Toor Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 Hi everyone, For driving center punches, pin punches and starter punches I have found a really heavy, drop hammer works better for me than a lighter handle with a hammer for control. I want to protect the punches from mushrooming and don't really care about protecting the hammer. The tool maker who used to work here had this huge block of brass the size of a block of butter he would sometime used as a hammer. But brass is so expensive now that I can't justify spending hundreda of dollar's on a brass or copper block. But I ran into ductile iron and it seems like it might be soft enough (Rockwell C20 from what I found). It also sounds like (at least some tempers of ductile iron) might not work harden like brass. I also seems like it would not chip or shatter but online resources are spotty and unreliable since it's a type of cast iron which is typically known for brittleness so I cannot be sure. Is ductile iron safe for this use? Is it soft enough to mushroom itself instead of punches? I am looking for something cheaper than brass, softer than your typical steel but doesn't need to be as soft, and something that resists work hardening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stash Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 I can't answer for ductile, but I would just suggest a lump hammer made from a lump of mild steel- A36 or whatever. It is cheap, easily punched and drifted, and softer than any of your chisels or punches. How much softer do you need? Keep it simple. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toor Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 I suppose Rockwell C20. I wasn't sure about mild steels in general since they seem to be around that hardness when annealed. It's just I never know how annealed a piece of cold rolled steel is when I get it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 I would just heat it to critical then normalize it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toor Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 We do have a torch the old toolmaker asked me to get at work just for that purpose but he never did show me how to do it. Is it pretty idiot proof? Sit it on a brick and blast it with the torch until it's red hot and just let it sit there overnight (or a couple days) to air cool? We would be talking something like a rod 2" in diameter and 6" long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stash Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 Heat it as evenly as you can till it is non- magnetic then let it cool in the air. If you have a bucket of ashes or vermiculite bury it in there. It will cool slower- couple hours to overnite. Once its cool to the touch it's done. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 I'm curious what your situation is. Are you in a business situation, hobbiest,blacksmith, or machinist? Got employees or is this a one man operation? Are your tools made by you or are they purchased? What do you mean by heavy drop hammer and what is a "lighter handle with a hammer for control"? What kind of material are you working on? Steel, brass, wrought iron? What weight are you punching? 1/8",1/2",1"? What are you punching? Hot punching, cold punching? My daily driver is a 2-1/2" cross peen. I make my own struck hand held tools. Works for me for most situations. As a general rule, hammers are softer than anvils because it's easier and cheaper to dress a hammer. Hand held struck tools are softer than hammers because it's easier and cheaper to dress the struck end of hand tools than a hammer. This also prevents chipping of either tool. I temper my struck tools to a blue or grey. This protects my hammer, prevents chipping and minimizes mushrooming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toor Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 Business situation but only two or three people. But I also have a home shop so sometimes it's nice to have one there too. Tools are purchased or made, depending on the need. DId I type "lighter handle with a hammer for control"? That doesn't make sense. What I meant was "works better for me than a lighter hammer with a handle", as a heavier handless hammer which is slower works better for me than swinging a faster, lighter hammer. We're talking something like a 2.5kg/5lbs block. There's usually a $5k electronic sensor an inch to either side of the pin so I'd rather swing fast and miss. It's mainly pins and center punches. So cold punching I guess. In my case, I care more about the punches than the hammer, especially if the hammer is just a block of metal. It'd be different it was a nice hammer with a handle, but in my case the punches tend to be nicer than whatever I'm hitting them with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arftist Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 Use any hammer head and anneal it. It will be plenty soft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 If you're driving pin punches use a dead blow hammer, they don't bounce and deliver more of a hard push than a smack. Or, if you just want a hand held weight like a hammer head, just use a piece of round mild steel of a diameter comfortable in your hand and long enough to provide the desired weight. Mild steel weighs approx. 0.28lbs/cu/in. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 I've been known to use a river rock as a hammer in a pinch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swedefiddle Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Happy New Year, Toor If you are going to anneal a hammer head, by heating, remove Handle first (or the heat will remove it for you). Welcome, If you put your locale in your Avatar, we will have an idea which part of the rock you are making a shadow. Enjoy the Journey, there is no destination! Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 My own soft hammer is a 3lb drilling hammer I picked up at a flea market and annealed. It was already unhandled, so I heated it to critical and put it in the hot box to cool slowly overnight. Works great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toor Posted January 7, 2022 Author Share Posted January 7, 2022 On 1/6/2022 at 6:49 AM, JHCC said: My own soft hammer is a 3lb drilling hammer I picked up at a flea market and annealed. It was already unhandled, so I heated it to critical and put it in the hot box to cool slowly overnight. Works great. I see. So just find a big hammer, remove the handle and anneal the head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 Precisely. Then put a handle on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 Hammer heads, without the handles, are generally much cheaper than handled ones. As you often have to replace the handle anyway it makes sense to hunt for them already handleless. (I once was bargaining for an old hand forged hammer head where the dealer wanted an extra US$7 because it had a new handle in it. Finally I pulled the handle out of the head and handed it to him and asked "How much for just the head?" It was a new handle and so poorly mounted that it would have to be replaced immediately!) I keep my eyes open at the scrapyard and pick up hammer heads whenever I see them and so have a milk crate full of "possibles" for projects. At 20 UScents a pound I can afford to sit on them till I need them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 i have a ductile iron bottom fuller and it has held up pretty well. it seemed pretty hard when i was grinding the shank to fit my anvil's hardy hole Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toor Posted January 9, 2022 Author Share Posted January 9, 2022 On 1/7/2022 at 7:28 AM, JHCC said: Precisely. Then put a handle on it. I don't want a handle. I want a palm drop mallet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted January 9, 2022 Share Posted January 9, 2022 Any suitably sized piece of mild steel fits the bill. Figure about 0.28 lbs./cu/in. You could call around machine shops and see if they have any suitable drops or scrap in the bin. If you have the cutting capacity an old truck axle has many hammer heads per side. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marley.roman96 Posted August 8, 2022 Share Posted August 8, 2022 Hi there!In my opion Rockwell C20 is the best option for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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