Categories: Projects and equipment
Word count/read time: 413 words; 2 minutes
No, it's not a tribute to the self-made rags-to-riches-to-rags music legend but a tribute
to tools! You can fix just about anything with a hammer, vise grips, and duct tape.
When those fail a bigger hammer will end the frustration...or at
least bring some satisfaction smashing with it.
At a recent outdoor flea market sat a home-made hammer. After scratching the oxidized and painted surface,
a gleam of color popped through. This was a bronze, copper, or brass hammer.
It had ferocious pounding power in its repurposed form.
The simplicity was devilish.
Well-used and mushroomed, there was plenty of meat on it to reshape it via
a larger hammer and some grinding. But it was functional as it stood and the ideas it
sparked sold it. For $5, it was a no-brainer since I didn't have
one like it.
Easily made with a lost-wax mold or the like
at whatever size needed, there would be no worrying about the handle coming
loose as it could be cast into place. Without that, a drill bit and tap
would make quick work of the soft metal. I have plenty of scrap brass fittings
collecting dust.
Things like this travel in triplets. The first
happened a few months ago at another flea market/yard sale thing. Two massive sledgehammers -
a 12lb unattached head and a 16lb behemoth ready-to-strike - were begging for a new home.
The value for the heads alone and their massive size was well worth the
asking price. The seller probably never saw someone so excited about a pair of rusty
sledges.
A few days ago, a co-worker brought in the definitive sledge-type hammer featuring removable faces of all kinds.
For a tool junkie this was pure gold.
Anyone else might say, "It's only a %$#@& hammer, for cryin' out loud!"
This company makes a whole line of regular and non-marring hammers. From solid rawhide to plastic
to wood to copper, they have it all in just about any size with fixed or
removable heads. This is a one-stop mallet-lover's dream. If they don't have your favorite
face material, the most rudimentary machine shop could make one quickly.
There were deals at the yard sales and flea markets, even
silver below spot price. It makes me wonder about the other 99% of items - how
many are hidden gems?
Here's a hint: When someone advertises a cat scratch post and carrier as selling
points in their yard sale, skip to the next one.
Posted by M: July 9, 2018
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