Custom Tool Handles

Tool handles are as much of the tool as is the Quality and hardness of the steel the tool is made of. A great cutting edge mounted in a awkward handle will make the tool useless to the user in a short period, never the less if the pain is caused by muscle fatigue or the tiz', an ill suited handle makes the tool useless in a shorter period of carving than it could be if the handle was a better fit to the hand using it. to understand the shape of your hand closed in a comfortable position you need only to get some modeling clay rolled onto a log shape cylinder, as large as 1"x5", then wrap it in plastic wrap, with your carving hand hold it into your grip until the clay feels comfortable in your grip. for a more permanent study shape place the clay in the freezer a couple hours then peel off the plastic wrap, and trim off the odd bits of clay to a smoother shape. while cool. notice the heel of the cylinder/handle is larger than the end located at the index finger, as well as the cross section shape is not round, its triangle with the side in the bend of your knuckles thinner than the back of the handle.. now you know why small, round or rectangle handles get uncomfortable in your hand after any period of time, Other benefits of the triangle shape of the handle is it dont roll off the table, in addition to you knowing by the feel of the handle fit in your hand exactly where the sharp edge is. and the taper in the handle wont allow the tired old hands let the knife slip, to the floor, feet or other places.... Although i didn't mention it in the steps of the clay model above, the smoothing down should include the ability to fit your hand if your holding the blade towards your thumb, what i mean here is you may be tempted to leave the deep finger grues between the fingers for a more custom grip, that's fine, but dont leave them so big its uncomfortable to turn the edge up, i find using different sized drum sanding mandrels in shaping handles a great benefit, as i can stop at any point and check the fit of the handle in my hand, the abrasive is constantly removing stock while im moving the handle, not like using a knife or saw, where the blade can take off too much to fast.. comments and questions are welcome. ill do my best to answer them...