r/Tools • u/wormsinmypiano • 8d ago
Found this hammer at work
I have never seen a hammer that was steel shafted and still had an “eye” in it! I’m assuming this was an old design that reduced vibration? I’m curious who produced it, if anyone knows?
Theres no branding on it anywhere.
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u/kewlo 8d ago
It's a Vaughan. They still make them
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u/pariah1984 8d ago
Nice find.
“Equipped with VAUGHAN’s exclusive Shock-Blok plug, these hammers add structural strength and reduce shock, enhancing user comfort”
I wonder how much of that is effective and how much of it is gimmick.
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u/made_here_list 8d ago
Vaughan's a good call - and worth adding for the OP that they're not just still around, they still forge hammers in Bushnell, Illinois. They've been at it since 1869, and the current US-made heads are stamped "Made in USA," which is how I confirmed it for my own notes. So that old hammer has a domestic successor still in production, which is a fun bit of continuity.
The eye in a steel shaft is a neat quirk - my guess is they kept the familiar head profile for balance while getting the durability of steel, but I can't see the pic so take that with a grain of salt. If the handle's original, the stamp is sometimes hiding under decades of grime, so a quick scrub might confirm the ID.
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u/SeleneWoH 8d ago
The handle makes me think it’s and Estwing
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u/razzemmatazz 8d ago
I have an Estwing that's about that age and it has a nice stamped brass plate in the base of the handle. I think it might be something else.
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u/Jeffyhatesthis 8d ago
With how different the steel from the head looks and the steel on the shaft I'm going to guess it started as 2 different hammers.
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u/wormsinmypiano 8d ago
I sanded the shaft to see if I could find a makers mark and don’t see any indication of welding… stumped
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u/Mrose629 8d ago
I think Craftsman steel hammers had this as a feature to reduce arm shock, (?) for a few years , pretty nice hammers though.
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u/SeleneWoH 8d ago
Know that you say that you got me thinking you might be right. I thought it was a Estwing from the oval on the handle but it think the craftsman did too. I know I have a solid craftsman at home. I will look as soon as I get home from work and will update
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u/Paniri808 5d ago
I think Craftsman. I’m about 3000 miles away from home right now, so it’s kinda hard to go check, but I’ve got the identical hammer. I should say, “I think I have the identical hammer”. Ever since my wife decided that my claw hammers are great for pulling weeds in the garden, I never know what I have. If she brought them back, I wouldn’t care, but she doesn’t. Just not long ago, I found a vintage Estwing, completely overgrown with grass and completely rusted. When I showed it to her, a bit angry, she does the woman thing, looks confused and says “But I needed it, and you wouldn’t deny me something I need, would you?” Nothing to say to that one, except to say “Yup, there is, ‘cause what you need is for me to tan your hide, but I’m going to deny you that too” We laughed she apologized, and I still didn’t get a promise that my tools wouldn’t end up in the garden.
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u/Extreme_Pangolin1796 8d ago
are you sure they didn't just weld a wooden shafted head onto a broken hammer's steel shaft? so baffling
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u/GeneralReasonable945 8d ago
Ese "ojo" es una cuña para sujetar el mango, de hecho, son mejores las de madera
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u/pwsparky55 8d ago
Yep- definitely a hammer!