Your Ultimate Guide to the Different Types of Hammers

30 Oct.,2023

 

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Stop! Hammer Time: Your Ultimate Guide to the Different Types of Hammers

The hammer: The oldest tool in the world, predating even the early rise of human civilization. At any point in your life, you would’ve used this reliable tool to work on a personal project.

Archaeologists discovered the first makeshift hammer in China, dated 2.6 million years ago. Humanity’s use of the mighty tool has been the same: war or construction.

Since then, we’ve developed many types of hammers for a wide variety of construction jobs. Did you know there are different kinds of hammers for various kinds of nails or materials?

These are not your standard handyman’s hammers. These are professional hammers tailor-made to specific tasks at hand.

Need to do something but not sure which hammer to use? Here’s a list of hammers you need to do it right.

Handheld Hammers

The standard modern-day hammer consists of a compacted solid mass called a “head.” Its use is a force multiplier to create needed impact force on a surface. A handle intersects the head, made of a short wood, metal or plastic material.

The shape and size of the head determine the hammer types and their uses.

Claw Hammers

It’s not surprising that the claw hammer is the simplest but most common of all hammer types. One side has a rounded hammerhead with a flat surface.

The blunt side’s use is for impacting nails and other materials. The other end has a V-shaped spike to extract nails.

Carpenters, woodworkers and DIY enthusiasts love the claw hammer. It’s small, effective and does small jobs. It’s one of the 10 tools every construction worker needs to have in his arsenal.

Brick Hammers

Brick hammers are also known as scutch hammers. They look like claw hammers, with the spiked end looking like a flat chisel. The blunt end smashes bricks and stones with efficiency.

The chisel-end is different. It offers precision work like rounding edges and shaving small stones. You can use it to cut bricks, masonry or concrete into shape.

Chipping Hammers

The chipping hammer is a professional stonemason’s hammer specifically used for dressing quarried stone into the shape and size for use. These hammers can be made for hard or soft stone, and require considerable technical skill to use.

Professional quality chipping hammers are made from hardened steel and have tungsten carbide blades. They can be single or double bladed depending on the stonemason’s needs.

Longhammers

Sometimes, nails are simply out of reach. They could be wedged between tight spots and swinging a traditional hammer won’t do. These situations call for a longhammer, which combines the function of a traditional hammer and nail punch.

The longhammer is long and thin, allowing you to squeeze it in tight areas. It also has a magnetic tube at the end, ensuring the nail won’t fall out of place and get lost.

You get two options here: the longhammer XL for flathead nails up to 3 inches long. There’s also the longhammer M designed for small head nails up to 3 inches long.

Club Hammers

If space is a premium for sledgehammers, demolition experts use club hammers instead. It has a big, chunky sledgehammer head with a small wooden handle.

The club hammer is perfect for demolition work of stone and masonry. The brute force it provides is not as much as the big boys, but definitely more than your standard claw hammer.

You can also use this baby to cut stone and metal if you think precision isn’t needed.

Hand Scoring Hammer

Scoring hammers give you enough force to split and dress stone. The design lets you set it firmly on the surface you want to break and split. The next step is to use a 2 kg (4.40 lbs) hammer to apply force.

Our scoring hammers have a blade width of 35mm and 1 kg (2.20 lbs). The length measures up to 150mm. You can also order a spare handle and a spare wedge as well.

Keep in mind this is a special order item. There is a waiting period that can last up to 8 weeks.

Sledgehammers

The sledgehammer is the second most common hammer type. The primary use of a sledgehammer is to provide massive amounts of impact force on a surface. Demolition experts and construction pros use this to achieve faster results through brute force.

The most common sledgehammer design is a long handle with a solid mass of heavy material as the head. Due to the natural weight of the hammerhead, it can smash any building material with ease.

Much like its standard-sized cousin, the sledgehammer has different kinds of hammers for a variety of professional uses. Remember to use these powerful tools with care. Correct safety measures can ensure a long work life as a tradie without injuries such as safety boots, earmuffs, face masks, protective eyewear and other PPE.

Precision Sledgehammers

The precision sledgehammer needs no introduction from the mortal man! The long wooden handle and hulking head allow for significant impact force when you use it.

A full swing can destroy rocks, wood, masonry, and plaster walls in less time you need to think. For meticulous work, use it to drive fences to the Earth!

Setting Hammers

Any stonemason will tell you that the setting hammer is the best mate for the sledgehammer. Its primary job is to split natural hard stone where blunt ends are not advisable.

The setting hammer’s physical features are unique among long hammers. It has a long handle and a one-sided head with a pointed end similar to a chisel.

It works similar to a chisel. Set it down on the stone surface and a sledgehammer will smash on its blunt end, splitting the stone.

Stone Sledgehammers

Stone sledgehammers are still the mechanical smashers that they are. The only difference is a smaller head. This design is essential for its use: devastating rock and concrete.

The smaller head creates a denser hit without dissipating. This results to a concentrated point of impact, rather than a wide smash.

It lacks precision, but for brute force? It does the job right.

Blacksmith’s Sledgehammers

The blacksmith’s sledgehammer is the oldest and bulkiest of all three sledge types. The smithing sledgehammer looks a lot like the standard version. The difference is its wider blunt ends and long handles.

Among all hammer types, smiths use this for shaping hot iron like swords and blades. Two people cooperate in such an operation.

The first person will use a pair of tongs and a smaller hammer for precision. The other will use brute force to shape and straighten the billet.

Mallet-Type Hammers

Mallets are the outlier when it comes to types of hammers and their uses. The standard design is a round head that is far larger than any previous type.

Unlike its distant cousins, the mallet’s head is not dense. The materials used for these different kinds of hammers include wood and plastic. The overall surface area is broad and soft, allowing for lesser impact damage.

Rubber Mallets

Rubber mallets are the standard for this hammer type. It comprises of soft rubber or plastic on the head for soft but firm hits.

These mallets are useful for woodworkers with their chisel work. Upholstery workers and sheet metal workers also benefit from the lower impact force. The soft blows put the material into place without deep hits.

Dead Blow Hammers

The dead blow hammer is a useful all-rounder mallet. It’s used by mechanics and a lot of tradies that need limited damage to a surface. It’s small, with a tiny mallet head with two flat ends.

When working on a car with cramped spaces, it provides as much force as possible without much recoil.

The Best Types of Hammers Only for the Pros

For tradies, knowing the different types of hammers and their uses is crucial work. Pros should know the right hammer for the right job. You need high-quality tools that go beyond what the general handyman uses.

Consummate professionals put their trust at Canberra Diamond Blade Suppliers for all their tools. We have heavy duty types of hammers from trusted brands and more!

We’re not your run of the mill generalist hardware store. We’re the ones the experts come to when they need to make sure the tools do the job.

Let Canberra Diamond Blade Suppliers equip you with the best.

Never hesitate to talk to us. You know you’re the best, so you only need to arm yourself with the best. Come to us at CDBS.

You can find more information on our web, so please take a look.

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