Need a "Soft" Hammer-Brass or Copper?

Kennyd

Kennyd

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Title says it all, please give opinions:thinking:
 
I like my brass/bronze ones I made. Might be that what you have on hand to make them out of is the deciding factor.



Bryan
 
Generally speaking, brass is easier to come up with than copper.
 
Or you can cast a lead hammer head too. Irish Fixut on another site makes em and they are the trick for tapping on stuff without risking damage to threads and castings. Heavy but not too hard. I think he uses wheel weights from the tire shop. Just be carefull and get all the zinc ones out before you contaminate your melt and your good to go. Cast the handle right in with a couple of cross bars so they never come off no matter how hard you swing em. When they get ragged just recast em and add a little lead to replace what got lost.
Bob
 
If I had my druthers, I take the copper if soft is want you want and all you have to choose from is brass and copper. But a lead hammer is the cat's meow...

John
 
Jerry Ekstrom said:
Bob I have a question,
how do you know the zinc ones from the lead ones? To tell you the truth I was not aware they even made zinc wheel weights.:huh:

Jerry.:tiphat:
Click to expand...

Yeah they started with the zinc weights about the time they decided lead was too toxic to allow in the public anymore. The easiest way I know is to inspect the batch and the weights that look like the clip that holds it on the rim is seperate from the weight is zinc. I worked at a Firestone during the Explorer debacle and we ballanced a tire or two and got into reusing the lead weights to cast bars in old valve covers to make our roundy round car meet the weight requirement. It was better to bolt on weight low and where you wanted it rather than just throwing something in anywhere. Once you see a zinc weight you will be able to pick em out of a pile pretty easily. If you have a doubt, ask the tire guys at the local shop, a knowledgeable real live tire guy will have that training and be able to demonstrate the difference easily.
Bob
 
Good to know about the zinc. Learned something today!!
 
I have a bronze hammer and a nylon tipped hammer that I use all the time. For tapping parts down in the mill vise an ordinary ball pein works just fine for rough surfaces or the nylon tipped one for finished surfaces. The ball end or the edge of the flat face on the ball pein works as well as a dead blow.

Tom
 
Second the HF option

Charley Davidson said:
Can't beat this for $5 (no pun intended) http://www.harborfreight.com/4-in-1-quick-change-multi-head-hammer-65516.html I have a pretty good sized lead hammer that has a doubled over wire for a handle, I'm gonna redo it once I get my furnace to my shop.
Click to expand...

I don't see it listed in the link Charley posted but I picked up a combination brass one end plastic the other hammer at Harbor Freight a couple of years ago for around the same price. Very handy to have in the shop. I bet the brass cost more now with the price of metals up.

Benny
 
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