No. 131 ○ Hornbeam ○ Hammer Handle ○ Sledgehammer Handle ○ Domestic Natural Wood

This is a handle for a wooden mallet (genno/kana-zuchi).
Total length is 343mm. The eye insertion part is 9.8mm x 27.6mm, and the handle base is 29.8mm x 35.5mm.
After processing, it is finished with a thin coat of penetrating oil.

Shide wood used for mallet handles is a general term for hardwoods in the birch family, genus Carpinus, including hornbeam and ironwood. It is one of the representative woods traditionally used in Japan for handles of mallets, hammers, and yari-ganna (a type of Japanese plane).
Shide is extremely hard and impact-resistant, yet it is also resilient, making it difficult to break. It absorbs the shock of striking appropriately without easily cracking, making it a reliable material for mallet handles.