TIL my old cross peen hammer was holding me back

I was forging a set of fireplace tools last week and kept fighting to move the metal. I grabbed a buddy's 2.5 pound rounding hammer on a whim, and the difference was instant. The round face spreads the force better and the weight just sinks in, so I'm not hitting as many times. Has anyone else made a simple hammer switch that changed their forging speed?

3 comments

3 Comments

blakecampbell2mo ago

Ever feel like your tools are just laughing at you? I was the same with my cross peen, felt like I was fighting it more than the metal. @jamierodriguez gets it, sometimes you just need a heavier hammer that actually works.

jamierodriguez2mo ago

My grandpa's old ball peen hammer felt like swinging a brick until I tried a 3 pound drilling hammer.

spencerm521mo ago

Man, I gotta disagree with you on this one. I've been using the same cross peen for close to ten years and I can move metal just fine with it. The trick isn't the shape of the face, it's how you swing and where you hit. I watched a guy forge a full set of tongs with a 1.5 pound ball peen once, just took him longer and he had to be more careful. Switching to a heavier hammer can hide bad technique, especially if you're just trying to muscle the metal down instead of reading it and working it right.