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if all your doing is pounding nails, then this is a great hammer. it pounds nails like a 24 oz, however, for demolition, its horrible. i do like this hammer. this hammer can not move a board. if your doing a little bit of everything, my personal favorite is my 20 oz vaughn. when you hit a board trying to move it, the hammer just bouces off.
This hammer was for our son's birthday. It was half of any price we could find at our local hardware stores. He loved the hammer and couldn't wait to use it in his building trades class. The price was great.
My daughter likes the work, and loves the hammer. My wild and wonderful daughter does Habitat for Humanity with an informal group of other wild women who call themselves "The Stiletto Group". They like the name because it calls up the immage of stiletto Ladies sexy high heel shoes. Her aged father loves anything that makes her happy.Yeah. They paint the heads pink and work the bejeebers out of any old guy who shows up to laugh.
There is no better way (other than an air nailer) to nail overhead soffits etc than with these lighter hammers. The swing speed on this hammer is FAST. This hammer excels at one thing ONLY, nailing. If your doing demo, get a steel handle hammer, if your pulling nails, have a Estwing steel handle, Rocket or other tank. Get a spare handle, I really like the curved handle2. I am still using my titanium(s).
The titanium waffle head is pretty much smooth now but it still has enough friction to hold onto the nail. If you are framing and need to knock wood around, have a small sledge nearby. The magnet will eventually fall out.3. 1. I started framing in 1973 starting with a TrueTemper "Rocket". The claws are not designed to really seat a 16D tight deep into the claw near the head where you get maximum leverage for pulling the occasional nail The claws are not really sharp enough to really grab the shank of a 16D whose head has broken off to remove sideways.
and easy to stay accurate all day. Again, pull nails sparingly.
I'll drive over 500 nails a day for several days a week with mine, and expect to get 2 years out of it, at the outside. Not that it'll be useless, just enough that I'll retire it and get another. Having a full sized hammer weighing only 14 oz. I highly recommend one to anyone that uses a hammer as a regular part of life; if for no other reason than it's lighter to carry on your belt.There are two cons that I would like to point out. So, both the face and the claw wear out faster. I have used a 22 oz.
After a few days of comments along the lines of, "Your hammer is so slow," and, "Your elbow is going to fry," (we drive all our fasteners by hand, by the way - all the climbing and moving among other things) as well as the numb sensation from my right elbow down, I thought, "what the heck." and bought me one.After a few weeks, I'm spoiled rotten. lets me swing a lot faster, with less effort. Don't expect to buy one and use it for the rest of your life. Not a deal-breaker, just mildly annoying.Second, Titanium is harder than steel and this, of course, means it is more brittle. Fatmax framer since I was 17, and never thought titanium hammers were worth much, considering the cost, until I started working with my current employer, a barn builder, who will use nothing else. One is unique to the tool, the other general to the material used.
Next time maybe one with a replaceable steel face, for comparison. First, the magnet for the one-hand nail starter slot is really too far back towards the claw, making nail 'flip-out' an annoying something extra to have to watch out for.
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