Thread: Eastwing Hammer

Are those handles wrapped or are they the ones made from leather disks? I've got two and they are both falling apart. There's a metal disk that goes on the bottom and the two pins in the handle are dressed over to hold it on, that disk has fallen off both of them and one has disappeared. The other one I managed to dress it over enough to hold it together. They are both Estwings, probably about 30 or more years old as they were my Grandfathers and he died in 1981.

Hi Bob and SilentC,
Although I haven't done it, I'd imagine its a matter of removing that end plate and re-stacking the handle with leather washers you could surely cut yourself. A large diameter wad punch would cut the max dimension, and then punch out a slot with a smaller wad punch. Make them all a tad oversize and when installed, shape it to the desired form...Stanley knife, rasp, disc sander? With more patience than I posess, you could probably cut each one closer to finished diameter, to reduce the need for shaping later.
The only problem I could envisage is compressing them on the handle to refit the plate. Maybe they need to be glued one on top of the other with contact cement first.
Is it feasible to make a wooden handle somehow!!
Anyway they are such legendary hammers I'm sure someone here as done one up before!

Cheers,

Yep, disk with 2 pins on the base of the handle - the leather appears to be a long cord which is coiled around the handle - could possibly be disks - as it has deteriorated considerably [ my lousy sweaty hands over some 30+ years] it is a little hard to tell.

The metal work and head face/claw are fine apart from some light rust.

One option I did look at after being told to "toss it" was a fibre glass replacement handle and shaft - cut off the shaft, drill the handle and epoxy it onto the Eastwing metal shaft - would seem a shame to do and those plastic type handles on fibregalss hammers just don't feel the same.

Bob

I'm pretty sure it will actually be a stack of leather washers. You can tell easily by following one around the handle. If it goes nowhere, it's a disk

The problem with mine, apart from the missing disks, is that the leather is pretty much out of shape. I think it should be possible to cut new ones if you have the right leather and the right gear as described by Andy. I wonder if they could be cut to shape with shears or something?

Also, if the stack is tight enough, you can probably get enough compression when you dress over the pins to tighten it all up.

The stacking process probaly involves wetting and compressing the leather.

There are lots of processes where leather is wetted then pressed, formed or moulded to shape then allowed to dry.

leather becomed very pliable and mouldable when wett.

once you have formed your leather into a "block" it may be worked and shaped very redily with a sander of some sort.

I have never tried routing or turning leather, but its woth a thaught.

People have been forming leather into all sorts of shapes for centuries.

Cant be done....... BS.........it was made in the first place , so it must be able to be done.

In the words of john lennon...... there is nothing that you can do that cant be done.

cheers

cheers

Hi Bob and SilentC,

I had the same problem some 20 years ago. I still use that same hammer almost daily, the repair must have been adequate.
As I lost a few leather disks and the end plate, I roughly cut new ones from an tough old boot and slipped them on, then made a new end plate and welded it on to the pins. I went on to shape the new section on a bench grinder and oil the leather well. There is some slight movement in the leather, I got used to it.
20 years later, you can hardly tell.

cheers

Fryers

Yeh I had one that I fixed and it never died, but I lost it somewhere. It was the bosses when I was an apprentice and couldn't afford a new one, so he gave me his old one missing a few of the rings.
I made a cowboy version with a rubber pipe over the handle filled with max bond. It wasn't a pretty picture but it worked a treat.

edit: -I'd only buy a synthetic handle if I ever needed another. The leather is just a show off I reckon.

Bob and Silent C.
Not to long ago I picked up an estwing from the market for a pricely sum of $10,. it too had leather rings on the handle which had become loose. I removed the retaining plate using a file around the pins then removed some of the washers. The 2 pins running down the handle are actually joined in the centre to form one piece, I filed down some of this centre (to make sure when peen the ends again the retaining plate did not bottom out on this centre section).

I then cut another piece of leather slightly oversized to sit about 5 or 6 in from the end then re-assembled.

I had some issues though when re assembling, ideally it would have been good to hold the washers compressed as I peened the ends, but there was just not enough room and as a result the grip is better but still slightly loose. If I was to try it again I would try to thread the end pins so these can then be tightened firmly with a nut which has been cut in half (to reduce its height) then peen this over to lock into place.

Another idea I had was to dip the whole handle as it is (slithgly loose) into some type of finish (maybe varnish) and hopefully this will 'glue' the leather washers together, I don't know for sure if this is the way to go though.

I've got two, both have synthetic handles as I've seen too many leather ones fall apart. You can fix them by getting a wooden handle, docking it to the appropriate length and then ripping it down the guts with a bandsaw. Hollow out as required and then epoxy into place. If you're patient you can make it a bit of a darksider special.

Mick

Thanks for all of the contributions - I'll look into trying to fix it like the original [I actually like the cushioning the leather appears to give] - if I can't then I'll adapt - it's too good to throw it away.

Regards,
Bob

I've got one with the same problem.
So I went and bought a Stanley Fat Max - wotta heap of crap.

Think I'll buy a cheap hammer with a good rubber handle and fit that rubber handle on the estwing with oodles of silicon to fill it all up. I saw an estwing clone at the warehouse a few weeks ago for $7.99 so hopefully that rubber handle will do the job.

I've got a leather handled Estwing that I bought in "The Great Bessy Clamp Purchase of '05' (newcomers - check the archves). I like it a lot.
I'll only ever use it in the shed so I reckon it'll see me out.

I could have bought the synthetic handled one for the same price but somehow it just didn't have the same appeal.

Hi,
I, like most builders of the day had to have an eastwing after our old rockets started to become too heavy. Leather is the go, how about trying an old snob (bootmaker) who may have some pieces of leather lying around under his bench, then cut with a sharp boot knife or wad punch (not a stanley knife or varieties because you will cut your bloody finger off), then hit with a wide sander or linisher belt. (if you have trouble I should have some pieces of shoe leather in the shed...... send me a PM).
Cheers,
Ron.

Thanks for the offer Ron as well as all of the other suggestions.

I'm a little amazed at how many have/have had an Eastwing and have experienced the same problem. I suppose the company sees them as a throw away item rather than offer a refurbishment.

I am onto a source of leather and will give it a go when I have the opportunity - currently painting the garage after replacing the ceiling, next - a sheet music cabinet for my wife [piano and pipe organist], retaining wall beside shed, another built-in for my son's laundry + 3 more solid timber doors ........

And then ....

Who ever said when you retire - think of all of the spare time you will have.........

Regards and thanks,
Bob