Dammerrs (hammers)

[mungeclimber]

No ideas here, other than, to say cool stuff.

I have had the opportunity to carry my hammer out and about, but have not permitted others to swing it, yet. I felt I should put in the first piece with it.



Is that wrong?

#climbercode

[John]

I could buy a mill and make oval holes in the heads.

Have an oval broach made or find one online somewhere? Not cheap to have them made but all you need is a press and I think you have one for breaking and testing stuff, right?

[daniel banquo merrick]

Could make a rectangular broach. I've seen it done.

[John]

Square and rectangular holes could promote cracking when hardening though.

[daniel banquo merrick]

Just posted on ST and am cross posting here in case somebody doesn't check ST.


Being discouraged with the handles I can buy, I have resorted to making my own. I bought a slab of kiln dried hickory.



I've never worked with hickory before, it is very heavy and very hard. I ripped and surfaced it into 1" pieces then rough cut the handles. I then milled them to the finished shape. The heads are slightly different in that I raised the pin a little bit to get abetter bite in the wedge. I think the pin going through the wedge is a better way to secure the head on the handle than the tangs used on most hammers. I get a better fit between the head and handle plus there is no way the head will fall off.

The handle is made from a rectangular piece. I wish you could hold it in your hand because I think it has a very good feel to it.

      
   

   
      

      
   

   


      


      








I will send #30 off this week to Aaron who I hope will use it and let us know what he thinks of it.

Edit: This, as I explained to my tolerant wife, is an art project and not a way to make money. The new handles mean each hammer takes even longer to make and if I sold them for minimum wage plus expenses, not a person on the planet would own one. Making a handle adds about 50% to the time it takes me to make a hammer but I think this is a better handle and better is just that - better. Figuring out how to make something good using the crap equipment I have in the garage is most of the fun. I think functional art is the best kind of art and I really only hope that people will use and enjoy my hammers. I hope Aaron wears it out so I can make an even better hammer for him.

[John]

Cool Dan.
The handle looks much thicker than the storebought handles. Have you done any more drilling speed tests for your most recent design?

I like your logo stamp, very professional looking.

[daniel banquo merrick]

The handle shape is unusual but I think it feels right. I basically matched the circumference of a typical handle. It would be easy to make a smaller or larger handle if someone has smaller or larger hands. I think my hands are fairly big with a thumb to pinky span of 10".

I haven't done any drilling tests lately. Probably should do that but since my earlier tests basically concluded that the important variable were length and weight it doesn't seem too urgent.

[NateD]

She's a beauty, Dan!
What's on the side of the head in the 5th pic down?

[susan]

Very nice, Dan. Always enjoy your reports on exploring improvements in craftsmanship. 

[daniel banquo merrick]

What's on the side of the head in the 5th pic down?

That shows the size of the steel wedge and demonstrates that the pin goes through the wedge as well as the head and the handle. I don't think it will ever come apart.

Thanks Susan, better hurry up and wear out your hammer so we can get you a new one.

[daniel banquo merrick]

DAMMERR update

If you follow StupidTopo you probably know what is going on but:

A DAMMERR handle broke going up Leaning Tower. I may have damaged it putting it together or perhaps it was asked to do too much. Anyway, I fixed the broken DAMMERR with a fiberglass handle and it is back at work in the valley. It also caused me to study up on required strengths for handles and pay $80 for the ASME hammer standard. The current DAMMERR has a handle reinforced with steel tubing and far exceeds the ASTM standard. If you have a plain handle, it should be fine for drilling but if you really try, I think you can break it prying out a stuck piton.

I had a free sub-domain and server space so I put up the website DAMMERR.com, Low tech, low effort HTML. Send me a picture of your DAMMERR in action and I will post it. Also some user comments.

I ordered some stickers but I am not a graphic designer so don't get your expectations up. Next time we meet I will give you one. Cost $45 for 20 oval vinyl car stickers.

I don't plan to make any more DAMMERRs - at least for awhile - but I still have a few on hand.

I do have one of the handles I made left if somebody else breaks a handle.

Fiberglass handles cost ~$10-15 but are hard to find. Ordered from websites often take 3-4 weeks since they usually drop ship them and they can't find them either. What you want is part number 59853 or product number A8513 which is a 13" handle that is 0.85" in the large dimension of the cross section. It has the regular (type H) grip not the weird grip that the Omega Pacific hammer uses. They are a pain and somewhat tricky to put on.

[John]

Nice Dan. I like the metal sleeve you added to the base of the heads.

One of our Dammers head rocks a little sometimes. Did you drill through the wedge for the pin?

[DaveyTree]

I have always liked a bit of an oval feel to handles of any hammer, climbing or construction projects. For my hammers I have always done a hockey stick tape job (couple wraps then spin the role until the tape becomes like thin rope. Wrap ridges up the handle .5" - 1" apart. Layer over with flat tape back to base. It should be one continued wrap from start to finish). I usually only tape the portion I will be gripping. Fingers fit between the ridges and the grip is better than anything else I have tried. In hot weather on a roof or on the rock, you don't get any slipping in the hand.

[susan]

Great seeing the evolution of the design. Sorry we've not been very helpful with photos. Will try to make a point of getting some decent photos with the Dammerr in use.

[daniel banquo merrick]

John, yes the pin goes through the wedge. I think you have one of the handles I bought rather than made and the fit wasn't always good. The handles I make fit very snug to start. I do have one of the handles I made left, let me know if you need it. Your hammer can be converted to the steel tube reinforced type but you have to bore out the head to 1". I've done this and the steel isn't too hard although I did use a carbide boring bar. I also have some of the tube and more wedges if you need them.

Daveytree, Hockey tape is perfect for hammer handles although the type and quality varies a bit. I really liked some "CompoStick Friction Tape" I found one time. I guess hockey players used to use the cloth electrical "friction" tape and this stuff is tacky on the outside like that and super tenacious sticky on the inside. I haven't tried the ridges thing you do but will try it.

Edit: That should be Comp-o-Stik.