[vegypete]

hi ya i am thinking of puting a long shaft on a broad bladed mattok i have, in a sense turn it in to an azada, any thoughts on this and what wood could i use for a longer shaft?........pete

[mumofstig]

wood from trees   

[vegypete]

mumofstig what trees would you have in mind

[grendel]

ash makes good handles, if you go find your local bodger or forrester they should be able to cut you a nice sapling, might take a year to season properly though.
Grendel

[vegypete]

hi ya as it happens there are a few ash saplings doted around the allottment, i can see a plan hatching ...........pete

[digga666]

Why??  They arent very expensive to buy new!

[Kleftiwallah]

Why must people be fixated with the 'B' word.  "It aint right if it hasn't been 'bought'.  .  .  . If there is something free, I would go for it and design my own shaft.     Cheers,    Tony

[Growster...]

Pete, we got a bit from the wood nearby - hawthorn.

See here: -

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=85597.0

Make sure it's long enough though!

[vegypete]

hi ya  yes i could buy one , but when i have the head for free, then i do not think you could get a 5-6ft shalft to fit a mattock head, £15-£20to buy an azada, that could buy a lot of seeds to sow next year ............pete