On most punners, the haft is fixed to the head by a rivet. This is usually the point at which the haft breaks. A stronger repair can be made by using a blind or fox wedge.
Shave the haft until it fits tightly in the socket of the head, and then make a saw cut in the end to about half the depth of the socket. Make a hardwood wedge of the same depth and a little over twice as thick as the saw cut, and to fit the full width of the haft. Coat the wedge and the end of the haft with raw linseed oil, and then insert the wedge far enough to hold it. Then using a wooden mallet, drive the haft into the socket to secure. The bottom of the socket forces the wedge into the haft, giving a tight friction fit.
If you find that punner hafts are frequently being broken, it may be better to replace the wooden haft with a thick walled steel tube, drilled and fixed with a rivet. Some punner heads do not have a rivet hole, and can only be repaired using a blind wedge as described above.
