being totally serious, at 12" handle length, they are a wee bit anemic for larger taps.......in addition to being just plain ugly. I was planning to upgrade to 18" handles with will give a 50% increase in torque capabilities with the same force applied (measured in foot pounds) That being said, I also wouldn't mind the handles being in similar condition to the tool head, which is in Very good condition. Hope that answers your question. I guess I could also go with heavy wall tubing instead of solid rod or new black pipe.
What my original question was all about was, since 3/4" black pipe OD is 1.050 and solid rod OD is 1.000, does the missing 0.050 from the major diameter of the thread for 3/4" NPT make that much difference since this is not a pressure fitting and the thread is tapered if I were to use 1.000 OD stock. My question still stands. Whether I use solid rod or heavy wall tubing. I get the weight consideration, and that can be part of the final solution decision. I can either use the stock "as is" (which I have on hand), or I need to buy 1.125 stock, and turn the thread area down to 1.050