Hand hammers: your preferences?

[matt87]

What hand hammers do you use most? Do you prefer ball-pein, cross-pein, straight-pein, diagonal pein? French pattern, German, Swedish, Czech? What weight do you prefer? Do you prefer wood handles or fibreglass?

[yesteryearforge]

1 1/2 to 2 pound TOM CLARK ozark school of blacksmithing hammer. In the cross pien pattern.
Im more of a speed and velocity type guy so I prefer a lighter hammer.

Mike Tanner

[J W Bennett]

2lb cross pien

[Jmercier]

The hammer i do most of my work with is a 2lb cross pein. I want to get a 2 to 2.5lb hofi hammer eventually, iv'e heard nothing but good things about then from the people I know who use them bladesmithing. I've got a ton of other hammers, but my 2lb crosspein gets the most use

[imagedude]

2lb ball with wooden handle.

[steveh]

i like to use my 3lb cross pein the most.i just got a sterling 2.5lb rounding and im liking it as well.ive got a weak spot for hammers,im thinking i might order one of Elmer Roushs.

[Quenchcrack]

I have a 1# cross peen, a 2# and 3# diagonal peen hammers made by Jr. Strasil, aka Irnsrgn. I occasionally use a ball peen but mostly use my Strasil hammers. I truely belive I will wear out long before they do.

[steveh]

i like to use my 3lb cross pein and i prefer wood handles.i like the looks of the hammers Elmer Roush makes,thinking of ordering one,probably will.

[Thomas Dean]

1 1/2 to 2 pound TOM CLARK ozark school of blacksmithing hammer. In the cross pien pattern.
Im more of a speed and velocity type guy so I prefer a lighter hammer.

Mike Tanner

Ditto. I was there when Tom made my hammer, actually helped him the night he did the tempering on them. (he made 12) I told him I wanted a 2# hammer as I had been using a 2.5#er for 3 days in his school and it was about to kill me! The 2#er was perfect. When he finished it he kissed it on the face and handed it to me. I then went in the other room and showed it to Tsur Sadan and he took it and kissed the face also. I use this hammer 98% of the time. BTW, it is much like the Czech hammer with some modifications. Hofi's has his modifications to the Czech hammer. Both awesome hammers!

[rthibeau]

I make all kinds and sizes of hammers, but primarily I use a 2 1/4lb left hand diagonal pein with wood handle. All my hammers have wood handles.

[keykeeper]

Hmmm, let's see......currently a 2 lb. farrier's rounding hammer. Seems to work the best for me.

Haven't found the right cross pein yet to fit my preferences, although thinking of making one of them there diagonal pein hammers out of a cheap sledge. Just have to find the time.

Preferred hammer is subject to change at a moments notice, though.:D

[metalmangeler]

Mostly I use a self made 2lb. rounding hammer with a wood handle for forging in the shop. I have a good sellection to chose from, this is the hammer that I prefer. All my hammers have wood handles.:D

[R Funk]

My blacksmith hand hammer is "hand drilling" hammer style hammer that I have modified into a cross pien hammer. What makes it unique is that it is an un-symmetric pien. That is the surface of the pien opposite of the handle is vertical like a french locksmith hammer. The pien face on the same side of the hammer as the handle is then approximately twice the angle of a standard cross pien. The straight face of the pien allows me to hammer and draw all the way to an adjacent vertical face on the forging, just like french locksmith hammer. It is about 2.5 #. However its major defect is a rounded (approximately octagon) face. I need to make a hammer with a full square face like a Hofi hammer with a similar pien.

My other hand hammer I use alot is a modifed engineers hammer. (a double faced hammer of similar size to a blacksmith cross pien) I ground each face to a 5" cylindrical radius creating what is essentially a very very very dull pien.

I used a 4.5" grinder to do the modifications. This radius, does not appear to be agressive, but makes a significant difference when drawing out a forging. This is used when you want a one directional drawing action, but a cross pein may more agressive than desired. I ground the radiuses at 90 deg to each other so I essentially have a cross pien and straight pien on the same hammer. By flipping the hammer over as I use it converts the "cross pein" side to "straight pein" side I can easily control which way the metal is moving, without having to reposition the work or myself as would be required if I were using a standard cross pein.

Due to its shape I have used this hammer as a finishing hammer as well when a dead flat finish is not desired a hand forged look is desired.

Again this was commercially made hammer with octagon faces. I need to make a square faced hammer like a Hofi hammer.

However this is in the far future as my illness has kept me from doing any smithing work for over 8 months and it could be many more months before I can fire up my forge again.

[Tyler Murch]

I make all my own hammers, and this is the one I use.

I also sell hammers made-to-order.

[Thomas Dean]

My blacksmith hand hammer is "hand drilling" hammer style hammer that I have modified into a cross pien hammer. What makes it unique is that it is an un-symmetric pien. That is the surface of the pien opposite of the handle is vertical like a french locksmith hammer. The pien face on the same side of the hammer as the handle is then approximately twice the angle of a standard cross pien. The straight face of the pien allows me to hammer and draw all the way to an adjacent vertical face on the forging, just like french locksmith hammer. It is about 2.5 #. However its major defect is a rounded (approximately octagon) face. I need to make a hammer with a full square face like a Hofi hammer with a similar pien.

I would like to see pictures of this hammer if you would. Sounds interesting.

[Alan B]

My favorite is a 2 pound diagonal pien hammer made by our own Jr. Strasil, aka...irn sgn

[Shane Stegmeier]

I have a 2# Tom Clark hammer a freind gave me, and I made a 1#15oz right diagonal pein hammer, and I modified a 2# chinese hammer to a double diagonal pien that I forged to shape. Those are the ones I use the most... all have wood handles. I hate fiberglass and metal handles on hammers, those things will ruin you... I have a hammer rack that is ~18" x 5' that is loaded heavily enough I have considered adding braces to the 1.5 x.25 angle iron... and I have used probably half the hammers on the rack in the last year. I also have a pile of stock designated for making hammer heads, and a bunch of heads waiting to be mounted or modified.

[jayco]

I don't have any 'unusual' preferences ' in smithing hammers really.
I just have the usual ball piens, cross piens, straight piens, and a couple of sledge type hammers I use.

My main hammer is a 1.75 lb. ball pien,......so old and worn it probably started out as a 2 pounder. It's not evena 'good' hammer........I,m just very used to it.

Something I've learned just lately is how much the feel and impact of a hammer can be changed by modifying the handle.

I make most of my own wooden tool handles . I started making longer and skinnier handles for my forging hammers. For lack of a better name, I call it a 'slim taper' style handle.

I have short,fat fingers, so the skinnier handle feels better in my hand......and the longer handle seems to give me more ......power; leverage, or 'whallop.

I am gravitating toward a 16in. overall handle length........but i haven't totally decided yet (I,m still experimenting with handle length a little)

I have one old straight pien in my shop that I rehandled some years ago but never used much , because it felt 'funny' to me,......if that makes any sense.
I had inspected it more than once and had been puzzled as to why I didn't like it.

The hammer looked ok.......balanced well enough......the handle looked ok.
I didn't realize what was wrong until I sighted down the handle toward the head.
I had whittled down the the 'eye' section of the handle a little crooked.
So the hammer head was not on the handle straight.
It was just crooked enough to throw the whole thing out of balance.
This one gets a new handle!

[Ice Czar]

the right hammer for the job
planishing, rounding, club, brass, sledge

but for general blacksmithing, we have the widest weight selection in French Pattern Cross Piens, what I employ varies with the stock dimension being worked from 2.5lb to 4.5lb

also use a Swedish pattern as an alternative square face, and a Hofi Czech Pattern, all are wood handles

[R Funk]

Thomas Dean.

Unfortunately I don't have a digital camera so I can't post a picture (sorry)

Here is a link to a photo of a hand drilling hammer

Vaughan HD3 3-Pound Hand Drilling Hammer

I took the hammer head and turned it around so the straight side of the hammer head was turned away from the handle instead on the handle side. Examine the eye of the handle to make certain it is tapered appropriately so that the head can be turned around

I then cut diagonally thru the hammer from face to the eye, leaving approximately 3/8" of the face remaining that was then ground with a radius appropriate for a pien.

The key features of this hammer:

*The vertical face on one side of the pien like a french locksmiths hammer allowing better access to corners

*This is short compact hammer inspired by the Czech pattern, not a long skinny hammer

*It was cheap ($0.50 fleamarket special)

*It does attract attention because no one has seen one like it

I would prefer to remake the hammer from scratch and make it with a square face as opposed to the octagonal face it has now.

I was concerned that the non-symetric shape of the hammer head and the eccentric loading on the hammer head might loosen it on the handle. To date that has not been a problem.

Trust this helps. Respond if I can assist further.

[Hillbillysmith]

I prefer my 4lb sledge with a wooden single-handed handle on it. Second would be my 8lb old rail roading sledge with a wooden single-handed handle. I have others (of course) and they have their purposes too, but these two rank the highest.

[John Martin]

2lb cross pein and ball pein hammers.

[ThomasPowers]

I have several hammers I use regularly, 1.5kg sweedish cross pein when my arm is in good shape, slightly smaller french crosspein with a very short handle. Lovely old 2#? straight peen with a wide rounded pein and a couple of lynch collection hammers that are light but I put a long handle on them and they are a joy to use. I also have short handled sledges, a couple real short---got them that way 20+ years ago; but most with half length handles. I even have a british WWII Boilermaker's hammer broad arrow and all.

Lightest hammer with commercial markings: 4oz, heaviest 17#

I used to to it all with one hammer, then I realized that holding back to do delicate work with a heavy hammer was just showing off and was very hard on my elbow. Now I size the hammer to the work and often start with a light hammer and switch up as I get warmed up and then work my way back down as my arm tires. I haven't had a bad bout of blacksmith's elbow for close to a decade now!

I have a nice hammer rack too with about 12 lineal feet of hammers and other handled tools. Of course the non-ferrous/jewelry hammers have their own rack to discourage folk from messing them up hitting steel.

The hammers I make are made from taking RR bolts (not spikes) and slitting and drifting the screw end for a handle and using them for deep dishing. Sometimes I cant them so they follow the hammering arc and hit true down deep. Nice for armouring...or making steel/iron pots.

[Ratel10mm]

My favourite is a 1kg cross pein, square head by Peddinhaus. Wood handle.

[matt87]

Ratel10mm, may I ask where you got it from? I've been looking for a reasonably priced cross-pein but I can't find one in this country.