John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Where can I find a large piece of iron or steel that i could forge into a hammer? like 1 1/4" tall 1" wide and like 3 or 4" long???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitebear Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 you would need a tool steel or a spring steel. first off try thew local junk yard. look for any kind of car axle or something big from a car. this is normally tool steel. i made a hamemr from a '00 truck axle. it was about one and a quarter inch diameter and was solid tool steel about 4 feet long. that's your cheapest bet. you might try admiral steel i don't know them at all so maybe someone else on here does. but i've heard good things about them. but start at the junker yard. Son Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 So if I could get a axle, take it, cut it, square it, drill it, widen the hole, and then forge it, and then the handle....and so on. But that should work your saying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_sandy_creek_forge Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Hey M, As far as my experience goes, axles are not tool steel, but they usually are some grade of medium to high carbon steel, possibly low alloy content. But yes, many people have made hammers from them. I've been wanting to forge a couple hammers sooner or later. Unfortunately, my access to free scrapped axle stock is either through my dad, who works on HEAVY machinery and semis, or through my brother (mostly skid loader and small tractor axles). Either way, the thought of working 1.75" up to 2.5" axles by hand is still a little intimidating for me. They'll be on hold till a power hammer (or a cheap sledge swinger) comes along -Aaron @ the SCF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 I could get a 16lb sledge hammer, and my brother could hold the head, if it's to hard to shape with a small 4lb sledge hammer. But I'm gonna start looking around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt87 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 You could forge it out of mild, and then forge-weld a carbon plate to make the face. That's the old way to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 I can not weld. Don't know how to, and don't have a torch. I'm prolly gonna use the axle or some bar stock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Well the *old* way was to make it out of wrought iron and weld a steel face on it. Mild steel only became common after the American Civil War when the Bessemer process became common. If you have access to a cutting torch you can find heavy leaf and coil springs that can be cut to general size and then forged. I must point out though that for general work I have always found lots of old hammer's cheap at fleamarkets. For speciality hammers you can often re-work an old hammer's shape. Save a lot of time and fuel over making your own. If you just want to make your own perhaps it would be best to wait till your smithing background gets a bit better and you know the answers to a lot of the questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerald Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 M brothers, please don't take this the wrong way, but until you have a few hundred "S" hooks under your forging belt, you would probably be better off (from a learning standpoint) staying away from trying to forge a hammer. Use the time to try to perfect your hammer control and technique on less exacting items. Check out the Blue Print section for ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 Okay. I don't want to get over my head in projects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irnsrgn Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 check out pawn shops, flea mkts and yard sales for tools (hammers, tongs etc). Like Gerald said, you need to improve your smithing skills with simple things before attempting complicated things. Nothing will kill your interest in Smithing or any other skill quicker than attempting complicated advanced techniques and failing because of lack of the rudimentry skills necessary. Frustration is devastating to ones ego. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 I will. I'm going to a flea market this weekend, hoping to find an anvil is lucky or some hammers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irnsrgn Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 look for any tongs also, its much easier to reform the bits or jaws than to make a pair from scratch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irnsrgn Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 It was common amoung the early smiths traveling the unexplored areas to only have a small stump anvil, a small bellows one or two hammers and 3 or 4 pair of tongs. They used a ground forge and reformed the jaws on the tongs they had to whatever shape was needed to accomplish the job. Fuel was charcoal from campfires and easily obtained. They did mostly repairs as iron was in very short supply or non existant in the areas they were in. When it comes down to packing everything you need on your back or on a pack animal, you have a tendency to not include frivolous items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psilogen Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Nothing will kill your interest in Smithing or any other skill quicker than attempting complicated advanced techniques and failing because of lack of the rudimentry skills necessary. Frustration is devastating to ones ego. so uhh did you have cameras in my shop a few days ago while I was trying to faggot weld 4 rods together for an s-hook, or is this just coincidence? I agree with you guys about getting the basics down before moving on to complicated projects, but doing up a hammer doesn't really seem that complex, besides the punching and drifting, plus it's gotta be pretty hard to accidentally burn a hammer, given its size. Is the amount of work it will take to move tool steel around the problem? Of course, it is still easier to hit up some antique stores or whathaveyou. (also: hey guys, I am new here!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentiron1946 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 In the past I have re-worked cheap hammers into speciality use hammers but it was after many years of hot metal working. I have made a few special use hammer out of axles and they are OK for short projects but I have never used them long term so I can't comment on the durability of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted October 3, 2007 Author Share Posted October 3, 2007 So then what would you choose for a hammer head? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candidquality Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 You can always get and old sledge and grind away the edge to make a peen like this. But it does take a rather large grinder to make it quickly, forging can be an option. Just know that if you decide to, that it might not look the greatest as you as still learning. And think carefully how you are going to handle a large block of hot steel as well. But unless you totally burn it up you'll always be able to try it again later when you think you can do better. as far as i am concerned the bigger the piece of metal is you are working with the easier it is to work, but that's just my opinion. It's really best to start with a 2 pound hammer at most until you can get your arm built up. I use a 3 1/2 pound, but i'm a big guy. I know others that start with a heavier hammer and go to lighter at the end of the day. Just find what works for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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