A little brass hammer head I made

[george wilson]

This was for a SMC guy. Maybe he'll post a picture when he gets the handle made. 3/4" largest dia.,by about 2 1/2" tall(I can't remember). For adjusting plane irons. I tried to make it a little unique for him. Another bad picture. I didn't bother to find the tripod.

[Trevor Walsh]

I really like the balance in different head sizes and the detailing. Yes, hopefully a finished picture soon. I really like the octagonal handles TFWW has on the Kings County hammers.

[Gary Herrmann]

Careful, George. I may start hounding you with commissions.

[Jim Ritter]

Hi George that is a wonderful little hammer. Question, do you bore the handle hole before or after it is turned to shape.
Thanks, Jim

[george wilson]

The head was turned mostly freehand on the metal lathe. A wood lathe going slow would do,even with carbon tools. Then,while still attached to the parent bar of metal,the head was clamped horizontally in the vertical mill's vise. A very light,thin little cut was taken across the center part of the hammer,leaving a flat only about 1/16" wide,and no wider than the hole to be drilled. Next,a center drill was positioned so it would spot drill right in the center of the flat spot. Thus the center of the head was located. Then,without moving the mill table sideways at all,the table was lowered and a 3/8" drill inserted in the 3/8" collet. This was drilled through the head. Then,a 3/8" end mill was inserted,and the hole was milled sideways in both directions to make the eye of the hammer oval. Then,the same end mill was used to mill equal flats on either side of the head.

The head was taken out and clamped in a bench vise,and a round file was used to bell mouth the hole so that the handle could be wedged in,and wouldn't slide out of the hole. Lastly,the head was re chucked in the lathe,and the head was cut off from the parent metal. Then,the head was put into the collet large face out,so it could be crowned. The small head was crowned previously while the head was still being turned.

The flats were too small to use my usual G.WILSON stamp,so I had to use the 1/40" high jewelry stamp you can make out in the enlarged picture. The head was polished with 320 and then 600 grit wet and dry paper. The flats were filed and polished to remove the milling cutter's wavy surfaces. The head was not buffed as it will get nicked up in use anyway.

I made the little steps on the surfaces so the head would not look too like a Bridge City hammer. It is also not as stretched as tall as the BC hammers.

[Trevor Walsh]

Those little steps are the details I really like. Now how in the hell do you make 1/40th high stamps, or is that a purchase item?

[george wilson]

I have made a few,which in the distant past,I posted. This one was bought.

Here's a 1/32" letter E I made. The E chipped out on an old set of 1/32" stamps I have. The other BAD pictures are"proofs" I make in pewter while still making a stamp from non hardened(yet) tool steel. The DELPHIA is rendered in an "ancient Greek" style,and is a name I coined for a line of our jewelry. The 1 and 2 are 1/32" letters I did not make,but they give scale to the picture. This stamp has a curved face for stamping inside of rings. At least 1 view is reasonably clear.

Sometimes I'll make stamps when I want a style that cannot be bought,or just because I like to do it. The letter E was in a set of stamps made from 1/8" square steel,and could not be bought to match the other stamps,which were antiques,anyway.

When I make adjustments and decide the stamp is done,I go ahead and harden it. The soft pewter proofs do no damage to the unhardened stamp under construction.

The only way I have available to make these is to hand chisel them. I wear 4X reading glasses when working on tiny stuff.

I'll tell you who amazes me: International House of Pancakes!! Their bacon is SO THIN it's a wonder that they can even get it out of the package without it falling apart!! No kidding. It must be 1/40" thick. Have to admire their miniature working skills!!:)

Now,I'm cooking thick,lean Fresh Market bacon. Our little dog,Aubrey(named after my wife's aerobics teacher,a man's name,actually),will soon do her bacon dance. The larger dog will just show up at the table for his bites. Aubrey is about 14# and dances all over the house. She is a bundle of love,energy,and a little fear(of thunderstorms). Every now and then,she will let out a large YIPE!! when she re learns that the cats are not to be trifled with. They only bat her nose,but she thinks she's been clawed!! Yet,they sleep together at night,even touching they get so close.

[Mark Wyatt]

I think the SMC guy hasn't liked the first two handles he has made and will work on a third one this weekend before he posts any pictures. :o

[William Adams]

Book on making letterpunches:

Counterpunch: Making type in the sixteenth century, designing typefaces now by Fred Smeijers

http://www.amazon.com/Counterpunch-sixteenth-century-designing-typefaces/dp/0907259065

[george wilson]

Well,I guess the SMC guy better get off his duff and make another handle!!!:):):)

[george wilson]

Counterpunching is the most common way type matrixes were made. The only time I ever used counterpunches was when I made an alphabet stamp set of 14th.C. Textura Quadratta stamps,because so many of the letters had a simple trapezoid internal shape. I made 2 or 3 punches to relieve these internal spaces. It takes many punches to make the letters we normally see,and I am making steel stamps,not soft copper matrices. The punches don't work very well in hard materials like annealed tool steel. You can't get much depth from the punches.

[Jim Ritter]

Thanks George, very clear explanation. I'm going to make one or two, I've got some old boat shafting that I'm going to use.

[george wilson]

Boat shafting is very tough stuff,made to resist salt water. You can turn it,but not as easily as 360 alloy brass. Best if you have a metal lathe,but with persistence a wood lathe will do. In past centuries all kinds of metals were freehand turned on simple lathes.

[Jim Ritter]

You are right again, it is very tough. I do have a metal lathe and have turned the bronze only recently when I was making the sprockets for the chain leg vise I was making.

[george wilson]

Well,it will also make a more durable hammer!! I've turned a lot of it,because my chief supply of metal used to be mystery metal from the junk yard.

[Mark Wyatt]

Not done just yet, but getting closer.

[george wilson]

I recommend you slim it down as thin as the narrow part all the way to the head. There can be a MILD bulge where it enters the head. The head is looking better with a handle!