My dad's got a bunch of martins but Snap On's are my hammer of choice, I'm no professional shaper by any means but they just feel well balanced to me.. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
One of my favorite forms of amusement for my friends consisted of placing my hand on a panel with the fingers spread, and with a sharp pick hammed, I would rapidly and forcefully strike the panel between the fingers. The comment would be, but what if you struck your finger? My comment would be, but I am not aiming for my finger, why would I hit it?
I put all my hammers in a can of Prestone. First time I've tried this but it seemed like a good idea. It's like 90-100F in my garage, so they should swell pretty well. I didn't realize how much the handles had shrunk from the arid weather here, but every hammer I had with a wooden handle needed the wedges re-set and a good soak.
I caught my wife pounding in garden stakes and staples with my big bumping hammer, I bought her her own tool set the next day. They have lavender handles, she loves them, and she keeps her hands outta my toolbox. ;D
i have some fairmount,williams,plumb,snap-on,blue-point,i rarely use any of em,but as soon as my shop is built i am going to start messing with em more ! i only buy old hammers , and several i have bought from career body men that had doubles or triples of certain hammers and are willing to part with the extras as they taper off on the amount of work they do , or as they retire. also i have a few with new replacement hickory (i think) MAC tools handles and they are nice handles .
I pulled the hammers out of the Prestone, and the handles are all tight as new. I hung them out to dry after wiping off the shellac or varnish or whatever was on the handles, which had lifted and turned purple. How does clear varnish turn purple when you put it in green Prestone? Yes, they're 20+ years old & still have varnish on the handles because I've only straightened two fenders in the last 20 years. My eldest daughter both times. Nobody else in the family has dented anything else! (I probably just jinxed myself by posting that... )
Replaced a handle on a couple heads that I picked up on that auction site. Handles had nice blonde finish on them, looked a little too nice to me so I sanded the finish off and coated the handles with some 30 or 40 year old gear lube I hadn't disposed off yet. Came out looking much better. (still got alot of that gear lube to get rid of) -Pat
The Jalopy Journal
