For those of you who work with a striker, how often do you use your set hammer? I don't have one so I just use a small flatter in situations where if I had a set hammer I would use it and the results are okay. What do you think? Worth my time to forge one?

Good Morning,

 

There is NO LIMIT to what a person could use. If you have got by with your Flatter, that works fine.

If you have a huge job coming up and you can see the benefit of a set hammer, make a set hammer.

If you are walking through the scrap yard and trip over a sledge hammer, pick it up and make a Set Hammer out of it.

K.I.S.S. Keep It Stupid Simple.

 

Focus on the Journey, Don't focus on the 'Have To Have Tools'.

How many coats and jackets do you have. Some people only have one (maybe)!!!

NG,

In the beginning, tools are are function of need. Specifically a set hammer is important to get into tight corners without making the rest of the area with hammer blows. Larger flatters, are use to smooth work and establish flat planes. Check out some of the work of old English smiths, you can't tell it was hammered, looks like it grew that way if you will. They achieve this look with a constant planisfimg action at low temps and the prudent use of flatter, I.e set tooling.

As you progress through learning you will see the Ned for tooling that supports your style. In the beginning get good with hammer and anvil. Use all the surfaces available to you as you learn to move iron. Muscle memory, coordination and your eye will guide you.

Good luck to you in all your pursuits.

Peter

Thanks for the responses. I appreciate the insight.

If you just like making tools, to add to your kit, and increase your options... Make the set hammer, they can be very useful, lots of smiths never use one, other guys use them all the time.  I like them

While I have a large flatter, I prefer to use my smaller 1.5" set hammer to flatten out hammer marks.  

 

I'll use the hold fast to secure the work to the anvil and act as my own striker, using a 4lb sledge on the set hammer.  My larger flatter is nice, but it also distributes the limited force I can apply over a larger area.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's not always a great thing, either.

 

If you don't have one, you should definitely make or buy one.  There are several on ebay every time I check, and they're certainly worth the money, imo.

Just remember to keep the tooling in proposian to the striking hammer. Force is converted to heat untile you overcome the inutua, a 1# tool struck by a 4# hammer works good, an 8# tool struck by the same hammer not so much, besides pecking away with a small hammer, mushrooming becomes a bigger isue

I have a set hammer that needs a bit of face work. file it flat with a tiny radius on the edge?

Mad, flat works.  It's all about how tight you want to be able to get in a corner.  I ran mine to a sharp corner and then just broke the edge with a file.  The other set hammer I have was worked flat, but has radii of various sizes depending on each side.

having one, i might just leave it flat and slightly edgebroken.  thanks, vaughn.

I think Vaugn has a great idea with diferent radiuses on diferent sides

Multiple radi on a set hammer give you the option of smoothing and cleaning up your transitions in thickness, adjusting shoulders, and upsetting shoulders. I have a VERY small set hammer that is 1/2" square by 1 1/2" long that I chuck up in a set of tongs and use to define features on human and dragon heads...  Lot of cool uses;-)

A set hammer is a good project. But if you want some more fun make a heal set hammer they are very handy and fun to make

Hi Francis, Heal set hammer? An unfamiliar term, could you describe or put up a picture please and what it would normally be used for?

a set hammer is usually square in shape. a heal set hammer is angled with a edge that is off set from the hammer face I will take a picture tomorrow. Mark Aspery goes through the making of it in the skills of a blacksmith volume 3

John here is a photo of the heal set hammer. this one is made from 4140 and I punched the eye on the diagonal to help with alignment when using it. I used to make a collaring vise and mortise's it gets you back into the corner real tight helps with separating out the metal.

I thought it might be another name for a side set... I like side sets, very useful little beasties.  Jargon is so specific to a particular group of people;-)  The industrial smiths I've talked to use the term side set, and guys doing repouse' seem to use the term 1st pass butcher , and 2nd pass butchers, for the tools do that same procedure.  Need to look in Lilico and see what term he uses??? 

 

What is kind of interesting to me is that I met an industrial smith named "Guffy"  who made his side sets so they had wings that tapered off away from the  side set in the middle  kinda like    --^--     It kept the side set from rolling due to the resistance when you were pounding it into the steel, and you knew when you were done.  My hammer has been down for years and I haven't made any yet, but it is on the bucket list of tools to make...  :-)

SJS there is an other good source of tools it is Otto Schmirler book the smith's craft and tools its s good investment

Thanks for the picture Francis, clarified what your definition is exactly, looks like a version of what I know as a side set, invaluable when making tenons among other uses..

 

 

You bet John thanks for sharring