Hammer weight

Brian Kessler

Brian Kessler

Joined
Jan 10, 2017
Messages
19
Is there an ideal weight? Ive been perusing the interwebs for an ideal reference on some and for every 100 hits i still have 99 questions.

Anyhow, im not really into bladesmithing yet.. Just making odds and ends for sale at my work (landscaper).

Is there a universally accepted weight? Is it all on your physics?
 
If you are asking about forging, there is no one size fits all answer.
My favourite all round is 900-1kg. But thats just me with strength, skill & big enough anvils to comfortably use it all day if need to.
 
All depends on preference, personal strength, and what size stock you're forging. Most of the times I grab a 1 kilo hammer because it is light and comfortable but still has enough mass for most of the work I do. When I'm forging thick stock (like hammers of drifts) I like to use a 1.5-2 kilo hammer but they get heavy fast!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Between 2 and 3 pounds ... or between 1Kg and 1.5Kg. I use a 1Kg for most projects.
 
I like a 2.5 pound hammer. I can forge quite awhile before I start getting really tired. Don't try to over macho and swing a hammer that is too heavy you risk developing bad habits and can cause elbow and shoulder pain.
 
I'm a 2.5lb fan too. I have a 4 lb but only use it for certain things.
 
I use a 3lb I can swing it controllably as long as my steel is hot. I should probably switch to a smaller hammer for finishing but I don't.


Sent via telegraph by the same fingers I use to sip whiskey
 
It really depends on the person..A lot of people like a 2#-2 1/2# hammer.. Some like heavier and not every person is the same strength or size. Very importantly is technique. Remember your not trying to kill a hog, your just moving metal. The hammer isn't doing the work the anvil is really. let it the rebound work..Keep your elbow in line,somewhat tucked in and don't be like all those pictures of smiths that have the hammer way back behind their head like Thor getting ready to smite a citizen of Jotunheim..
If the hammer is behind your head your wasting energy unless your maybe striking a tool.
 
both of my forging hammers are 2.5lb. One's a cross peen, and the other is a rounding hammer. The weight works fine for me. Light enough to use with precision, but plenty of mass to move metal.
 
This seems to be a very personal preference. Also somewhat biased to the group you are in, and scope of work. I'm a little bit blacksmith, a little bit bladesmith, and a little bigger bit farrier, all have there own leanings on hammer size. I have heard many farriers say, swing higher, it harder. I'm a big fan of Kentucky's, but in might have to disagree with him, though I made cut have to learn something and listen too. Farriers tend to use smallish hammers (2lb) with long thin handles swung from "Gods front porch" . Maybe it's the smaller stock we work with, but some of these guys can move steel like a power hammer.
 
Kentucky said:
It really depends on the person..A lot of people like a 2#-2 1/2# hammer.. Some like heavier and not every person is the same strength or size. Very importantly is technique. Remember your not trying to kill a hog, your just moving metal. The hammer isn't doing the work the anvil is really. let it the rebound work..Keep your elbow in line,somewhat tucked in and don't be like all those pictures of smiths that have the hammer way back behind their head like Thor getting ready to smite a citizen of Jotunheim..
If the hammer is behind your head your wasting energy unless your maybe striking a tool.
Click to expand...

Yeah.

I'm a big ole boy. I can swing a 4lb just fine, and that's how I started because I'm definitely a "it doesn't go get a bigger hammer" kind of guy. But it just doesn't move metal as efficiently for me because, I don't know the blacksmith terms, but say you're drawing something out and for each strike it moves a little the way you want it and a little a way you really don't, so you have to correct that as you progress, the 4lb just caused too much of that and it would get away from me. But a 2.5 with more frequent and lighter strikes makes it easier to stay in front of.

Don't get me wrong of course a 4lb will move it faster than a 2lb otherwise we wouldn't have 50 lb power hammers, but it goes the same for the metal moving the wrong way.

If I was a better blacksmith with better control, a 4lb might end up being more efficient.


Another thing about it. I think you need a pretty big anvil to take advantage of a 4lb hammer, and a 2.5 works better with a 100-150 anvil than a 4lb does.
 
Cody Hofsommer said:
This seems to be a very personal preference. Also somewhat biased to the group you are in, and scope of work. I'm a little bit blacksmith, a little bit bladesmith, and a little bigger bit farrier, all have there own leanings on hammer size. I have heard many farriers say, swing higher, it harder. I'm a big fan of Kentucky's, but in might have to disagree with him, though I made cut have to learn something and listen too. Farriers tend to use smallish hammers (2lb) with long thin handles swung from "Gods front porch" . Maybe it's the smaller stock we work with, but some of these guys can move steel like a power hammer.
Click to expand...

I don't know the math behind it, or, maybe I do but I don't really want to sort it out long hand, but I think in the context of moving metal there is more to the equation than simply energy (mass x velocity) i.e. the idea that a 2lb hammer at 20 feet per second delivers the same amount of energy as a 4 lb hammer at 10 feet per second. There's a time component that's left out of that simple equation that I think favors the faster, smaller hammer in regard to how much metal moves in response to the strike, that is, how fast the energy from the hammer is transferred to the work. Both seem instant but at the micro level I don't think they necessarily are. This goes along with anvil size, meaning I think that 2x20 strike is more efficient on a smaller anvil than a 4x10 strike is on the same sized anvil, but as anvil size increases the gap closes.

However, I could be completely wrong about this, as it's just based on my observation which may not be taking in all variables. If someone has done the math I'd love to see it.
 
I, too, use a 4# hammer when I'm forging regularly (but I haven't been in the forge for about 5 months, so may drop down to a 2.5# for the first few weeks when I get back to the shop.

kuraki said:
Another thing about it. I think you need a pretty big anvil to take advantage of a 4lb hammer, and a 2.5 works better with a 100-150 anvil than a 4lb does.
Click to expand...

This all depends on how the anvil is anchored. If it's solidly attached to the stand and the stand is anchored to the ground, (a friend uses a tree trunk with 3 feet buried in the ground) then the whole planet is your anvil.
~billyO
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top