Only thing i don't like about hickory is all the dang sparks that attack you when you open the door for reload! How'd that handle burn??
I had a piece of loblolly pine or white oak recently, I don't remember which it was but it was sparking like crazy when I opened door. I had to wait like 5mins for the sparks to die enough to shove the hunk back to the back where I could load logs on top of it to keep sparks in whole I loaded the rest of the stove.
When that happens I save the handle (unless it breaks down its length or in the middle),shorten it a bit then reshape it with drawknife,spokeshave & cabinet scraper for a spare antique hatchet.
