Doug Miller wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>>
>
> Hmmm.... I have ... lessee... three claw hammers of varying sizes, 32oz
> engineers hammer, 3# hand sledge, urethane mallet, two ball pein hammers of
> different sizes, and at least one tack hammer. Ummm.... nine. And I'm not sure
> that's enough.
I popbably have in the area of 15 to 20 different hammers, In addition
to those mentioned.
A couple of framing hammers, a couple of different mason's hammers, a
drywall hammer, a shingling (i.e shake shingle) hammer...
I've even got one of the "Bell System" lineman's hammers (1770 in this
weeks "Was is it" quiz).
--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
[email protected]
"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:
>
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot
> where you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
>
>
You only need 1 hammer at a time. It's rare on a project for me to use
two hammers in conjunction with each other, and when I do it's usually
trying another one because the first wasn't doing the job well.
Still can't use more than 1 at a time, though.
Puckdropper
--
How many hammers must a woodworker own before they call him a woodworker?
I got at least ten or twelve, including a baby claw hammers for hanging
things on the wall. I got a coupon from ace hardware and ended up paying
about 16 cents for it. Very good for its intended purpose.
I got a baby sledge, for "persausion" work. A couple "soft" hammers for
work that can not be marred or dented. A ball peen hammer. I have
fiberrglass, steel and wood handled hammers. I use what I think is
appropriate or comfortable for a particular job.
My favorite? It is a wooden handled hammer that has an ergonomic curve to
it.When I hit a nail, the finished position is with my hand straight. It is
easier on my wrist.
"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:108a16d7-5c4e-471a-b4a3-173f2d1d5f0b@w37g2000prg.googlegroups.com...
> Greetings,
>
> Placing tools where I actually use them has worked very well. In some
> cases, just one size of wrench or nut driver of a set lives on my
> bandsaw or work bench while the others of the set live in the cabinet
> or tool box. For hammers, one round mallet lives next to the lathe,
> another lives next to the bench chisels, claw hammers live next to the
> boxes of nails so I can get nails and a hammer at the same place.
>
> As for quality, for some kinds of jobs the quality does not matter
> since any quality will do for the job, e.g. the 5 pound sledge use to
> gently nudge boards around during clamping for glueing. For other
> jobs, e.g. framing using lots of nails, you will want quality.
>
> One more thing, the really cheap hammers can crumble during use. The
> head actually falls apart from metal fatigue. These I would not have
> around for safety reasons.
>
> Rather than make a list of hammers, try making a list of your jobs
> that need a hammer. Then decide how many and what kinds of hammers you
> want for your jobs.
>
Or just buy them when you need them.
In article <[email protected]>, Larry Jaques
<novalidaddress@di\/ersify.com> wrote:
> _Tools Rare and Ingenious: Celebrating the World's Most Amazing Tools_
> by Sandor Nagyszalanczy (Just call him Sandor. Everyone'll grok it.)
Currently on sale at Lee Valley... Half price, limited stock. I've got
mine, so have it!
<http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=50622&cat=1,44047&ap=1>
Greetings,
Placing tools where I actually use them has worked very well. In some
cases, just one size of wrench or nut driver of a set lives on my
bandsaw or work bench while the others of the set live in the cabinet
or tool box. For hammers, one round mallet lives next to the lathe,
another lives next to the bench chisels, claw hammers live next to the
boxes of nails so I can get nails and a hammer at the same place.
As for quality, for some kinds of jobs the quality does not matter
since any quality will do for the job, e.g. the 5 pound sledge use to
gently nudge boards around during clamping for glueing. For other
jobs, e.g. framing using lots of nails, you will want quality.
One more thing, the really cheap hammers can crumble during use. The
head actually falls apart from metal fatigue. These I would not have
around for safety reasons.
Rather than make a list of hammers, try making a list of your jobs
that need a hammer. Then decide how many and what kinds of hammers you
want for your jobs.
Sincerely,
Bill
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 22:28:36 -0800 (PST), Bill
>Rather than make a list of hammers, try making a list of your jobs
>that need a hammer. Then decide how many and what kinds of hammers you
>want for your jobs.
Sounds exactly like the decision you make when you stock your everyday
general tool pouch. Deciding on what commonly used tools to add to
that limited space is sometimes a pain.
On Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:09:43 -0500, [email protected] wrote:
>On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, "Bill" <[email protected]>
>wrote:
>
>>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>Depends on what you use them for.
>
>Two rawhide hammers for my leatherwork.
>One chipped wooden hammer made in a Grade 5 woodshop and saved because
>of nostalgia.
>One rubber headed mallet.
>One dead blow hammer.
>Two steel headed, wooden handle claw hammers.
>One ball peen hammer.
>One tack hammer.
>A plastic headed hammer.
>One small hand sledge hammer. (which I intend to use for my UTube
>premier of me smashing up a $350 computer motherboard)
>
>Those eleven are what I can remember, but they're all important
>additions to the history of my tool acquisitions. The best I can say
>about them is they're a graphic representation of my do it yourself
>attitude. :)
Interesting, I forgot to mention my deadblow hammer. Ever since I
was given a rawhide hammer, at times I find myself using the rawhide
instead of the deadblow--it won't mar the wood and not as clumsy/heavy
as the deadblow. I think I forgot to mention my seldom used sledge
hammer, but when you need one there's no good substitute. My hammer
count just went up to about 14.
>I know that their power tools are not well-regarded here.
I think that their Mechanic's tools (including hammers) are still
well-regarded, especially in the realm of hobiest/home mechanics. It's
their power tools (table saws, routers, router accesories, &tc.) that
are suspect. But don't trust other's opinions over your own gut
feelings. I buy sockets, wrenches, pliers, scewdrivers, &tc. from
Sears all the time, and will continue to do so.
Also, I recall that they may sell different brands, i.e. "Sear's" vs.
"Craftsman".
-Zz
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, the infamous "Bill"
<[email protected]> scrawled the following:
>
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
What do you do with them? I do NOT buy from Searz, ever.
I have a waffle head for framing, smooth face for finishing, tack
hammers, warrington cabinetmaker's hammer, rock hammer, tack hammer,
planishing hammer, tiny claw hammer for shoes and stuff, drilling
hammers, 5lb sledge, 10lb sledge, various sizes of ball peens, dead
blow hammers, Nupla replaceable-face hammers, rubber mallets, wooden
mallets, polyurethane carving mallet, brass antispark hammers,
brass/wood plane hammers, welder's chipping hammer/brush, stone
trimming hammers, & sheetmetal bumping hammers.
And after all that, I normally fasten construction projects with
screws and/or lags. ;)
>If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>heat-treated?)?
My favorite hammer for screwless construction is the HF waffle-headed
22oz framer. It's the best $3 I've spent in a long time. I had to buy
a second one this decade because I missed a nail behind a sharp metal
guard and sheared the head halfway off the one I bought in '92 or so.
I haven't been affected by poor heat treating. I've seen hammer heads
break in two, but I've never seen a chip from a brittle head, nor have
I been damaged by one (other than the normal blue fingers/thumbs.)
YMMV
--
The Smart Person learns from his mistakes.
The Wise Person learns from the mistakes of others.
And then there are all the rest of us...
-----------------------------------------------------
In article <[email protected]>,
Bill <[email protected]> wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where
> you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
1 2lb club hammer of unknown manufacture
1 Stanley 20oz claw (This gets used the most)
1 Stanley 1lb ball pein
1 Stanley 6oz cross pein
1 Stanley 3.1/2ox cross pein
1 Wooden mallet
1 Thor size "A" copper/hide mallet
1 polyurethane "soft" mallet.
All the other hammers I had lying around I gave away to:
http://www.twam.co.uk/home.html
for whom I am a volunteer refurbisher.
If I need anything different I can always borrow from the above (we've
always got "hundreds" in our workshop) or from my blacksmith daughter.
Counting hammers is tough!
I have 8 ball peen hammers, three sledges 8, 5, 3. Engineer's hammer 9#
Long head tack, tap, framing, regular, regular with tuning fork (works!),
black dead-blow, Brass, wood, plastic, ......
I have been collecting hammers since 1950. I had a tool box by then and
still have it. It is made of thick STEEL.
The long head and my old framer are over 50 years old. My engineers is
about 8 years old and the three are likely like none in most boxes.
Martin
DJ Delorie wrote:
> Hmm... I have (counts) nine hammers, if you could the wooden mallet I
> made. Three regular hammers, various weights, various claw shapes.
> Three dead-blow, various sizes. Two sledge (3lb and 8lb). One wooden
> mallet. Wait... ten, there's a stainless steel one in the kitchen. I
> think I have a half-weight regular one too, eleven. My kids have a
> few of their own too.
>
> The only ones I have issue with are the wooden handled ones, only
> because they seem to either break or come loose over time.
> Repairable, but annoying.
In article <[email protected]>, [email protected]
says...
>
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
Depends on how many Needs one has, don't you think?
I've a sledge hammer for driving stakes 'round the farm.
a 3pound short maul for driving wedges behind the chainsaw
a 250g and a 500g German cross-peen for mechanical work
a couple of wooden mallets turned on the lathe for chiseling
a 17 oz Estwing claw hammer for framing and general nailing -- I
found if I try to use a heavier claw hammer I get carpal tunnel
or tennis elbow.
a traditional German carpenter's hammer
http://www.hood.de/img/full/1503/15038073.jpg which I spike into heavy
timbers like big fence posts or roof beams and use it as a carrying
handle (it drives nails as well, as a bonus - see above about rsi
though).
and I used to have a tiny wee hammer out of some very hard metal for
chipping holes into wall tiles, but I don't know where that got to ...
-P.
On Nov 8, 9:21=A0am, Larry Jaques <novalidaddress@di\/ersify.com> wrote:
> On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:15:17 -0800 (PST), the infamous RonB
> <[email protected]> scrawled the following:
>
You Guys Suck :^}
You got me thinking and digging around:
- Two Previously mentioned Metal Handled Craftsman Claw Hammers
- Fiberglass Handled Stanley Claw, also inherited from my dad
- Blade handled Stanley claw, gift
- One wood handled claw, source unknown
- Four varying sized ball-peen hammers
- Two small, wood handled tack/claw hammers
- One small-headed tack hammer
- One plastic head mallet
- Two maple/walnut chisel/carving mallets that I turned a few years
ago
- Rubber mallet
- And since you guys get so picky, three sledge hammers ranging for 4
to 10 pounds (plus a 10 pound splitting maul)
- Meat tenderizing mallet in kitchen
So there!
RonB
On Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:39:58 -0600, the infamous Dave Balderstone
<dave@N_O_T_T_H_I_Sbalderstone.ca> scrawled the following:
>In article <[email protected]>, Larry Jaques
><novalidaddress@di\/ersify.com> wrote:
>
>> _Tools Rare and Ingenious: Celebrating the World's Most Amazing Tools_
>> by Sandor Nagyszalanczy (Just call him Sandor. Everyone'll grok it.)
>
>Currently on sale at Lee Valley... Half price, limited stock. I've got
>mine, so have it!
>
><http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=50622&cat=1,44047&ap=1>
Yeah, so you said a few days ago. I checked it out in the Amazone
when I first saw the title, and I knew that I shouldn't buy it. It
might make me break out both crowbars to get to a credit card, and I'd
spend my hard earned cash/credit on a tool I'd never use. I collect
and use 'users', TYVM.
--
The Smart Person learns from his mistakes.
The Wise Person learns from the mistakes of others.
And then there are all the rest of us...
-----------------------------------------------------
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, "Bill" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>heat-treated?)?
The handle (shock absorption and grip) is important, as is the angle
of the head to the handle, and the face to the handle. A hammer that
has the face parallel to the handle will bend a lot of nails. IIRC
the angle on a decent hammer is something on the order of 3 degrees
(head toward the handle).
Tempering, as you pointed out, is another aspect. *NEVER* hit a cut,
or other concrete nail, with a hammer intended for common nails. A
friend almost lost an eye with that trick. After something like
fifteen eye surgeries in fifteen days the surgeon was able to save it.
Personal preference has a lot to do with it too. Some like steel
shanks, others wood or fiberglass. Some don't like anything from HF.
On Nov 7, 3:53=A0pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where y=
ou
> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
Hammers are like clamps, can't have too many, although you rarely need
more than one of each kind. I refuse to count how many I have
Luigi
Bill wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot
> where you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
I suppose I could get by with half a dozen, although I must have more like
fifteen.
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:15:17 -0800 (PST), RonB <[email protected]>
wrote:
>On Nov 7, 5:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>>
>> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>> heat-treated?)?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Bill
>
>One claw that I bought in the '70's to build a workshop. Another I
>inherited from my dad. Both Craftsman. Those are the ones that get
>most use when not using air nailers. I have a few plastic soft
>hammers, etc. Cannot imagine spending a fortune on exotic metals and
>design.
My two hammers (one straight claw and the other curved) I bought 30+
years ago. Yep, Craftsman. They're identical (other than the claw).
Of course I have an assortment of other hammers (though didn't think
the OP was talking about 20# sledges) but only those two claw hammers.
It's been a long time since they've driven a nail though. ;-)
>Its a hammer dammit.
There is a difference between them. I'm partial to fiberglass shanks.
;-)
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, "Bill" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
Depends on what you use them for.
Two rawhide hammers for my leatherwork.
One chipped wooden hammer made in a Grade 5 woodshop and saved because
of nostalgia.
One rubber headed mallet.
One dead blow hammer.
Two steel headed, wooden handle claw hammers.
One ball peen hammer.
One tack hammer.
A plastic headed hammer.
One small hand sledge hammer. (which I intend to use for my UTube
premier of me smashing up a $350 computer motherboard)
Those eleven are what I can remember, but they're all important
additions to the history of my tool acquisitions. The best I can say
about them is they're a graphic representation of my do it yourself
attitude. :)
On Nov 7, 5:53=A0pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where y=
ou
> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
One claw that I bought in the '70's to build a workshop. Another I
inherited from my dad. Both Craftsman. Those are the ones that get
most use when not using air nailers. I have a few plastic soft
hammers, etc. Cannot imagine spending a fortune on exotic metals and
design.
Its a hammer dammit.
RonB
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 21:38:47 -0800 (PST), Luigi Zanasi
<[email protected]> wrote:
>On Nov 7, 3:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>Hammers are like clamps, can't have too many, although you rarely need
>more than one of each kind. I refuse to count how many I have
Never need more than one clamp? I'd like to see your glue-ups. ;-)
In article <[email protected]>, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
Hmmm.... I have ... lessee... three claw hammers of varying sizes, 32oz
engineers hammer, 3# hand sledge, urethane mallet, two ball pein hammers of
different sizes, and at least one tack hammer. Ummm.... nine. And I'm not sure
that's enough.
In article <[email protected]>, krw <[email protected]> wrote:
>Tempering, as you pointed out, is another aspect. *NEVER* hit a cut,
>or other concrete nail, with a hammer intended for common nails. A
>friend almost lost an eye with that trick. After something like
>fifteen eye surgeries in fifteen days the surgeon was able to save it.
A better lesson to take out of that experience is to never use a hammer
without eye protection.
Bill wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
I have three hammers:
Plumb 16-oz claw hammer (least used)
Plumb 10-oz ball peen hammer
HF 32-oz "non-marking" rubber hammer (most used)
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
I once bought an 88-cent special from 84 Lumber. The first claw fell off
when I tried to pull a 10d nail, and the other while I was _driving_ a
16d nail. I drove down to Red Oaks Mill Hardware, bought the first
Plumb, and haven't had a problem since. Mine all have wooden handles.
--
Morris Dovey
DeSoto Solar
DeSoto, Iowa USA
http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/
"RonB" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:fbd3bb10-2838-4af1-a959-54985decac06@g23g2000yqh.googlegroups.com...
On Nov 7, 5:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where
> you
> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
One claw that I bought in the '70's to build a workshop. Another I
inherited from my dad. Both Craftsman.
I inherited my grandfather's toolbox in 1975. Ten years later, somebody
broke in to
my hatchback (Omni) after audio speakers, and took the toolbox...but I had
brought
the hammer into my apartment to hang a picture just before that. So that
20-22 oz hammer is
the "rest of the story" (at least for the time being). It has served my
apartmental hammering
needs since then.
Tage Frid suggested collecting a 12 oz. hammer, and they were actually out
of that
particular size on my last trip to Sears. My question was really motiated
by my curiosity as to
whether these sorts of Craftsman hand tools still offer the best bang for
the buck.
I know that their power tools are not well-regarded here.
Back around '72, my dad sold me on Craftsman tools, and my grand-dad sold me
on Buick (autos)--
he worked for Chevrolet. As if you didn't already know, I would be too
saddened to update you
on the progress of both of those brands since that time...
Bill
"krw" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>>Its a hammer dammit.
>
> There is a difference between them. I'm partial to fiberglass shanks.
> ;-)
I've never tried one of those. I was thinking of getting one; I thought
why not "live it up" a little.. ; )
krw wrote:
> On Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:42:56 GMT, [email protected] (Doug Miller)
> wrote:
>
>> In article <[email protected]>, krw <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>> Tempering, as you pointed out, is another aspect. *NEVER* hit a cut,
>>> or other concrete nail, with a hammer intended for common nails. A
>>> friend almost lost an eye with that trick. After something like
>>> fifteen eye surgeries in fifteen days the surgeon was able to save it.
>> A better lesson to take out of that experience is to never use a hammer
>> without eye protection.
>
> That too, but steel on steel is a bad combination. BTW, it wasn't the
> nail that got him. It was the hammer.
Do they make a hammer that won't smash your finger? :-) I know, it's called an "air nailer"
One of those big serrated finger-smashing jobbies lies somewhere at the bottom of the Lake
Of The Ozarks in Missouri. My dad threw it out there about 35 years ago right after he
smashed his finger at the end of a LONG day of framing. I think many Budweisers were
subsequently consumed. :-)
--
"Our beer goes through thousands of quality Czechs every day."
(From a Shiner Bock billboard I saw in Austin some years ago)
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/
HeyBub wrote:
> Bill wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot
>> where you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>>
>> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>> heat-treated?)?
>>
>
> Well, HF 16 oz, hammers are only $2.79 (Black Friday sale with coupon). I'll
> wager they have exactly the same manufacturing processes as other hammers.
> I've never heard of one shattering or bending.
No, they're far too soft generally to shatter but there's certainly no
way the manufacturing process is even close to "exactly the same" as
that of, say, Estwing
> The only thing you need to do is scuff the head by dragging it across the
> concrete.
That's actually about the worst treatment you could give a framing
hammer... :(
--
One more.
--
-MIKE-
"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com
[email protected]
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
"Phisherman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, "Bill" <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>>
>>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where
>>you
>>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>>
>>If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>>heat-treated?)?
>>
>>Thanks,
>>Bill
>>
>
> I have a claw hammer, two ball peen hammers, a tack hammer, wooden
> mallet, rawhide mallet, geologist's hammer, and a hammer that I rarely
> use that I made in high school on a metal lathe. I almost forgot
> about the hatchet has a hammer head on it.
If I had a hammer
I'd hammer in the morning
I'd hammer in the evening
All over this land
I'd hammer out danger
I'd hammer out a warning
I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters
All over this land
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:53:00 -0500, "Bill" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>heat-treated?)?
>
>Thanks,
>Bill
>
I have a claw hammer, two ball peen hammers, a tack hammer, wooden
mallet, rawhide mallet, geologist's hammer, and a hammer that I rarely
use that I made in high school on a metal lathe. I almost forgot
about the hatchet has a hammer head on it.
On Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:49:20 -0600, Steve Turner
<[email protected]> wrote:
>krw wrote:
>> On Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:42:56 GMT, [email protected] (Doug Miller)
>> wrote:
>>
>>> In article <[email protected]>, krw <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Tempering, as you pointed out, is another aspect. *NEVER* hit a cut,
>>>> or other concrete nail, with a hammer intended for common nails. A
>>>> friend almost lost an eye with that trick. After something like
>>>> fifteen eye surgeries in fifteen days the surgeon was able to save it.
>>> A better lesson to take out of that experience is to never use a hammer
>>> without eye protection.
>>
>> That too, but steel on steel is a bad combination. BTW, it wasn't the
>> nail that got him. It was the hammer.
>
>Do they make a hammer that won't smash your finger? :-)
Certainly, it's designed to get the thumb.
>I know, it's called an "air nailer"
A worker on an friend's job site shot a nail clear through the middle
of his foot. They had to cut the decking around his foot and carry
him, nail, and the piece of decking off the roof and to the emergency
room. Smashed fingers aren't all that bad.
>One of those big serrated finger-smashing jobbies lies somewhere at the bottom of the Lake
>Of The Ozarks in Missouri. My dad threw it out there about 35 years ago right after he
>smashed his finger at the end of a LONG day of framing. I think many Budweisers were
>subsequently consumed. :-)
Anesthesia is certainly called for.
"Our beer goes through thousands of quality Czechs every day."
A bar on campus had a sign "No Czechs".
>> ... my Dad made from a piece of octagonal brass
>> stock (he made everything he needed or wanted)
>
>Including the tools w/ which he made them, no doubt... :)
>
>(...seen that, been there, too...)
Exactly. He made a stationary disk sander out of an old washer
machine motor. A battery charger made from the alternator of a car I
wrecked (hooked up to the motor on the table saw). A smoker out of an
old refrigerator, with the firebox in the old motor/compressor box.
Then he made a compressor out of the refer compressor and an old beer
keg. I remember him using the "scarry sharp" method on chisels in
~1960, using the 7" Craftsman table saw table.
In his spare time we built wooden boats.
-Zz
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 21:38:47 -0800 (PST), the infamous Luigi Zanasi
<[email protected]> scrawled the following:
>On Nov 7, 3:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>Hammers are like clamps, can't have too many, although you rarely need
>more than one of each kind. I refuse to count how many I have
Aw, c'mon, WeeGee! Inquiring minds want to know. Count 'em up!
--
The Smart Person learns from his mistakes.
The Wise Person learns from the mistakes of others.
And then there are all the rest of us...
-----------------------------------------------------
>How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
I have a whole box of hammers.
2 framing hammers, one with a flat face and one with a knurled face,
that I used in high school and college for summer jobs
3 general purpose claw hammers, one was my grandfathers.
2 ball peen hammers, one little from my Dad, on REALLY big that I
inherited from my grandfather in law (GFIL).
1 roofer's hammer from GFIL
1 "jointmakers hammer" from Bridge City, a gift from the love of my
life
1 "jointmaker's hammer" my Dad made from a piece of octagonal brass
stock (he made everything he needed or wanted)
One tack hammer that was my grandfather's and Dad's before me
2 sledge hammers, 3 lb, I use to break rocks (I'm a geologist by
profession)
1 rock hammer (see previous)
1 maul for splitting firewood
Plus 3 wooden mallets for hitting chisels and stuff
Plus a rubber mallet for hitting my kids and stuff
If you want more, check out the catolog for The Japan Woodworker. They
got all kinna' hammers for just about everything. (Disclaimers apply,
I'm simply a satisfied customer and they have a great selection of
tools).
-Zz
On Sun, 8 Nov 2009 02:31:07 -0500, the infamous "Lee Michaels"
<leemichaels*nadaspam*@comcast.net> scrawled the following:
>
>"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:108a16d7-5c4e-471a-b4a3-173f2d1d5f0b@w37g2000prg.googlegroups.com...
>> Greetings,
>>
>> Placing tools where I actually use them has worked very well. In some
>> cases, just one size of wrench or nut driver of a set lives on my
>> bandsaw or work bench while the others of the set live in the cabinet
>> or tool box. For hammers, one round mallet lives next to the lathe,
>> another lives next to the bench chisels, claw hammers live next to the
>> boxes of nails so I can get nails and a hammer at the same place.
>>
>> As for quality, for some kinds of jobs the quality does not matter
>> since any quality will do for the job, e.g. the 5 pound sledge use to
>> gently nudge boards around during clamping for glueing. For other
>> jobs, e.g. framing using lots of nails, you will want quality.
>>
>> One more thing, the really cheap hammers can crumble during use. The
>> head actually falls apart from metal fatigue. These I would not have
>> around for safety reasons.
>>
>> Rather than make a list of hammers, try making a list of your jobs
>> that need a hammer. Then decide how many and what kinds of hammers you
>> want for your jobs.
>>
>Or just buy them when you need them.
But, whatever you do, do NOT buy a copy of these books. (They are
extremely habit-forming. DAMHIKT )
_A Museum of Early American Tools_ by Eric Sloane
_Hand Tools: Their Ways and Workings_ by Aldren A. Watson
_Tools & How to Use Them_ by Albert Jackson
_Tools Rare and Ingenious: Celebrating the World's Most Amazing Tools_
by Sandor Nagyszalanczy (Just call him Sandor. Everyone'll grok it.)
_Classic Hand Tools_ by Garrett Hack, John S Sheldon, and John S.
Sheldon
_Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit, and Use_ by
Toshio Odate (I just succumbed to this one last week.)
_Dictionary of American Hand Tools: A Pictorial Synopsis_ (Schiffer
Book for Collectors) by Alvin Sellens. This one is -especially- the
one to avoid. It will give you so many ideas your head'll explode. As
sister publication with leatherworking tools is as dangerous. Either
one (or Mike Burton's _Make Your Own Woodworking Tools: Metalwork
Techniques to Create, Customize, and Sharpen in the Home Workshop_, or
anything by Alexander G. Weygers) may lead to metalworking, another
dreaded affliction from which we are seldom immune.
Tread carefully, my fellow fr^Hiends.
--
The Smart Person learns from his mistakes.
The Wise Person learns from the mistakes of others.
And then there are all the rest of us...
-----------------------------------------------------
"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where
> you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
>
Fewer now that I have nail guns. :~)
On Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:42:56 GMT, [email protected] (Doug Miller)
wrote:
>In article <[email protected]>, krw <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>Tempering, as you pointed out, is another aspect. *NEVER* hit a cut,
>>or other concrete nail, with a hammer intended for common nails. A
>>friend almost lost an eye with that trick. After something like
>>fifteen eye surgeries in fifteen days the surgeon was able to save it.
>
>A better lesson to take out of that experience is to never use a hammer
>without eye protection.
That too, but steel on steel is a bad combination. BTW, it wasn't the
nail that got him. It was the hammer.
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 18:15:17 -0800 (PST), the infamous RonB
<[email protected]> scrawled the following:
>On Nov 7, 5:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>>
>> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
>> heat-treated?)?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Bill
>
>One claw that I bought in the '70's to build a workshop. Another I
>inherited from my dad. Both Craftsman. Those are the ones that get
>most use when not using air nailers. I have a few plastic soft
>hammers, etc.
>Cannot imagine spending a fortune on exotic metals and design.
Nor can I. Half the hammers I own were bought cheap, <$10. The other
half were gimmes or inherited with other crap in boxes at Garbadj Sale
closeouts, the "free" boxes. You can KEEP your titanium crap which
cost you half a week's pay...unless you want to gift one to me. But I
still might revert to the $3 HF waffler the very next week. Ah dunno.
>Its a hammer dammit.
Au contraire, mon ami. Zee 'ammair propair eez zee piece de
resistance. (The proper tool for the proper fool, don't ya know?)
The proper hammer for the job can make the difference between a
nastyass job and a pleasant one; a pretty job and a hack. Choose
wisely, weedhoppa. Your destiny is not set.
--
The Smart Person learns from his mistakes.
The Wise Person learns from the mistakes of others.
And then there are all the rest of us...
-----------------------------------------------------
On Sat, 7 Nov 2009 21:38:47 -0800 (PST), Luigi Zanasi <[email protected]> wrote:
>On Nov 7, 3:53 pm, "Bill" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot where you
>> get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
>Hammers are like clamps, can't have too many, although you rarely need
>more than one of each kind. I refuse to count how many I have
>
>Luigi
I am not a collector, just a user., but as soon as I read this I had to head out to the shop and
make a quick count of what is hanging from the walls or in a conveniently spotted box. I quit at
33. I know there are at least two of the Roy Underhill tool boxes full of cross peins, flatters,
and fullers tucked away next to the forge. There are probably a dozen cross peins ranging in size
from 4 ounces to 8 lbs. Biggest sledge is a 16. There are probably 20 heads awaiting handles.
The collection - urr, I mean the necessary inventory includes the usual suspects people have
mentioned so far - plastic, rawhide, deadblow, mallets, etc. I bought a few for specific purposes
many years ago, but most of mine come from yard sales, flea markets or antique auctions.
My favorites include my old standby Estwing 22oz framer, a Stanley claw, a 2.5 pound straight pein
(the only one I have ever seen) I use to draw out metal stock when playing on the forge, and,
finally, what is surely one of the most unusual mallets in the world.
Well over 30 years ago when I was a very young whippersnapper, I was involved in trying to figure
out how to make plastic automobiles. One chemical company sent a salesman with a sample mallet their
R&D staff had made from a new formula in their lab. We were so impressed my coworkers and I
essentially held him captive until each of us had a mallet. The material used to mold the mallet
had about a 99% rebound capacity. So when some unsuspecting schmuck was handed the mallet and told
to whack something with it, he either had quick reflexes or often ended up with a big red mark in
the middle of his forehead. This was a highly popular party entertainment for young men living in a
college town where large quantities of alcohol were involved in the social scene. Surprisingly, not
many women were particularly impressed by this game or the participants.
In later years I used the mallet to cure Cub Scouts from hitting my garage floors with my hammers
during wood working projects. Probably my favorite hammer of all time.
Regards,
Roy
On 07 Nov 2009 19:10:29 -0500, DJ Delorie <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>Hmm... I have (counts) nine hammers, if you could the wooden mallet I
>made. Three regular hammers, various weights, various claw shapes.
>Three dead-blow, various sizes. Two sledge (3lb and 8lb). One wooden
>mallet. Wait... ten, there's a stainless steel one in the kitchen. I
>think I have a half-weight regular one too, eleven. My kids have a
>few of their own too.
Consider yourself lucky you don't have some the new Stiletto Titanium
hammers (or maybe you do). At some of them running $300 a pop, you'd
be in the poor house a long time ago.
Bill wrote:
> How many hammers do you think one needs, and does it matter a lot
> where you get them (Sears comes to mind as the standard source)?
>
> If some hammer sources are inferior (HF?), then why (not properly
> heat-treated?)?
>
Well, HF 16 oz, hammers are only $2.79 (Black Friday sale with coupon). I'll
wager they have exactly the same manufacturing processes as other hammers.
I've never heard of one shattering or bending.
The only thing you need to do is scuff the head by dragging it across the
concrete.
Hmm... I have (counts) nine hammers, if you could the wooden mallet I
made. Three regular hammers, various weights, various claw shapes.
Three dead-blow, various sizes. Two sledge (3lb and 8lb). One wooden
mallet. Wait... ten, there's a stainless steel one in the kitchen. I
think I have a half-weight regular one too, eleven. My kids have a
few of their own too.
The only ones I have issue with are the wooden handled ones, only
because they seem to either break or come loose over time.
Repairable, but annoying.