Mattock Handles. Why?

[Egon]

Agreed. I wrote a short, sad but true story about it once. But I think in the story I used the term pick axe rather than mattock but I’m not sure. Been a long time since I looked at it.

Pick axe/ mattock all the same Just plain hard work.

 

[Jstpssng]

Pick axe/ mattock all the same Just plain hard work.

They're just shaped differently.

 

[AchingBack]

If’n the head slides down the Mattock hasn’t been used for a time and the handle is dry.

I can also go back three generations of mattock use. Got one in the shed that only goes back a verifiable two generations.

I bought my mattocks in 1978. The only time I loaned it, the handle broke.

 

[N80]

Follow up to post #9 above. Cut a blank from the ash slab. Dried it over a heater vent for a week or so. Turned handle on the lathe. The handle hole is round and tapered. The ash was very hard. Took a long time to cut it down. Got a little tear out in a few places but sanded it smooth. Made handle long enough to use with two hands if needed. It is a fairly small tool and I gave it to my wife for her gardening. The handle is in the head firmly but I put a stainless screw in just in case.

 

[Rockbadchild]

looks very good !!

 

[N80]

I thought about narrowing it in the middle down through the grip for better appearance and lighter weight but figured I’d keep it thick for better strength.

 

[Jstpssng]

That came out good!

 

[JethroB]

I think this is called a grub hoe. It has probably been in my family for 80+ years. The handle is pretty loose and looks fragile. Sort of want to keep it as is.

 

[Jstpssng]

I was at my mother's house last weekend and decided to dig out a tree stump. I picked up my father's maddock and went to work. Talk about a loose head! It was held on with a screw, similar to what the OP did yet it was sloppy and I was a bit concerned about it coming off. About that time my dog came over to supervise, so I had to be extra careful.
It got the job done, though.