Good light weight finish hammer

[Rick Lucrezi]

I normally carry a 14 ounce titanium framer around all day but have spent the last couple months working in the shop and have been carry my old steel Estwing 20 0z. I miss my light hammer. Any good light hammers to recommend?

[David G Baker]

Estwing 9 oz hammer is a great finish hammer. I have two, one in the house and one in the shop. They are sometimes difficult to find but worth the search.

[Bill White]

I use a warrington style cross pein for finishing anywhere the gun won't go.
Bill ;)

[Larry Edgerton]

First, take that Estwing and throw it as far as you can. It is the worst hammer that you can buy for your wrist, and to me has terrible balance. I actually use a 20 oz. Rocket long handle when trimming, and framing as well. I like the balance and I do less damage with it than any other I have tried, but they are no longer available.

I started useing a fairly large dead blow when I am trimming as well, more and more as I get used to it. It doesn't fit inn the pouch so well but I always have it handy. It works awesome to tighten something up between nails as you trim. Nail, whack, and nail again. Leaves no marks and will move things better than the normal hammer. I seldom use hand drives, so the dead blow gets more and more of the work.

I did have a Hart Trimmer that I liked but kept forgeting it had a wood handle. :( After a couple of handles I gave up.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

I own a couple of Plumb hammers. No complaints.

[JohnMorgan of Lititz]

I have a Douglas, which is spendy, but i love it. It's a bit heavy @ 18 oz. More framing really. I believe they do have a 15oz.. finish hammer available. Goto www.douglastool.com (http://www.douglastool.com) to check them out...I bought mine at Woodcraft.

I don't swing a hammer daily, and I've always believed a wooden handle absorbed shock better than the steel tang/rubber estwing styles simply because when i am swinging it all weekend on a project, I never seem to mind it the next monday...just my .02.

[george wilson]

Some of you might think I'm completely full of it,but the Chinese Task Force claw hammers from Lowe's seem like excellent hammers to me. They are hardened on the faces. They are file hard,and nicely crowned. My old Stanleys are so soft they have gotten all beat up. The Lowe's hammers are nicely ground all over their heads.

This hammer is a 16 oz. and has a hickory handle,secured with steel wedges. Some of you may want a more advanced handle.I have been perfectly happy with it.

[Rick Lucrezi]

thanks for the ideas. I am going to town today so I will look around. BTW, my estwing was my dads 30 years ago. I only use it to set nails the gun wont sink or to tap something around. I have gotten so into lightening my bags I even carry a plastic speed square now. There was a time when someone would ask for a tool on the job and I had it in my pouch. Three bags on my belt. Well now that my back is so toast, I would rather walk to the truck ten times if I have too. Light is good.

[Larry Edgerton]

thanks for the ideas. I am going to town today so I will look around. BTW, my estwing was my dads 30 years ago. I only use it to set nails the gun wont sink or to tap something around. I have gotten so into lightening my bags I even carry a plastic speed square now. There was a time when someone would ask for a tool on the job and I had it in my pouch. Three bags on my belt. Well now that my back is so toast, I would rather walk to the truck ten times if I have too. Light is good.

Ok, hang the Estwing on the wall........

Its funny how you adjust your style to suit your injuries. I do the same thing. When trimming I have a wheeled cart I roll with me now and I usually do not wear pouches at all any more unless hanging doors or similar jobs that require not letting go of something. Window and door trim, baseboard, etc. I can do without the pouches. I take maybe 5 tapes on the job and spread them around so there is always one handy. We are the masters of adaption.......

My buddy that works with me sometimes has a worse back than mine and he uses suspenders. I hate them myself but it may be my next step.

[Rick Lucrezi]

Ok, hang the Estwing on the wall........

Its funny how you adjust your style to suit your injuries. I do the same thing. When trimming I have a wheeled cart I roll with me now and I usually do not wear pouches at all any more unless hanging doors or similar jobs that require not letting go of something. Window and door trim, baseboard, etc. I can do without the pouches. I take maybe 5 tapes on the job and spread them around so there is always one handy. We are the masters of adaption.......

My buddy that works with me sometimes has a worse back than mine and he uses suspenders. I hate them myself but it may be my next step.

Well I bought a cheap 9oz Stanley. Works great for setting nails but its so small it keeps falling out of the hammer holder. So I have it in the kawl pocket. My tile buddy stopped by for a visit and said and I quote " hey Bob the builder called, yea, said he wants his hammer back" and asked if its a Ty-co. Cute, real cute, but it works and its lite:D.
Suspenders, wore em for a year or so, the always rubbed my nipples raw. For finish work the bags are really a pain. In the shop I am constantly knocking stuff off the table with them. I am looking at getting an apron. All I need is a tape (which by the way I need to find a small tape the works like a framers tape) a hammer, nail set, chisel, knife, square and a small amount of finish nails and gun nails. Probably need to start another thread on this topic.

[John Sanford]

How does a framer's tape differ from any other tape measure?

[Rick Lucrezi]

How does a framer's tape differ from any other tape measure?

I use a 25' Fat Max, it will hold itself up at 11 feet. Its too big for finish work, they make a 16' thats handy but they keep growing legs. I have a few small finish tapes but haven't gotten used to the flimsy tape and having to walk down a board rather than hang the tap out and hook the end.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Some of you might think I'm completely full of it, but the Chinese Task Force claw hammers from Lowe's seem like excellent hammers to me.

Hey~! People tell me I should use a maul to hand split wood and that the double bitted axe (which I prefer) is the wrong tool. I still prefer the axe. I can out split nearly any one with that slender lightning fast axe.




They are hardened on the faces. They are file hard,and nicely crowned. My old Stanleys are so soft they have gotten all beat up. The head should be forged but not file hard. Plumb's heads are forged and heat treated just barely skating the edge of being over hard. A really hard metal striking surface is prone to chipping.

Once as a kid I was playing with two hammers. And sure as you see the sun in the morning I got to whacking the heads together. A chip came flying off and buried itself in my forehead near enough to my eye that even as a kid I took the event seriously and never did that again.

The softness of the Stanley hammers may be a bit of over-caution inspired by just that sort of thing.

[lowell holmes]

Well . . . . .

I prefer my Daddy's 10 oz. (10 or 11, I don't remember) Blue Grass with the Hickory handle. I bet most of you never heard of Bluegrass.

I have two Bluegrass chisels that are as good as Stanley 750's also.

:)

[Greg Narozniak]

Another Vote for plumb. i have a 16oz for trim work and a 22oz for framing. The fiberglass really helps in the no pain on the old elbow.

[Rick Lucrezi]

Another Vote for plumb. i have a 16oz for trim work and a 22oz for framing. The fiberglass really helps in the no pain on the old elbow.

I used a 22oz plumb for along time, (never liked guns) and my shoulder now has a 6inch scar and 3 holes front and back. I like my Titanium. I can still bury a nail on third hit, but I do use a gun more than swing the hammer. When the kids on the job are setting up compressor and stringing hoses, getting guns oiled up and ready, I already have wood stuck together:D (btw that flabby arm is because I quit using it for along time because I was scared to go under the knife).