Repurposed Hammer Into Wooden Mallet.

So I have been looking through instructables for a while and decided it is time to post my own. So here goes my first try, I hope that i am clear on this.

So I have been thinking about building some furniture for my wife and I don't own a soft face mallet or wooden mallet. I have had this ginormous framing claw hammer in my tool box for some odd years and I am not even sure where it came from. Anyways the handle was cracked and starting to splinter, so I decided to cut it down and repurpose the handle.

Everything I used for this project is stuff I had laying around so it cost me a total of $0 usd.

Update:

added the other picture i thought I had deleted

Materials to make the hammer:

4"-6" piece of 4x4 pine

3/8" dowel (all I had on hand)

wood glue

sand paper

stain and polyurethane

Tools:

Jig saw

cordless drill

drill bits

measurement tools

The handle:

So as I said I cut the handle off, then measured down 2 inches. Then it is time to cut it into a rectangle. This is where I eyeballed it and as you can see by the picture, it weren't pretty.

The mallet head:

So i take my 4x4 piece and start by taking measurements and mark out my lines for the cuts. Doing the cuts I knock the corners off on both ends. Then I sanded down all the cuts and edges (this was all strictly for looks and not for function).

The hole for the handle was pretty easy to mark out. Once it was drilled and dug out (I made it 2 1/4 inches deep) I placed the glue in it and pounded the handle in (I test fit the handle as well as I could).

Now it is time to drill the hole for the dowel to hold the mallet and handle together. Drill the hole to match the dowel mark the length and cut it. Coat the dowel in glue and slide the dowel in the hole. Let it all dry and let's make it look good.

I sanded everything smooth and filled any cracks in the wood. I also drilled a hole in the handle and strung a piece of paracord so i could hang it to dry.

I used a stain polyurethane mix for the first coat, let it dry for about 24 hours. I then sanded dow the grain and rough spots that tend to show up.

I used a clear polyurethane for the second and third coat. After the second coat I did a light sand and applied the third coat.

After the third coat is dry I took some polish and a wool buffing wheel that attaches to my drill.

I hope you enjoyed my ible and let me know if I can add anything.

I am going to enter this in the On a Budget contest so vote me up if you like it.