A quality hammer can be a good investment, so take your time to find a suitable hammer for your job. A wrong hammer selection can result in abnormal stress on the muscles for you or your employees and can, in the worst-case scenario, even lead to severe injuries.

A hammer has two important parts, the head and the handle. The hammer’s head is mainly made of iron or steel. For the handle, wood is the most preferred material as it is more shock absorbing, lighter in weight and provides a good balance. Steel and fiberglass are some other materials used in hammer handles.

To select a hammer, you must know the following three things:

1. Required size and shape of the head
2. Required material for the handle
3. Required total weight of the hammer

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Analyze your requirements to choose the right hammer

To select a hammer, you first need to identify the requirements of your job. Each job requires a specific type of hammer. For example, for bending and shaping soft metal, you require a ball-peen hammer, while to drive small nails, you require a tack hammer. Based on your requirements, you can select carpentry hammers or industrial hammers and manually operated or mechanically operated hammers.

I recommend: HammerNet provides an excellent list of the main types of commonly used hammers and their applications. diydata.com also provides information on hammers, their applications and the most popular range of weights for each hammer.

Shop for your carpentry and industrial hammers through manufacturers' websites

Once you understand your requirements, you are ready to select the specific manufacturer to buy the right kind of hammer based on your job requirements.

I recommend: US Industrial Tool & Supply provides different types of industrial heavy duty hammers. SK Hand Tool is another manufacturer, which provides hammers as well as their replacement parts.

Find an online retailer for your hammer needs

You can visit various online retailers to select an appropriate hammer from many different manufacturers.

I recommend: You can search for hammers on Toolup.com to select a hammer from a range of good quality brands. Screwfix provides large varieties of hammers for sale. You can buy hammers of different brands including Draper, Estwing, Site, Forge Steel and Roughneck.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Select a hammer that has a good balance between its head and its handle for completing the job safely and efficiently.
• •  Choose a hammer with a wooden handle as they provide better balance than hammers with fiberglass or steel handles.
• •  The cheapest hammers are not always the best buy, especially if the lower price means lower quality and lower impact.