Designing chisel mallets and hammers.

[Derek Cohen]

Mallets and plane hammers are relatively easy to make, and often one of the first tools made by many starting out. But what makes for a good chisel hammer? I have seen some woodworkers wacking a chisel with a lump of wood. Some prefer a claw hammer.


Once upon a time I purchased a plane hammer with a head made of brass and Cocobolo. It had a long, narrow and straight handle, which stayed in my hand as long as I gripped it tightly. The Cocobolo head cracked, and the hammer went to live on a shelf.


A few weeks ago I resurrected this hammer, replacing the Cocobolo with UHMW, and fitting a new handle. This hammer is now my go-to for wood handled chisels which are not reinforced by a hoop, when chopping dovetails. It has inspired me to comment on what I look for when making a chisel hammer. This is the hammer ...


https://i.postimg.cc/d1dDnsLX/Hammer6.jpg


I love UHMW and use it on most of my chisel hammers. It is elastic enough to avoid damaging any wooden surface, but hard enough to offer good feedback. It is available in the form of cutting boards, and I have some from salvage yards. This head was turned on my wood lathe ...


https://i.postimg.cc/JhSGbD4Z/Hammer4.jpg


The Black Walnut handle was rough turned on a lathe, and then shaped with a drawknife and spokeshave. The end weight was 12oz/350g.


The handle needs to be seen in three-dimensions. It is oval as well as recessed to fit a hand. The recess prevents the hammer flying off into outer space, while the oval makes it fit the hand.


https://i.postimg.cc/8cmcQZdm/Hammer5.jpg


The length of the handle is the third dimension - the shorter, the less impact; the longer, the greater impact.


This is comfortable ..


https://i.postimg.cc/7YjBNYmV/5.jpg


A really heavy hammer such as the one on the left (38oz/1070g) is intended for morticing into hard wood. Thus has a double recess and allows it to be used in a choked position. I rarely use this hammer now days as it it simply too heavy.


It has been replaced by the middle hammer ...


https://i.postimg.cc/2yDyKsW5/Hammer7.jpg


This began life as the Veritas Cabinetmaker's Mallet. UHMW was added to the faces (epoxy and nails, for those asking), and a new handle made from Hard Maple. The brass head helps it reach 23oz/655g. This is a great hammer for morticing.


Fruit woods make good handles. Avoid run out, look for long grain. Some of the worst handles I have had are hardwoods, such as Jarrah - just to brittle with its short grain.


There is no doubt that a small and heavy head has advantages over another hammer which weighs as much but has a large head. Further, my preference is a flat face, rather than the rounded edge of a carver's mallet. I know some prefer the latter, but in my experience it waste energy and requires more care to avoid a glancing blow. The large mallet, above, was styled after a traditional joiner's mallet, and the head weight increased with brass infill. The aim was to find a way to increase weight in a smaller head. In the end it just was too heavy. One does not need to apply brute force.


I believe that the ultimate expression of the chisel hammer is the Japanese gennou. These are designed for working with hooped Japanese bench butt chisels, or oire nomi. I have two, one 13oz/370g and the other 16oz/450g.


https://i.postimg.cc/g2kXdbTX/Hammer3.jpg


The heads are hardened steel on the outside with softer steel internally to act as a shock absorber. These were made by Tenryuu.


I shaped these handles in a traditional style. They curve as well as taper. This is not as clear in this photo, but more so in the last picture. The curve influences the striking angle and the taper safeguards the grip.


https://i.postimg.cc/wB11ycH9/hammer1.jpg


Regards from Perth


Derek

[steven c newman]

Re-inventing the wheel, are we?

There is no universal handle....all depends on what one's hand likes. And, how much "Uncle Arthur (itis) would change a grip.

One well known Carpenter would drill a lot of shallow hole into his handles...because a sweaty hand makes smooth handles too slick to hold onto....

Those well known Estwing BLUE handles.....I am unable to grip them securely enough to use them( backswing: "Heads up!")

I have a habit of putting wrap of black tape at the edge of the handles...lets me know when I have slid too far down,,,,
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YMMV....

[Jim Koepke]

It all depends on what one is used to using.

A wood mallet seems to work well for me:

474756

A little flaring at the end of the handle works for me.

The one on the right is one of my favorite shop made mallets.

jtk

[Edward Weber]

Wood works for me, at least for the majority of the work I do currently
Here's a large one I made with contoured handle, the head is Vera (Argentine Lignum Vitae)
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[Maurice Mcmurry]

Persimmon makes a very good mallet. Any claw Hammer with a wood handle is a waste of natural resources for me because I am too dumb not to use the claw. Nice images of neat hammers! I do not understand the re-inventing the wheel comment.

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[Derek Cohen]

Re-inventing the wheel, are we?

There is no universal handle....all depends on what one's hand likes. And, how much "Uncle Arthur (itis) would change a grip.

One well known Carpenter would drill a lot of shallow hole into his handles...because a sweaty hand makes smooth handles too slick to hold onto....

Those well known Estwing BLUE handles.....I am unable to grip them securely enough to use them( backswing: "Heads up!")

I have a habit of putting wrap of black tape at the edge of the handles...lets me know when I have slid too far down,,,,
474715
YMMV....

Steven, I do not expect you to understand what this thread is about. I am attempting to stimulate the grey matter.

You can use whatever hammer you want - whatever floats your boat. Far from re-inventing the wheel, this topic is about understanding what works better, rather than settling for a less appropriately designed tool.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Derek Cohen]

It all depends on what one is used to using.

A wood mallet seems to work well for me:

474756

A little flaring at the end of the handle works for me.

The one on the right is one of my favorite shop made mallets.

jtk

Jim, I like these handles. Also, the angle of the faces on the head look well chosen.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Derek Cohen]

A comment about claw hammers. I see a number of woodworkers using them when chopping mortices.

They make sense when one is driving nails. And the heads are quite similar (but generally heavier) than a gennou.

However, driving a chisel it is not about brute force, but usually about finesse. This is the very essence of Japanese woodworking and the relationship between an oire nomi and a gennou. I also have a memory of watching David Charlesworth tap-tap his chisel. A 12oz hammer works so much better for me when slicing away the waste from a dovetail socket.


Regards from Perth


Derek

[Curt Putnam]

I note the Blue Spruce mallet on your shelf. That is my tap-tap whacker. What do you use yours for?

Thanks for an interesting post.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Carpenters in the US historically use curved claw hammers. Laborers use straight claw hammers. I have always needed a straight claw hammer with a steel shank. If I am going to hit a woodworking chisel with a hammer, the chisel must have a soft steel cap, otherwise I use a mallet or a little 4 oz. ball peen machinists hammer.

[James Pallas]

I use wood laminate round mallet that was a gift in the 1970’s. Im very use to it. It weighs in at about 20 oz. A couple of years ago I bought a 20 oz Wood is Good mallet. I like it as well. I have other wood mallets some I have made others not. I almost always use the first two no mater what the work is carving, mortises, or dovetails. To me having the same weight and adjusting the effort of the strike works good.
Jim

[Derek Cohen]

I note the Blue Spruce mallet on your shelf. That is my tap-tap whacker. What do you use yours for?

Thanks for an interesting post.

Thanks Curt. The answer includes points raised by both Maurice and James (thanks both of you!).

Like many, I turned many a carver's mallet when I first got a lathe. Big, small, a variety of shapes and angles. Eventually I lashed out on the Blue Spruce. What a beautiful and well-balanced carver's mallet this is. Not to mention indestructible. However, as time passed, it became apparent that this was not an efficient mallet.

I think that many woodworkers use what they have and do not give too much thought to the tool itself - is it really offering as much control as it could? Is it efficient with its power, putting this where it is needed?

Swinging a heavy claw hammer makes sense when wanting to pound in a nail with one blow. However, driving a chisel it is not about brute force, but usually about finesse. This is the very essence of Japanese woodworking and the relationship between an oire nomi and a gennou. I also have a memory of watching David Charlesworth tap-tap his chisel. A 12oz hammer works so much better for me when slicing away the waste from a dovetail socket.

Secondly, a smaller, heavier head requires less effort and has more control than a wooden head which needs to be large to carry more mass. The reason for the brass infill in my large joiner's mallet was the attempt to reduce size but not mass. In the end, it was too large and too much mass.

One adapts. Which is why we keep using what we have. And it will work. I am not advocating that everyone now stop and make new hammers ... just that when you do choose to do so, consider the points raised.


Regards from Perth


Derek

[John C Cox]

I saw the note about a cocobolo head on that little brass hammer. :o That seems like the worst possible of all worlds. Cocobolo is expensive, dense, really hard and leeches oils, but super crack prone, and has a nasty habit of causing nasty allergic reactions on many woodworkers. I would think people would want something that's not split prone, yet sort of softish so it doesn't mark everything up... UHMW sounds about perfect.

I agree on the handles. There's something beautiful about a well made handle that doesn't slide around, twist when swinging, make your hands cramp, or give you blisters. I actually like unfinished handles that aren't sanded past around 220 the best for working. They look kinda funny, but they seem to cause my hands less trouble. I also like a handle that's shaped so it doesn't take a death grip to control.

[Jim Koepke]

Jim, I like these handles. Also, the angle of the faces on the head look well chosen.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thanks for the kind words Derek.

This conversation has made me think of some of my attempts at mallet making. One in particular had a curve in the handle and was clearly more comfortable to use one way than the other.

Some of your comments have now made me want to looking through my scrap iron to see if there is a hunk worthy of making a faux gennou just for fun and experimentation.

jtk

[Derek Cohen]

I saw the note about a cocobolo head on that little brass hammer. :o That seems like the worst possible of all worlds. Cocobolo is expensive, dense, really hard and leeches oils, but super crack prone, and has a nasty habit of causing nasty allergic reactions on many woodworkers. I would think people would want something that's not split prone, yet sort of softish so it doesn't mark everything up... UHMW sounds about perfect.

I agree on the handles. There's something beautiful about a well made handle that doesn't slide around, twist when swinging, make your hands cramp, or give you blisters. I actually like unfinished handles that aren't sanded past around 220 the best for working. They look kinda funny, but they seem to cause my hands less trouble. I also like a handle that's shaped so it doesn't take a death grip to control.

John, I may turn the handles to get to the rough shape quickly, but then they are shaped with a drawknife and spokeshave. I may use a scraper to smooth down some areas. I like the texture left behind, and I may even add to this with cross-hatching.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Derek Cohen]

Thanks for the kind words Derek.

This conversation has made me think of some of my attempts at mallet making. One in particular had a curve in the handle and was clearly more comfortable to use one way than the other.

Some of your comments have now made me want to looking through my scrap iron to see if there is a hunk worthy of making a faux gennou just for fun and experimentation.

jtk

Jim, I always look forward to your assessments. Test out a few configurations, and let us know what you find.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Anuj Prateek]

I use two sizes of Thor mallets suggested by Paul Sellers. They work well with chisels. Enough force in blow and no damage to chisels. I use these two for a variety of purposes. Both are stock. I like the looks of LV mallet. Will buy that someday (I love hammers & mallets).

This was a good read. I am not at a skill level where I can differentiate between non-large differences in handle types.

I like handles on Thor mallets, Picard crosspeen hammer, blue estwing handles, and DeWalt framing hammer handles. I had a Dalluge hammer and have LV brass mallet, I don't like handles on these.

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Anuj

The Thor hammers are good ... one of my favourites ... on the right (on the left is the original Veritas handle - not bad at all just too narrow for my larger hand).


https://i.postimg.cc/RhwSvXsw/Hammer2-zps3a4b3abc.jpg

Regards from Perth

Derek

[James Pallas]

I have thought of using these hammers, the larger for chisel work the other for planes. The larger is about 20 oz. The weight I like. Not sure of the weight of the smaller. It seems they have all of the attributes except a wooden handle. It would be no trouble to adapt for wood handles since I make them. I just don’t think I would like the head size for chisel work because I never look at the impact point, I’m always looking at the cutting edge.
Jim

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I have often wondered how the Caulking Mallet came to be so distinctive. I am sure there is an engineering evolution story that goes way back.

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[William Fretwell]

My eBay purchased Japanese hammer came with a skinny straight handle, horrible to hold, little control. If you want to hit a Japanese chisel square on your hand has to be ‘out’ more. This is not as comfortable.

I made a much larger curved handle for my large hands. The curve makes a square on hit easy and comfortable. This is now my preferred hammer for the Japanese chisels. The wooden mallet I was given when I was 10 yrs old! That has seen some use and I like it also.

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I would encourage anyone to make a large curved handle, you will be amazed how comfortable and accurate it is.

Notice how the mallet face impact angle is not parallel to the handle also!

[steven c newman]

There is also the matter of how one grips the handle.

I tend to place my index finger out straight, along the "top" edge of the handle.....gives me better control.......much like leaving the same finger out alongside the handle on saws.....And, hand planes.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I read some about the Caulking Mallet and ended up back at the YouTube boat builder. Amazing skills and an interesting mallet. (15:30 minutes in on episode 69 of Tally Ho)