Hammers + Handles = Headaches

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We began some trial assembly of our Exeter-pattern hammers today. The handles, made by Caleb James, are fantastic. But marrying the handles to the heads is a challenge.

Most of the problems were about getting the heads onto the handles so they were perfectly perpendicular. A lot of the problems will be solved with jigs and fixtures. I’m not a fan of jigs when making one-off chairs. But when we have to make 500 hammers in a row… yes please.

We managed to get about half a dozen hammers made today at a snail’s pace. And we are figuring out what the jigs and fixtures should look like to make assembly easier.

I hope we will have a batch of hammers to sell this week or next. But I am an eternal optimist. Retail on these will be $133.