Neither of these are on your list, but I make
handles out of dogwood and mock orange(bowdock) both of these are
almost indestructable.

Of the ones on your list, hickory/pecan or persimmon, both are tough and
take an
excellent finish.


"Steve Turner" wrote in message
...
Seems like modern day chisel makers are using as many different types of
wood for their handles as there are makers of chisels, but is there really
any great advantage to using Hornbeam, Boxwood, and Rosewood versus good
ol' Hickory or Ash? I want to make some new handles for a couple of my
old general purpose socket chisels, and I'm trying to decide what kind of
wood to use. Looking through my stacks of suitable cutoffs, I have (among
many others, but I'm not really considering things like Cherry, Mahogany,
Maple, or even Oak):

Shagbark Hickory
Honey Locust
Mesquite
Pecan
Persimmon
Purpleheart
Padauk

What would you choose (or specifically NOT choose) and why? Just curious.
:-)

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