Making leather working Mauls

[Colt W Knight]

Had some scrap round stock left over that was too short for a full size maul

[bikermutt07]

Well the only problem you have now is which maul to use.

[Colt W Knight]

Went over to my brothers house to cast some lead slugs for weights. He makes bass fishing lures, so he has all the cool lead foundry stuff.

Now I am able to make these 2" mauls weight 12-20 ounces pretty easily

 

 

[rktaylor]

Colt,

I made one with 3 inch delrin (I don't remember the generic name) for the head and a walnut handle. I put a carriage bolt through the whole thing. It's not as nice as yours, but I have next to nothing in it and it has worked great for me. I've been using it for over a year now. I need to weigh it just for reference. Thanks for sharing all this. I'm almost inspired enough to build another one. Almost.

Randy

[Colt W Knight]

6 minutes ago, rktaylor said:

Colt,

I made one with 3 inch delrin (I don't remember the generic name) for the head and a walnut handle. I put a carriage bolt through the whole thing. It's not as nice as yours, but I have next to nothing in it and it has worked great for me. I've been using it for over a year now. I need to weigh it just for reference. Thanks for sharing all this. I'm almost inspired enough to build another one. Almost.

Randy

I've been looking at carriage bolts, but while they are convenient, they didn't solve my weight problem. I'll figure something out eventually that's easier than casting lead slugs 

Delrin is a type of acetal resin

Edited July 31, 2016 by Colt W Knight

[rktaylor]

Remember, the 3" piece is more than twice the volume of a 2" diameter piece so it's twice as heavy. I certainly don't want it to be heavier. I can get some details (dimensions, weight, and c.g.) and photo in the coming week if you are interested, but you are well ahead of me in the game. I really like what you are doing.

Randy

[Colt W Knight]

I would be curious what yours weighs.

 

[Colt W Knight]

Turned a few more handles tonight

Curly Maple and Mesquite

Mahogany, curly maple, and mesquite

[rktaylor]

Colt,

I was wrong. The head is 2.5" diameter and 3" long. The maul weighs 18.8 ounces. The delrin (acetyl copolymer) has really stood up to use. I'll post a picture when I can. It's very crude compared to yours, but it's better than a rock.

Randy

[Colt W Knight]

I think I have the weight and brass problem solved. My brother casted me some 5.5 ounce lead weights. Now I can simply use a carriage bolt, lead slug, handle, and plastic to make a maul. Greatly reducing the labor of having to fabricate and polish the brass retainer

18 Ounces

20 ounces

17 ounces

[rktaylor]

Colt,

I said mine was more crude. This photo should prove that. The carriage bolt goes through the entire maul. Thanks for sharing all your work.

Randy

[plinkercases]

how are the head materials comparing PVC versus Nylon? which do you prefer so far?

[Colt W Knight]

1 minute ago, plinkercases said:

how are the head materials comparing PVC versus Nylon? which do you prefer so far?

When I strike a tool really hard with the nylon, there are no visible marks left. The ABS plastic will show marks if you hit it hard enough. My store bought maul is polyethylene or some form of polyethylene, and tools leave marks every time I hit it. Both materials seem to deaden the blow of the strike, so there is no bounce. The nylon makes a more audible noise than the plastic. I prefer the nylon so far, but the ABS is much easier to work with on the lathe and drill press.

[plinkercases]

Great thanks.

 

[Colt W Knight]

2 hours ago, rktaylor said:

Colt,

I said mine was more crude. This photo should prove that. The carriage bolt goes through the entire maul. Thanks for sharing all your work.

Randy

Looks good to me. I am still toying with the idea of running the bolt all the way through the handle, but I really like the wood ends.

I am going to start using a carriage bolt, and I started looking into to getting some custom medallions made to make a cap on the end so they look nicer.