So I have this little hewing hatchet, and it needs a new handle. I figured I'd make one instead of buying one, and since I have a hickory in my yard that's about to come down and I'm planning to rive some leg blanks for a few small stools from the log, I figured I'd go ahead and keep a piece for the hatchet handle.

So I have three questions about this:

1. Which way should the growth rings be oriented? If you're looking at the top of the handle, where it comes through the eye of the bit, should the rings run from the cutting edge to the heel/back, or should they run from side to side the "short" way?

2. If I make it from green wood, can I go ahead and seat the bit, or do I need to let it dry first? I watched a cool video of a fella making an axe handle, and he went straight from shavehorse to install. Will it shrink enough to cause a problem as it dries?

3. Let's say I want to shape a curve in the handle. Are most hatchet or axe handles that are curved made that way by steaming and bending? Or can you just shape it and not worry about the runout? I assume with a hatchet with a 16-inch-long or shorter handle (not sure how long I'll make it yet), the issue of a little runout isn't too big a deal since it's so short and there won't be a great deal of curve anyway. But in a longer axe handle I'm not sure, and I'm curious.

Thoughts?