Fiberglass vs. Wooden Handle

Glenn F.

Member
I need to replace the broken handle on my 8# splitting maul. Which is preferred, fiberglass or wood?

Thanks,
Glenn F.
 

I think fiberglass has the advantage over wood in probably all aspects except looks and nostalgia . Strength, weather resistance, rot, water, weight etc.
 
I never knew they had replacement fiberglass handles. I always used wood on axes. How do you shim and taper the fiberglass? Most of those are epoxied in.
 
I put a fiberglass on a 6 lb maul a few years ago. I had to epoxy it in. I cleaned the eye really well prior to installing it, and let it set for a long time prior to using it to make sure the epoxy set well.
It certainly had a different feel in using it compared to wood. And it only stayed tight a couple seasons, and was loose in the eye. No way to tighten it up. I went back to wood and will stay with that even if I have to replace it every few years.
 
I like the fiberglass simply because I'm not one to remember to put my wood handled tools up all the time. I have found that epoxy is not the way to put them on. I have one 8# sledge hammer that the handle came with a fiberglass resin and hardener package. Works really well, been on it for nearly 20 years, left outside and beat up pretty good.

What I have done with my smaller hammers is get the kind of handles that are a fiberglass rod or bar like center with a poly type outside. I fit the head on it to make sure it will work and then I cut some notches in the part that goes in the head. After that I fill it all with JB Weld. Never has shrunk or gotten loose doing it that way.
 
I make my handles and keep the tools stored inside and have never broken one of the handles I have made from home grown hickory.
 
I like the weather resistance of synthetics, but LOVE the feel of warm, natural wood. Either way, once the new handle is on and secured in place, I like to drill a hole through the head (and handle) and add a roll pin to keep the handle on in the event anything else should go wrong. Just grind the roll pin flush with the surface. Works great for either wood or synthetic handles. I'll even do this with new tools straight from the store!
 
I don't have a splitting maul, but I only buy fiberglass shovels and hammers.
If I have a choice, I'll go with fiberglass over wood. I do have a few framing hammers that have metal handles. I'll never break them.

My old sledge hammers are wood which don't last very long before I get out the wood glue and full the cracked wood. Then wrap the handle together with electrical tape to hold the wood together while glue is drying.
 
I like wood. You can't tighten up fiberglass if they get loose. My dad was a carpenter and he tried the fiberglass handled hammers when the came out. They cause elbow pain so he went back to the steel handled True Temper.
 

I prefer wood, if I can get good wood handles. Don't have the time to make my own. I have yet to use anything with a fiberglass handle in the way of a shovel, pick, maul that feels right. Most are far too bulky and none have the "feel" of wood. They all feel like they came from Harbor Freight.
 
The only experience I have had with fiberglass handles was on at sledge hammer. I absolutely hated it. The shock goes right up my hands to my arms. Yes, I did break the wooden handled sledge, but I put a new wooden handle on it and that is all I use. For me the wood absorbs the impact shock better than the glass.

OTJ
 
I wont even use a wooden handle for a sledge if one is given to me anymore. Wood is not forgiving on missed blows as I am sure you are familiar. Fiberglass will take several direct hits and still keep going. Last handles I bought were from Home depot as they were about 15 bucks for an epoxy type handle. Be sure you get the bottom sealed up well before you put the epoxy in.

Now the one that does bother me is shovels. I know the strength is better in fiberglass but I want a wood handle mainly cause they are thicker and don't have those stupid rubber covers on them.
 
My Uncle worked at Stanley tools and saw the high speed films of the hammers with fiberglass handles. Said they vibrated like a tuneing fork. Told me to always use wood handles, they absorb the shock.
 
Not a sledge or splitting mall but I like the fiberglass handles on my carpenters hammers. I bought a 16oz from sears back in the 70, still have it and it is the best feeling 16 oz I have. I did carpentry professionally for a few years and bought a nice Vaughn 20 oz hammer with a steel handle, felt terrible. Bought a 20 oz from Sears and it is the best feeling 20 oz I have ever tried. I am no fan of Sears tools anymore, but some of their tools from the past were excellent as in this case. These hammers felt better to me than wood handles and were stronger too.
 
I prefer steel pipe handles. I have a 12# wide angle maul that I use a lot, it has a steel pipe handle and has held up to 12 years or so of regular use, and it wasn't anything like new when I was given it. My main sledgehammer that I use with wedges to split wood is a 16# and has a wood handle that I have replaced a few times. Once our local dollar store had a bunch of wood sledgehammer handles and I bought 5 or 6 that had cosmetic flaws but the grain was straight for $1 each. Some of the handles in the bin had a lot of rain runout or had a knot in them, but there were some good ones and I still have a couple left, I think.
Zach
 
(quoted from post at 10:58:41 03/23/17) I prefer steel pipe handles. I have a 12# wide angle maul that I use a lot, it has a steel pipe handle and has held up to 12 years or so of regular use, and it wasn't anything like new when I was given it. My main sledgehammer that I use with wedges to split wood is a 16# and has a wood handle that I have replaced a few times. Once our local dollar store had a bunch of wood sledgehammer handles and I bought 5 or 6 that had cosmetic flaws but the grain was straight for $1 each. Some of the handles in the bin had a lot of rain runout or had a knot in them, but there were some good ones and I still have a couple left, I think.
Zach

I like the steel handles myself. After breaking a wooden spade handle, replacing it with brand new, and breaking THAT handle the very next day, I scrounged up some pipe and assorted other hardware and built my own spade handle. Since then I have built steel handles for 3 other spades. I've never regretted that decision, and for those of you who are curious, YES, I DO know how to use a spade, and I was NOT abusing it.
 
I have both on my splitting axes and like the wood better. I have trouble with with glass handles coming loose and yet found a good glue to hold them.
 
I realize this doesn't address your question really, but I got sick of it and got a Wilton Bash maul with the unbreakable handle. Some years I split a lot of wood by hand and I realized I had enough of being aggravated with handle problems.
WB
 

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