Forged, Cast or ...

[Arbalist]

At least one respected smith on here reckons cast Hammers are as good as forged but what about cutting and drilling a suitable piece of steel instead? Would a Hammer made this way be much different in use? For me at least it would be quicker to put a lump of 01 on the bandsaw and cut the angles for the pein and then drill a couple of holes for the handle - may need a bit of a clean up with a file.

[ThomasPowers]

First of all it's not "cast hammers are as good as forged ones" but a particular brand/make/run of cast hammers are as good as the forged ones also having been done by that maker. You can make a lousy hammer either way and a big part of how they come out is alloy and heat treat.

Using a piece of stock of appropriate alloy is fine to make hammers.

Remember that the proper hole for a hammer handle is hourglass shaped, hard to drill and a lot of filing.

Do a good job on heat treat and they will do fine; do a bad job and they can be a danger to user and bystander!

[patrick]

Forgings vs. Casting vs. Machining

The merit of each method of manufacture depends on the quality of production and the intended application. There are certain applications were forgings will give longer life than castings, particular where fatigue loads are present. In other cases, the method chosesen is a matter cost rather than product performance. In the case of a hammer the shape and heat treatment are most important. A good hammer of the proper shape heat treated correctly can be made by all three methods. The same is true for anvils and any number of other products.

Patrick