wont find it funny.
Imo a wedge would be better for a froe.Cut a 'v' in the end of the handle, attach the froe, and knock a hardwood wedge in place.
Imo a wedge would be better for a froe.Cut a 'v' in the end of the handle, attach the froe, and knock a hardwood wedge in place.
Thanks for the advice. Any pictures of precisely how I would go about that? I don't really want to improvise and make mistakes in this, because it took me ages to find a handle that was the right size, although I suppose people here would also advise me to make my own handle as well, heh..
Just another quick question, would it be a good idea to soak it in water afterwards, so that the wood can swell? Someone at work did that after we fitted a new handle on a sledge hammer.
Just another quick question, would it be a good idea to soak it in water afterwards, so that the wood can swell? Someone at work did that after we fitted a new handle on a sledge hammer.
Don't soak it in water, it is the worst thing you could possibly do. The wood wil swell and be really tight in the froe and you think that's great and it is for a while, but the wood swells up so much that the cells in the wood are crushed by the immovable steel of the eye of the froe. When the wood dries out, the shrinkage means the head is even looser due to the crushed cells, and so you put it in water to make the wood swell, etc!
I believe it was mentioned by Thoureau when he made his log cabin, watch The Woodrights' Shop videos online as he talks about it several times.
I believe it was mentioned by Thoureau when he made his log cabin, watch The Woodrights' Shop videos online as he talks about it several times.
Don't ever soak a head in water, whether it be a hammer, axe or froe, as the swelling with water compresses the fibres and then when it dries it shrinks even more. i've seen hammer heads come off because of this and it isn't pretty.
If it does loosen, and you want to soak it, then soak it in old engine oil. the oil won't leave the fibre's and will stay tight.
ATB
Adam
If it does loosen, and you want to soak it, then soak it in old engine oil. the oil won't leave the fibre's and will stay tight.
ATB
Adam
forestwalker
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
The times I've resorted to soaking I've used linseed oil (cheap, "boiled" crap barely good enough fort garden furniture); eventually it will harden (oxidize).
As to the wedge: just cut a saw kerf (i.e. saw into the wood) in the same plane as the blade of the froe, about 2/3 of the lenght of the eye. Make a wedge that is the same width as the handle from hardwood. Dip in glue (optional, not everyone does this, I often do it) and whack it in. Saw off the the excess.
Last edited:
to stop the potential split running through the handle, drill a small hole, the smallest you have, at the depth the wedge will stop. always glue mine and havent had a problem yet
I'm not a regular froe user,
But I had convinced myself that a frow was a double ended tool - so it could be used with the handle either up or down - hence the need for a slightly loose handle in order that you can chop and change as your work progresses.
I'm open to being corrected though.
ATB
Ogri the trog
But I had convinced myself that a frow was a double ended tool - so it could be used with the handle either up or down - hence the need for a slightly loose handle in order that you can chop and change as your work progresses.
I'm open to being corrected though.
ATB
Ogri the trog
If the handle is not quite a tight fit, I get a knife and make a slicing cut in the middle, then I hammer a hard wood v shaped wedge in.
There's a lot of sense in that. You don't use to froe like an axe or a hammer, so there's no need for the handle to be a really tight fit in the head, and if you get a particularly tough log to split the forces twisting it can be difficult to resist. If the handle and the log are side by side you can lie the log on the ground, stand on it, and lift the handle. You could put a toe on the froe to stop it rotating the log. You'll need a strong handle, but no way will you pick yourself up.
Of course if it's that tough it might be better to fetch the maul.
BTW if you're using a hammer to put a wedge into the handle of another hammer, axe, or whatever, use something like a steel drift so that you don't end up hitting two hammers together. Being cast, some heads are very brittle. If you hit one with another they will often chip. The chips can fly off at hundreds of miles per hour and cause serious injury.
Similar threads
