Hello there! What hammer should I use?!

[Flint Steele]

Hey guys so I took you advice and forged iron! i did come by this interesting cross peen though. i dressed the face but it has got a nasty chip in the side, i was wondering if that's all right, or if it is more of a showoff piece. there are pictures down below. Thanks in advance!

 

Ben

 

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[Admanfrd]

Beautiful hammer, but cracks can literally make the hammer head explode. if the chip has fallen off, its ok. if there is an actual CRACK, do not use it.


If you want to use it, grind the face to a mirror finish, or close to it. you want it nice and smooth or you will leave marks in the piece.

 

 

 

We encourage children to learn and take part, but please try to post facts, not nintendo game information

[Frosty]

Ben: Hammers don't explode no matter how badly they're cracked. Take a close look for more or deeper damage. You want to eliminate sharp edges and corners as they form stress risers which can lead to another chip. Chips can be dangerous as the piece flying off is moving at high speed and can put holes in your hide or EYE.

 

If it looks like there are more cracks or defects leading deeper into the hammer you might want to make it a wall hanger. You ARE wearing appropriate PPE yes? Eye protection being #1 and only MUST have ON. Hearing protection is really good. You don't want to be holding a great big megaphone cone thingy to your ear and saying, "EH? Speak up SONNY, stop mumbling!" all the time when you get older do you? Natural fabrics only, synthetics melt on contact with anything more than 300f, then they stick to your hide and deep fry you, even NOMEX melts on ya. VERY painful. Cotton, wool, hemp, leather, etc. natural good, synthetic BAD. Same for footwear, NO synthetics and open top boots aren't such a great idea either. You just haven't lived till a hot cutoff falls into the top of your boot/shoe/whatever and you get to do the screaming HOT FOOT dance till you rip your foot gear off. It's seriously NO FUN AT ALL! A nice deep slack tub or bucket is where you put your foot if that happens.

 

Keep some aloe vera gell in the 1st. aid kit with the other stuff, burns go with the territory.

 

Another thing that goes with the territory are the silly things you have to learn to filter out of the posts here and everywhere. Exploding hammer heads is a typical bit of nonsense based on exaggerated urban myth with zero basis in fact. You'll get to know who to ignore. Same story goes for Youtube videos, some are kids who just have to have their 15 seconds of fame but have nothing useful to offer.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Francis Trez Cole]

that is a scythe hammer used for peening an edge on a scythe

[Flint Steele]

So how do I dress the face? I just have a six inch disk grinder. should i get in touch with someone with a belt grinder? and how should I dress the chipped off part? (which is on the face)

 

Frosty: Whenever I forge I wear eye protection, thick jeans, and steel toed boots. so unless I do something VERY stupid ,(knock on wood) i think i will be all right!

[Frosty]

Glad to hear you use PPE we just mention it frequently so it hopefully stays fresh in folk's minds.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Flint Steele]

You can never be too safe!

[Admanfrd]

I have seen a video of a hammer head exploding from stress. Don't think EXPLOSION as an exothermic reaction, but as a physical stress reaction. a deep crack can make the hammer head shatter and shoot pieces away at near super-sonic speed. (explosion: a sudden, rapid, or great increase.) this is a mechanical failure front. yes, it can happen. I have experienced this FIRST HAND. I accidentally hit the edge of my anvil and the antique hammer i was using shattered. Since it was over the edge of the anvil already, Only my pinky was hit. I am not making this up. Be careful and understand that I actually do know what i am talking about when I post things. mkay? thanks.