Anthony San Miguel Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 I just wanted to share pictures of two wonderful hammers I just bought. The mirror finished one is made by Brent Bailey and it's called an Aspery Modified. I bought it from a guy who bought it new and never used it. It feels absolutely WONDERFUL in my hand! It is front weighted per Mark Aspery's request and feels unlike any hammer I have held so far. I haven't been able to make anything with it yet and I won't be able to light the forge until Thursday. CAN'T WAIT!The second one is used but in pretty good shape and also feels good in my hand. Can't wait to use it also. I bought it from the same guy . The only thing I know about it is that it's European because it's stamped 1 1/2 and there's no way that is its weight in lbs.Does anybody know anything about it? Recognize the maker? It has what looks like a bell stamped into it.Here are the pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Great hammers, really like the style of the Aspery.is it about 2 1\2 lb ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianinsa Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Nothing like 'NEW TOYS' er..tools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Nothing like 'NEW TOYS' er..toolsToyls Ian, they're Toyls.(Darn tree, I can not remember who coined the term but he's a denizen of another forum) Great term, it says it all.Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 All the hammers I've seen that Brent Bailey has made have been polished much more and has his name stamped on the side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony San Miguel Posted June 24, 2015 Author Share Posted June 24, 2015 It was polished more. The guy I bought it from went to Arizona (might have been Colorado) to take a blacksmithing course where the hammer was recommended by the instructor. He bought it and then it sat in his shop area, which unfortunately is just a covered patio for a few months. He's sold alot of his tools to me over the last two weeks and when I bought this hammer it had a few small spots where light rust was forming on it. After a little oil and ultra fine steel wool that's what it looks like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Ok - that's what is the difference then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony San Miguel Posted June 24, 2015 Author Share Posted June 24, 2015 (edited) All the hammers I've seen that Brent Bailey has made have been polished much more and has his name stamped on the side.It was Gordon Williams at the Pieh Tool school in Camp Verde, Arizona that recommended the hammer to him. The guy ordered the hammer off of Brent Bailey's website and even spoke with him personally. Also, this is a cell phone camera picture. I realize it doesn't look like it has a "mirror finish" like I described in the original post, and the light coat of 3in1 oil reduced some of the polished look, but it looks more polished than the cell phone picture makes it look. Edited June 24, 2015 by Anthony San Miguel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony San Miguel Posted June 24, 2015 Author Share Posted June 24, 2015 Great hammers, really like the style of the Aspery.is it about 2 1\2 lb ?Thanks. I haven't weighed it but it does feel like it's around 2 1/2 lbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Macca Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Hammer envy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJS Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 The other hammer looks like a German farriers hammer... For what that is worth;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony San Miguel Posted June 25, 2015 Author Share Posted June 25, 2015 The other hammer looks like a German farriers hammer... For what that is worth;-)Your opinion is worth something to me. Thanks. I looked up German farriers hammer and did find one that looks kind of similar. The one I found is obviously a mass manufactured hammer and had less "character" than mine. Maybe mine is mass manufactured too. Hopefully somebody will recognize it or the maker's mark and chime in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony San Miguel Posted June 26, 2015 Author Share Posted June 26, 2015 I lit the forge and used the Bailey hammer and the unidentified hammer last night for the first time. I forged a knife from a farrier's rasp and it's sitting in a tub of vermiculite now.The Bailey hammer moved hot steel noticeably faster than any other hammer I own and didn't leave peen marks. The problem I had at first is that I'm so used to using this 2lb hammer that has become my favorite and I've developed fairly good control with it. I found myself moving steel faster with the Bailey but getting tired faster. That was unacceptable to me so I warmed up for about 20 min with my favorite 2 pounder and then pushed through the fatigue with the Bailey for the next hour and a half and I'm glad I did.The other hammer, while nice is just too heavy at this point to use for a long period of time and maintain control. I'm sure that I'll work my way up to it eventually. My humble analysis is that the Bailey is great and I love it!2My favorite 2 pounder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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