Lost a hammer head mid-strike on a gate project yesterday

I was forging a replacement hinge for a customer's iron gate near Austin, and my 2-pound cross pein hammer head flew clean off the handle on the third swing. The handle was hickory, maybe 6 months old, but I guess the wedge worked loose after all that heat and vibration. Has anyone else had luck with epoxy or a better wedge system to keep heads tight on longer projects?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_stella17h agoMost Upvoted

Guess that hammer wasn't wedded to its handle after all?

sean78215h ago

What's the story behind that handle letting go? Was it a old head that finally gave out or did somebody buy the cheap version?

charliestone15h ago

Wait, you said the head flew off on the third swing? That's wild considering you'd been forging with it and all that heat should have the wedge good and tight. I've seen handles go bad from humidity or just drying out, but losing a head that fast on a new handle is something else entirely.