Hammer Restoration - Making a Leather Grip
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- Опубліковано 9 січ 2025
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Recently I was given this Estwing hammer and thought it would be interesting to try and replace the stacked leather grip. I already own the exact same hammer which also had a couple of the leather rings missing so I did that one too. Although it was an easy enough and enjoyable project I could've done a better job of the details. They still look pretty good but the main thing is the grips themselves work well and feel great.
I'm expecting some negative response on my choice of varnish and while I know Shellac would be the choice (I didn't have any to hand, ran out a while back) the water based varnish still worked very well though. The first coat penetrated the leather so it's not going to peel off and the subsequent coats built up a good coating. This coating is very durable and is more elastic than lacquer so it should work great and not crack easily. The only downside is, it doesn't have the best feel but an application of beeswax gives it a much better grip.
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The originals likely had linseed oil in the finish. It was common in leather finishes for harder items and drive belts back in the day. It will soak in and then dry without leaving a topsheen. This increases the stiffness and durability for industrial applications. You can make a harder and more compressed handle if you dampen the leather before compressing and then keep the pressure on while it dries. Another tip for future: Bicycle frames (steel) are great sources for all kinds of sizes of decent steel for home made punches. The better frames are chromoly. Best part is they are free if you look. I keep a few pieces around all the time.
The bike frames are a good tip, I have a couple that i've scavenged bits off for different projects. The punch that took out the centers was made from the handlebars of a scooter! :)
Mr. Nutso: What a great suggestion! It never occurred to me. Even many of the cheap imported bike frames are made of chrome molybdenum steel, so no great loss to the cycling world to have a ready supply of good tubing from discarded bikes. Mr. Nutso, how do you feel about using the stacked leather washers as grips on a bicycle?
You are spot on about the handle.
Many will look at this vid as a How-To Restore an Eastwing Hammer. It is actually a vid on how to solve a problem with the resources you have at hand and approaching problem solving with a positive can-do attitude. Well done
Thank you! I think you're right and that's pretty much the way I work! :)
Yes so true!!
Wow. That took me back. My Dad had an Estwing like that. Dark brown with 2 white bands near the top and 2 near the bottom. When he passed I got his tools but that hammer was not among them. It would have been over 60 years old now. Great job and thanks for the memories.
Estwing leather grip hammers go way back. In the late 40’s, that was the hammer in my Vocation Carpenters School. Needless to say they were very durable. My DIY hammer today is an old Estwin with rubber handle. It’s 61 years old.
Great instructional video. Restored my 37 year old hammer which is again ready for active service. Cut the leather pieces by hand which took longer but turned out okay. Shaped with a belt sander and fine work by hand.
I just love seeing old hand tools being refurbished! There's something special about seeing an old, beat up tool with rust, scratches and dents being restored to a polished, slick new state! Great job as always!
Thanks! They certainly make a good subject for a video! I don't think these turned out super slick but they still look pretty good and are now in a very good usable condition. :)
Par, you are so right! All it takes is a few minutes (or hours) to bring a quality made, long neglected tool back to usable form. There is something very satisfying about it. And every time one uses a tool he or she restored, it brings a moment of pride and joy to the task at hand.
Nice job mate. Hammers look great and you saved them for many more years
You earned a new subscriber. You clearly put a lot of effort into not only your work, but your channel as well. Everything is so clean and professional, I like it. Keep up the great work!
Excellent work, your use of the pipes to make dies was brilliant.
These were the same hammers my father and grandfather used when I was a child when they owned their own business. They are the best and came with a lifetime warranty back then. The restore is beautiful and I really enjoyed it.
WOW! I saw the round tube and wondered about the shape. You solved it so simply! Very cool project.
Yes, and the preheat allowed the metal to reform without cracking. With the sharpening done while the tube was round, the reshaped oval could also be heat treated for a durable cutting edge.
I need to do the same repair on my hammer. Seeing your method has convinced me to forge ahead with the repair. Thanks for saving another hammer from the scrap pile.
Grandpas hammers in the late 50's and early 60's. Great job restoring them.
Wonderful redo on the handles. The hammers look great again.
Excellent job on these two hammers; the punches you made surely expedited the handle making process! Thanks!
Love the vid, first estwing was in 75, stolen but,replaced it with a 16 oz. rip for finishing. Found a 16 oz. claw like my original with swollen rings and used a 1"/30" strip sander worked great! Saved a poor $ 2 hammer and love it like the other 20 estwings I've got, none the same. Lol.Enjoy your vids. Thanks again!!
I love that you made your own punches. Nowadays everything is disposable and we can go the the store so easy, but that doesn't mean that we have to. So many things can be repaired with some desire and ingenuity. Brilliant work sir!
Glad you liked it Seth! :)
Now I also know how We always buy those hammers secondhand Always a couple of rings missing Will certainly try this method Thanks for sharing
Got to be the most aesthetically pleasing of all hammers, and a terrific tool....Well worth the effort. Thanks for the vid
I know this video is 3 years old. I'm completely binging your channel and started back at the beginning. I wanted to say how much I love how you make tools out of random stuff. The up-cycling is great. Plus, it's really shown me you don't need to drop money on a fancy specific tool.
I did this 7 years ago for my dad with a hammer that had a rubber handle that died after 3 years of daily use. I used epoxy to glue every leather ring making the handle almost indestructable. The Leather handle is still holding up great today and the hammer is still used on a daily basis.
Fantastic work! My son works for Estwing and is very proud of the fine quality tools they produce. I will definitely share this video with him!
Thank you! :)
I saw the “How it’s made” tv show that featured Estwings factory and it looks like a very cool place to work. Hope your son is enjoying the experience. Sure beats working behind a cubicle
Estwing hammers are brilliant . I have 9 of their hammers , a pry bar and an axe . My oldest belonged to my late father who was also a carpenter and it is 50 years old and still works perfectly. Testimony to just how good they are .
The punches you made worked out amazingly well! Great job!
This was a great video to find. I have the same hammer myself. My grandfather gave it to me years ago with the same age-ruined leather handle, and I can't wait to give your techniques a shot. Thanks for sharing with us.
Nice job! I love watching your videos because of the very practical way you accomplish what you are trying to do. Those hammers came out beautiful!
Thank you Rick! :)
Thank you for making the video , recently my hammer is looking bad ,handle falling apart I called estwing as far as them rebuilding it but don't do it any longer , swinging that ole girl 38 years not letting her go now .
No worries Jeff - glad it was helpful! Long live your hammer! :)
👌🏼seen many a leather griped east wing put in a draw after a lost ring or two.... nice to see a couple made new
They look fantastic to me. Nice use of the Shinto rasp, use them for rough shaping most of my wood project, they are a treat to use.
Neil what a fantastic job worth every minute you spent All the best from Northern Ireland
*Much, much, MUCH RESPECT!*
The patience required to cut the many leather pieces -both outer and inner dimensions- enthralled me!
Great job, and thank you for sharing this *beautiful* project!
Thank you! :)
Nice job. I’ve been using Estwing hammers for many years and they are guaranteed for life, if the leather rings come off they will replace the hammer for the price of postage
Good job! I have an old Douglas 20 ounce that has some bits missing that I filled in with string over the years. I’ll find some leather and give it a go because it’s the first hammer I ever bought while working as a plumber about 30 years ago.
By far the coolest restoration I've seen
Wonderful Restorations! I love the English pattern Estwings. Very clever toolmaking as well. These look as good or as better as the originals!
They look superb mate ready for work again.
Great job! I used hard bees wax after heating the leather on the handle with a paint heather. After 8 times the leather was saturated. Handle looks fine.
Оригинально. Хорошая задумка и работа. Good job
Watching you restore these beautiful old hammers made me so happy. I love the leather handle estwings
Great job you did making the punches. I am inspired to try and do the same to my old Estwing.
Really impressed that it was all done by hand. Great job!
Hey Pask, you are the man, recycle is the way to go. Thanks for sharing
Great video, and it's staying on my knife making list. I have a very nice knife with a stacked leather handle that needs a finishing sealant. This video gave me an idea of how to replace the handle, ignite ever splits.
Love your ingenuity on making the punches & the hammers turned out Awesome!
Great Job makin' Do with what you Have! Just beautiful !!!
Thank you! :)
This is the best eswing restoration I've seen.
Ive done a couple of leather knife handles and one thing you can do is after making the holes for the tang
soak the leather in water/alcohol 50/50 for a few minutes and then using a threaded rod, nuts and washers press the leather until it drains all the water and leave it to dry for a couple of days. This hardens the leather and makes it more compact so you can sand it off almost like wood.
Thanks for the tip! :)
@@PaskMakes thank you for making this channel, its great
Pask makes...Anything you want,always informative and enjoyable !! 👍👏
Awesome! Have the same hammer I saw someone put a couple of pieces of brass for different effects. Great vid !!
Everything you touch turns out amazing Neil. Love your videos! These hammers look really good.
Finally someone who doesn't glue the stacks
Thank you for your effort to restore tools! Nice!
Fantastic job on restoring the Estwings!
Very very good!
Congratulations!
I didn't realise that's how you make those handles. Interesting video Neil
Glad you liked it Robin! :)
Thank you,was it was interesting to watch..I had a similar problem years ago,but made a wooden handle to replace the leather washers as I had no knowledge of leatherwork...Bob
Well done Neil, they came up a treat. Hope you had a great holiday mate.
Thank you Max! :)
Hammers are made in my hometown! Awesome vid, bud!
Really nice job.
Awesome dude. Thanks for putting this video out. Now I know how to make my own handle now.
No worries David - glad it was helpful! :)
2019-10-02
Pask, thank you, the name tag at 3:40 helped me to identify my father's Estwing (after sanding the rust) as a 16 OZ head!
Kobus
Pretoria, South Africa
Excellent job Pask!
Great work Neil! It’s great to have you back!!😉😊 I’m glad you had a wonderful vacation!! The punches were a great idea and seemed to work perfectly!👊
Thanks Jed - even though we had a great time away it's good to be back! :)
Pask Makes you’re welcome! And how true it is😊
Amazing video! Thanks for sharing. Nice editing so relaxing
fantastic elegant tools and is fantastic to see someone love there tools and bring them back to life grate grate job mate
Well done. Looks like a fun day project. Guess I'm on the lookout for a quality old hammer now. Maybe applying some black shoeshine to the black pieces after shaping will make them stand out better. Some masking tape could block the lighter pieces. The varnish might make the black bleed tho, only one way to find out.
Thank you! It was an enjoyable project. I can live with the aesthetics as they don't really matter, I thought when I sanded them that they were going to look amazing but when I put the varnish on they just looked okay! :)
You are very creative, smart as always and Never failed 😎👍👍
Thankyou so much for this video, it uses common materials that anyone can obtain and doesnt require any special leatherwork tools you have to order online, great, means carpenters can hammer more and wait less thanks so much.
Great video!, MUCH more detailed than some I’ve seen out there. Kudos. I have an Estwing hatchet/hammer combo that needs some work. It’s leather handle is only slightly loose over the years but I’m debating replacing it entirely with new leather. What bothers me most about pulling it apart is the bottom plate. Mine seems VERY thin, but I want the authenticity of keeping the company’s stamped plate. Will ponder more.
Excellent! I have a cpl of old Estwings that need the same refurb - now maybe I’ll give it a go !
Thanks! You should and give them a new lease of life! :)
Amazing restoration! Well done
You should make a handle out of birch bark. There are some videos on youtube for Scandinavian knives. If you compress the pieces and heat, you don't even need glue. There is a natural resin in the bark that binds and preserves it. Take a look.
Nice job I always wondered how them handles were made.. Thanks
I got the leather grip 24oz straight claw and i love it and great job btw
Great handles, mate! I really like the way you made all tree punches ... they worked well. Nice hammers!
Nice work Pask! I've been meaning to buy one of their new blue nylon hammers and replacing it with leather as they don't carry the right weight with the leather grip for framing.
I always wondered if the handle shaft is the same for both leather and blue rubber handle covers.
Very cool man , from italy big respect for you and your family :)
Really enjoyed your presentation. Thanks for the lesson on making a handle.
Definitely going to try it, only I will add some rubber(from transport belt) and I am wondering if i should add some wood. It's going to be a handle for an old Soviet hatchet.
Those ended up looking amazing
Nice restoration! I find very interesting your quick-homemade leather punches. Didn't know your channel, but definitely subscribed!
Learn something new all the time. Cheers mate, great video.
Amazing project, as always!!!
Never saw this technique. But we all learn. I learned something new today, and i enjoyed a great video.
Thank you! Bless you!
nice! there is a video, here on youtube, of a scandinavian man making a knife handle with the same technique but he uses
birch bark instead of leather. looked sweet, too.
Birch bark is a wonderful material, I wish birch grew in my area.
That was clear and concise,now I can do it.Thanks.
Glad it helped! :)
Excellent work my friend, well done. 🏆👍🏼😊
That's truly awesome! I have some tools to refurbish myself. I might try it your way! Thanks for sharing. They absolutely look great!
Thank you Tracy! :)
Glad you did not not use glue like the others do great job
Can’t beat a good Estwing 👍🏼😊
prefer my stiletto
chipperkeithmgb what you wear is your business ;)
Looks very nice ! They'll make it back some years! Wouuuuuuuuuuu 👍 👍 👍
Thanks Martin! The one is nearly 50 years old it should last that again hopefully! :)
They turned out great! Fantastic idea to use some of that trampoline for a punch.
Nice restoration!Love this kind of hammer, unfortunately i can't find one here in Italy.
Fantastic, well done.
You brought them back to life! Beautiful hammers
Thank you! :)
Now I know how to fix my old Estwing hatchet 👍
AMAZING JOB
Wow that was impressive, nice job!
salut,j'adore,vraiment une superbe réalisation,avec une technique incroyable,merci.
Merci beaucoup! :)
Amazing work pask love your movies and your works
I inherited my dads and was wondering how to fix it up. Thank you for the video!
Excellent result!! This is exactly what I was looking for, Thank you. Subscribed.
....and I'm finally getting to doing mine, a year on!
Good on ya. I’m going out to make a few punches to repair my Estwing hatchet.