Restore and Rehandle

Over the past several years, permies has inspired me to replace handles on a number of tools. I don't take enough progress pictures to submit for PEP badges. But here are some of the projects I have completed.

The most recent is a knife steel. A friend gave my family a paper sack of pocket knives several years ago. This steel and sheath was in it, but the steel had no handle and was very rusty. Back in November I dropped the steel in a big vat of acid (white vinegar) and let it sit for a few days. I took it out, wiped it with a rag, and it was so very clean. I keep my handle projects in a corner of the garage, with the remnants of the old handles. So I chose a broken broomstick for the new handle. Cut it to length, bored a new hole, and then drilled a hole for the rivet. I bought a brass dowel to make the rivet. I peened the rivet in place, and then let it sit while I wondered where my wife kept the saddle soap for the sheath. Well, last weekend I asked her where that was, and she told me. So I cleaned the sheath and polished it just a bit. Tonight I plan to give the finished pieces to a blade-loving friend.

Probably the most surprising object I have ever fitted a handle to was this lid for a roasting oven. I bought a roasting oven from a garage sale. It was in perfect working order and came with an insert for three little warming pans. But the handle was broken. So I took a 2x4, traced a shape on it, and cut the shape out with a jigsaw. Then I carved it with a knife to round it out. I sanded it, applied a black stain (if I did it again I would char it and rub it with oil) and tested it by heating some water. It worked. I gave it to a family at a local church. This is the best picture I have of it.

My latest project is this wheelbarrow. I bought it new for my boy two years ago. It is perfectly sized for little people. But the handles are small and weak. One of them broke where a machine screw passes through. So it is time to upgrade. I found a 2x2 that looked pretty decent. So I cut two pieces, a few inches longer than the handle. Then I shaped them with the drawknife and sanded them down. Now I just need to find some longer machine screws to go through the thicker board. Probably will rub on a coat or two of linseed oil as vell, then I just have to transfer the holes with a drill and install the new handles!

And now it is finished. We planed off a bunch of the grey weathering and then oiled it with Boiled Linseed Oil. That turned the weathered areas black. I had to replace some of the bolts with longer ones. Now it is ready for many years of hauling.

Great job on the wheelbarrow! I may not be as "little" as it's intended for, but as a lightweight, small boned human, I soooo... appreciate equipment that is safe for me to use, rather than, only having equipment for the back half of the football team!