Hammer buying guide

Hammers are very simple tools that are used to apply force to an object. 

We’re all familiar with using hammers to hammer in nails, bash things into position and do demolition work. However, there are actually lots of different types of hammer with lots of different uses. Some hammers have special features for particular jobs, and some are even used for delicate or precise work. Some hammers are also designed for certain materials.

It is often easy to see what kind of hammer you need for a job. Most of the time, you just need a common hammer, like a claw hammer or a lump hammer. It isn’t always that obvious, however. If you’re doing an unusual job, if you’re working with unfamiliar material, or if you’re doing something precise, you might need a specialist hammer. Sometimes, you need a specialist hammer for safety reasons as well.

In this guide, we’ll help you pick the right hammer for any job. We’ll explain what all the widely used basic and specialist types of hammer are. We’ll also explain how they work and how to pick one for a task. After that, we’ll explain what different features do on different hammers and answer some questions people often have about hammers.

 

Contents:

• Difference between basic & specialised
• Basic hammer types & their uses
• Specialised hammer types & their uses
• Different features
• Why are their different types?
• Choosing the right hammer
• FAQs

All the different types of hammer can be divided into 2 main groups: basic hammers and specialised hammers.

Basic hammers are multi-purpose hand tools that are suitable for a variety of tasks. While they’re normally designed for one or two main functions, you can use them for lots of different jobs. Most people are familiar with the majority of the different basic hammers that tradesmen and DIYers use.

When you’re looking for the right hammer for a job, check if one of the basic hammers will be okay first.

Specialised hammers are designed for doing specific tasks, for working with certain materials or for working in certain environments. Sometimes, they’re designed for use in certain trades. Normally, you choose a specialist hammer when a basic hammer can’t do a particular job.

Here are all the different commonly used basic hammers:

• Claw

• Ball pein

• Club 

• Mallet

• Sledgehammer

• Brick

• Cross pein

• Demolition

• Slaters 

Claw hammer

The claw hammer is one of the most well known types of hammer.

Claw hammers feature a head with a flat and smooth face on one side that is used for striking objects. On the other side, they have a curved, forked claw for gripping and extracting nails or for prying apart materials.

Claw hammers are primarily designed for hammering in and removing nails. However, they can be used for many other jobs in carpentry, construction and DIY.  

 

Ball pein hammer

Ball pein hammers are also well known. They have a flat, smooth face on one side for striking objects, just like a claw hammer. On the other side, however, they have a rounded pein that is designed for doing metal work tasks that require accuracy.

Some metalwork tasks ball pein hammers are used for are shaping metal, riveting and rounding off fasteners. They’re also often used for non-metal work tasks, such as fitting parts or shaping materials in mechanics.

 

Club hammer

Club hammers, also known as lump hammers, are heavier than most other one-handed hammers. They feature a short, thick handle and a sturdy head with two identical faces that are designed for delivering powerful force.

Club hammers are used for a huge range of tasks where strong force needs to be applied to an object with well controlled blows.

 

Mallet

Mallets are designed to deliver force to objects without damaging them. They feature a regular sized handle and a large head made from either wood, plastic, rubber or rawhide.

When you strike an object with a mallet, the large and soft head spreads the force, helping to reduce the likelihood of the surface being damaged. They’re often used in woodwork to apply force to timber without damaging it. They can, however, be used in many tasks, such to help with positioning in tiling.

 

Sledgehammer

Sledgehammers are large hammers used for applying maximum manual force to an object. They feature a long and thick handle with a large, heavy head that has two identical flat hammering faces.

Sledgehammers are typically used in demolition or for heavy duty jobs like knocking in fence posts. Fencing mauls are also available for knocking in fence posts. On top of this, sledgehammers also come with shorter handles for lighter work.

 

Demolition hammer

Demolition hammers are similar to claw hammers but are adapted to be used in demolition work. They feature a large, flat and smooth head that is ideal for breaking through materials like plaster. On the other side of the head, they have a longer, flattened claw that can be used for removing nails or prying up floorboards and other difficult to move objects.

 

Brick hammer

Brick hammers are less well known than the other types of basic hammer in this list. They’re versatile hammers, however, that can do a wide range of jobs in bricklaying and masonry work.

The head of a brick hammer features a flat striking face like a claw hammer, which is used for breaking bricks or tapping them into place. The other side of the head features a long, chisel like part for cutting or scoring brickwork and masonry.

 

Cross pein hammer

Cross pein hammers are similar in size to claw hammers and ball pein hammers. They feature a flat and smooth striking face for driving in nails or striking objects. On the other side of the head, they have a narrow, wedge shaped pein that you can use for precision work.

Some jobs you can use the cross pein on a cross pein hammer for are starting small tacks and panel pins or precise metalwork shaping tasks.  

 

Slaters hammer

Slaters hammers were originally designed for working with slate tiles. They feature a flat, smooth face for driving in nails on one side of the head. On the other side, they have a pointed spike for punching holes into slate and shaping slate.

Slaters hammers can actually be used for many different tasks. They’re used in roofing, for example, for many other jobs besides working with slate. They can also be used for other tasks besides roofing.  

Here are all the different types of specialist hammer that are in common use:

• Framing

• Soft faced

• Dead blow

• Drywall

• Tack

• Non-sparking

• Chipping hammer for welding

• Scutch

• Mechanic’s and carpenter’s

• Engineer’s 

Framing hammer

Framing hammers are large, heavy duty hammers that are often used in carpentry and construction. They’re often used for jobs like building stud walls or roof trusses, where it’s helpful to have a large and powerful hammer.

Framing hammers feature a long handle that makes it easier to deliver powerful force. They also feature a large powerful striking face and a flattened claw used for removing nails or tightly stuck materials. 

 

Soft faced hammer

Soft faced hammers are designed to deliver force to an object without marking or damaging it. They feature a handle similar to other hammers but have larger heads made from soft materials like plastic, rubber, rawhide or copper. They can be used in many jobs, but they’re often used in assembly tasks such as woodwork assembly.

There are many different types of soft faced hammer, including nylon hammers, split head hammers, copper hammers and copper / hide hammers.

 

Dead blow hammer

Dead blow hammers are designed to deliver impact to an object with minimal rebound from the hammer. Normally, they’re made with a plastic covered, hollow head that is filled with steel shot or sand. The material inside the head helps to absorb the impact and prevent the hammer from bouncing.

Dead blow hammers are often used in woodworking, metal fabrication or assembly tasks.

 

Drywall hammer

Drywall hammers are specially designed for installing plasterboard. They feature a head with a rounded, smooth surface for hammering nails into plasterboard without damaging it. On the other side of the head, they have a curved, hatchet-like blade for scoring and trimming sheets of plasterboard.

 

Tack hammer

Tack hammers, also called upholstery hammers, are small and lightweight hammers used for fitting tacks, panel pins and small nails into delicate surfaces. The head features a narrow flat face for driving nails and tacks in with precision. On the other side of the head, they have a magnetised face for holding nails and tacks in place.

Tack hammers are often used in upholstery making, cabinetry and fine woodworking.

Trim hammers are similar to tack hammers but are slightly larger in size.

 

Non-sparking hammer

Non-sparking hammers are made from non-ferrous metals like brass, bronze, copper-beryllium or aluminium-bronze. They’re designed to be used in environments with flammable gases, liquids or vapours.

These hammers come in a wide range of types, such as claw, ball pein, lump or sledgehammer.

 

Chipping hammer for welding

Chipping hammers are specialized tools used for chipping off the slag that is produced in welding. They have a thin handle with a heat resistant grip and a specialised head. The head has a long, narrow pointed tip at one end and a chisel tip at the other end.

The head on a chipping hammer is perfect for chipping off hard slag. The handles on chipping hammers are often spring-loaded or coiled to reduce vibration and user fatigue.  

 

Scutch hammer

Scutch hammers are designed to do neat cutting, shaping and trimming tasks in brickwork and masonry. The head on a scutch hammer features slots on both sides that are designed to hold chisel bits for chiselling brickwork and masonry. Once they’re worn out, the scutch in a scutch hammer can be replaced, making it a long lasting tool.

 

Mechanic’s and carpenter’s hammers

Mechanic’s hammers and carpenter’s hammers are balanced hammers with a low centre of gravity for optimum velocity and ease of use. They’re designed to be as easy and efficient as possible for many of the typical shaping and driving tasks in mechanics and carpentry.

 

Engineer’s hammer

Engineer’s hammers are heavy duty hammers used for a range of tasks in metalwork and engineering. They feature a long, thick handle and a large, heavy duty head. The head has a flat and smooth face for applying force to objects on one side. On the other side, it has a pointed feature for shaping tasks.  

 

What is a double-sided hammer called?

There are a few different types of hammers that could be called double sided hammers. Double sided simply means that a hammer has a head with two identical faces. 

Here are the hammers most likely to be called a double sided hammer:

• Club hammer

• Sledge hammer

• Mallet

Ball pein hammers could also be referred to as double sided hammers, despite not having a head with two identical faces. These are hammers that have a normal flat hammering face on one side of the head and a rounded hammering face (pein) on the other side. 

 

What is a heavy hammer called?

There are also a few different types of hammer that could be referred to as a heavy hammer. The most likely one, however, is the club hammer. These are hammers that are only held in one hand but have a large, heavy head used to apply strong force to objects.

It isn’t always easy to identify building tools. Some other hammers that could also be called heavy hammers are sledge hammers, framing hammers, mallets and dead blow hammers. 

Hammers actually have several different parts. There are certain parts that all hammers have, and some have additional features on top of the normal parts.

Here are the two main parts of every hammer:

• Handle – all hammers have a handle. This is actually an important component. The length, thickness and grip type (or lack of a grip) determine how you operate the hammer.

• Head – the head is everything included in the top, hammering part of the hammer. Normally, this is made of metal. 

The head of a hammer has certain features:

• Eye – the eye is the opening on the head through which the handle is attached.

• Cheeks – the cheeks are the thin sections on the side of the hammer’s eye.

• Neck – the neck connects the hammer’s face to the main part of the head.

• Face – this is the primary striking face on the hammer head.

• Additional parts - different types of hammer have additional parts on the head such as straight, curved or adjustable claws, side pullers for stubborn nails, magnetic nail holders, ball peins or cross peins.

The evolution of hammer design

The hammer is possibly the oldest of humanity’s tools. They started out as simple stone tools used for breaking and shaping objects. However, they have developed throughout history as humans have created new technologies and discovered new materials.

The shift from stone happened when humans developed copper, and this marked a major turning point. Copper, and later bronze, made hammers stronger, most importantly. On top of this, using metal meant people could shape hammer heads to suit new tasks. The iron age then marked another major shift, with hammers becoming much stronger. 

While many modern hammers are still manufactured through simple methods, there are also more advanced, modern production materials and methods. 

Fiberglass or composite material are often used for lower shock and harder wearing handles, for example. Sometimes, materials like titanium are even used to make specially low weight hammer heads. Nowadays, hammers are also more easily manufactured into a diverse variety of shapes. 

Nowadays, you can find many different types of hammer at a much lower cost than was possible before. 

The different types of hammers are designed for different tasks, materials and working environments.

It is often possible to do lots of different jobs with any one type of hammer. However, there are some jobs that have to be done with certain hammer types. You normally need a mallet, for example, to fit visible timber without damaging or marking it. Otherwise, you might need to use a certain type of hammer to achieve certain standards of workmanship. It’s difficult to do delicate work on upholstery without a tack hammer, for example. On other occasions, using a purpose designed hammer means you can work faster or more easily. 

Sometimes, it’s important to use a certain type of hammer for safety reasons. It’s important to use a non-sparking hammer in a potentially flammable environment, for example. 

It isn’t always obvious what kind of hammer you need for a task. Particularly, if you’re doing a job you’re not familiar with.

If you aren’t sure what kind of hammer you need, think about the task you’re doing and the material you’re working on to guide yourself. The amount of speed and accuracy you need to work with can also inform your decision.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Can I perform the task with a hammer that I already have?

• Do I need to use a hammer that is specifically designed for the task I’m going to do?

• Do I need to take the material I’m working on into account?

• Would it be better to use a purpose designed hammer for speed or accuracy? – it would be unwise to use a claw hammer in place of a tack hammer for delicate work, for example.

• Are there any safety considerations that affect my choice of hammer?

Normally, the best thing is to see if you can do the job with one of the basic types of hammers first. If the basic hammers aren’t suitable, then see if you can find a specialist hammer that will work for the task. 

If you’re finding it hard to find the right hammer, you can ask a professional or an experienced DIYer for help. 

The most important thing when it comes to storing a hammer is to keep it clean and dry. This will help stop rust from forming on the head and the handle from deteriorating. 

Always clean your hammer and dry it before you put it away. Keep it somewhere it will stay clean and dry as well. Toolboxes, shelves, racks and wall storage tool solutions are all good places to keep a hammer. 

If you can, it’s also a good idea to try to keep your hammer in an area with minimal moisture. Putting silica gel in a toolbox can help with moisture. On top of this, it’s also a good idea to try and keep it in an environment with a stable temperature. 

As we just said, keeping your hammer clean and dry will help to give it a longer life.

Here are some tips on cleaning: 

• Always clean and dry your hammer with a rag to remove dust and debris before you put it away.

• Remove rust from the head with sandpaper, wire wool or a wire brush. You can also use small amounts of WD-40 to treat and prevent rust.

• You can occasionally apply linseed oil to a wooden hammer handle to help it last longer. 

You should now be able to choose the right hammer for any job. Find out how to choose the right nails as well.