Need advice on buying brass hammer

[Cespain]

I was reading a recent post about fixing escape wheel teeth and there was mention of planishing the teeth using a brass hammer. As I am in the process of repairing a clock in which the escape wheel needs some attention and possible planishing I think it might be advisable to acquire a brass hammer. I see Amazon are selling a Bergeon 30417 watchmakers hammer for 24 euro (plus 15 euro delivery to me) which it rather expensive though I'm sure it is of excellent quality. There are other listed for much less but not knowing what weight would be best it is difficult to judge which one if any to buy. So any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[bruce linde]

every project is an excuse to buy a new tool

it's nice having nice tools. If you're a professional or an active hobbyist, I'd say go for quality. If you're looking for a one time solution, I'm pretty confident in saying that a brass hammer tip doesn't really know or care whether it's attached to a bergeon or $2 amazon knockoff

its not what you've got, it's how you use it...and in this case you would be being very gentle and not driving nails, yes?

 

[Cespain]

Thanks Bruce and no, I hope not to be driving any nails with it.

 

[klokwiz]

barked, i like your hammer. how about a photo. Joe

 

[JimmyOz]

I did include a photo but the image isn't showing?

Dare I say, Box Brownie photos do not load

 

[Willie X]

I always use a steel hammer, never seen a brass one. Planishing/chasing hammers have an unusual curved shape and are used mainly by silver smiths to spread and flatten soft metals, or strike various tools. They are available from places that sell jewelery making tools, like Rio Grande But the hammers available are on the big side for planishing an escape wheel.

I use a very old ball peen hammer (4 ounce) the flat side is curved, as if it was made for planishing. The face should have a good polish.

Willie X

 

[Cespain]

Interesting Willie, proves yet again that there are usually multiple ways of doing anything and you don't know if something will work until you try it. We need people that go against the conventional wisdom.

 

[Willie X]

If you think you need a brass one, pretty sure you will have to make it. The handles are very different (with a big knob on the back end) and the face is large with a slight curve that increases toward the edges.

Steel is the "conventional".

Willie X

 

[FDelGreco]

it's nice having nice tools.

This thread reminds me of a funny story -- funny now, not then.

In the early 1970s I worked part time at a camera shop repairing mechanical cameras. I had all kinds of specialty tools for that kind of work. I had a brass head hammer with an aluminum handle. One end of the brass head had a plastic, nonmarring tip. It was Swiss made by Vigor, very nicely balanced:


When a left the shop, I stored my toolbox in the apartment I shared with my (first) wife. One day I went into my toolbox to find my hammer. The handle was bent about 25 degrees from straight and the plastic tip was missing. I asked my wife about it. She said she used it to defrost the freezer! I asked her where the plastic tip was. "I don't know." I asked her why she put it back in my toolbox bent and missing the tip. "I was done with it."

I couldn't find the tip. But about a year later when we moved out of the apartment, I pulled out the refrigerator to see if anything had fallen behind it. There was the tip.

Bottom line: I still have the hammer but not the wife. If you are going to have good tools make sure the wife -- or kids -- can't get to them.

Frank

 

[bruce linde]

It is conventional wisdom to use the right hammer for the right job.

fyi, i use picture hanging hooks for some of my clocks. they are held in place with three finish nails (with knurled tops) and are rated to 100lbs. sometimes i swap in a new clock in a particular location and need to move a hanger up or down an inch or two. i use some beefy lineman's pliers to pull the finish nails. since i am typically on a stepladder at that point... and usually forget to grab a hammer first... i've become accustomed to using the side of the heavy linesman's pliers to tap the finish nails back in.

so, i'm agreeing... i use the right hammer for this particular job, which happens to be beefy lineman's pliers.