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Etienne Hamel
Location: Granby (QC) canada Joined: 09 Sep 2006
Posts: 447
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 Posted: Fri 04 Sep, 2026 1:28 pm Post subject: sparth axe haft wood? |
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Hello, it's been probably over a decade since i visited the forum already!!! i just acquired a sparth head from a smith in prague and i'll eventually have to haft it. i was wondering apart from ash what would be the other historically accurate wood used? we have some yellow birch, maple and oak where i am as well as ash and i planned to use a young tree as a haft instead of a board or something to make it... pictures of my axes because i didn't want the post to be empty. both were made by the same smith. i bought them both on etsy from paganfanshop.
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Sean Manning
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Etienne Hamel
Location: Granby (QC) canada Joined: 09 Sep 2006
Posts: 447
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| Posted: Sat 05 Sep, 2026 6:45 am Post subject: |
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| Sean Manning wrote: | | The bible of sixteenth-century European staff weapons is Waldman's Hafted Weapons in Medieval and Renaissance Europe from Brill. All of those can work but keep in mind the Ph (acid / base) of some oak and the difference between red and black oaks. Handy online reference https://ageofdatini.info/vocationes/wood-spears.html |
awesome, thanks! i might go for yellow birch then. it's not really the same wood but as a type of birch it's pretty close to oak, maple and ash in solidity and it's plentyful where i live. i'm not sure when i'll get to go cut a young tree for my sparth's haft but i'm hoping pretty soon... i'll keep my pruning chainsaw ready XP
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Dan Kary
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| Posted: Sun 06 Sep, 2026 11:23 am Post subject: |
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I can't comment on the question, but I do have a question for you Etienne: who's the maker? It looks like a nice sparth head! Do keep us updated on how the hafting goes, please!
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Etienne Hamel
Location: Granby (QC) canada Joined: 09 Sep 2006
Posts: 447
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| Posted: Yesterday at 7:28 am Post subject: |
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| Dan Kary wrote: | | I can't comment on the question, but I do have a question for you Etienne: who's the maker? It looks like a nice sparth head! Do keep us updated on how the hafting goes, please! |
it's from etsy. the maker is paganfanshop. the shop is currently on a break. it's a custom piece. i think it's EN45 but i'm still waiting for a answer on that. the bearded axe is from the same shop but is something that was in stock when i bought it. for the hafting i'll need to wait for the sap to come down probably since i'll be cutting a young tree for it (about 2 1/2'' diameter). probably yellow birch or sugar maple since it's plentyful where i am. i could find ash if i'm lucky and oak but those two are easier to find.
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Sean Manning
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Etienne Hamel
Location: Granby (QC) canada Joined: 09 Sep 2006
Posts: 447
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| Posted: Yesterday at 11:25 am Post subject: |
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| Sean Manning wrote: | Do you know https://www.wood-database.com/ (en anglais)
You might want to look into what the local nations used for spears and axe-helves. I think birch can make good walking sticks. |
if it were up to me i would have used black locust heart wood but it's not historically accurate ^^' i have a tomahawk and a francisca hafted with that wood already and planning on hafting my bearded axe with that as well since i still have a piece long enough. it's just not long enough to be used for the sparth. it'll need a lot of shaping though compared to using a whole young tree. the eye shape is also a challenge with my lack of experience in making axe hafts ^^'
this would be what i have in plentiful supply along with sugar maple (hard maple) it seems pretty close to silver birch which i assume would be the birch used if they used it for hafts https://www.wood-database.com/yellow-birch/
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This is a standard topic