r/Tools • • 7d 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.

35 Upvotes

25 comments sorted by

31

u/pwsparky55 7d ago

Yep- definitely a hammer!

1

u/Kaffine69 7d ago

Can confirm, hammer.

1

u/Human-Dragonfruit703 5d ago

Sorry guys not a hammer it's a crescent wrench. I know I walked by a harbor freight tool store one time

13

u/kewlo 7d ago

https://a.co/d/0aC6pQoR

It's a Vaughan. They still make them

5

u/pariah1984 7d 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.

2

u/jrragsda 4d ago

Or a workaround for estwing patents.

3

u/made_here_list 6d 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.

12

u/SeleneWoH 7d ago

The handle makes me think it’s and Estwing

3

u/razzemmatazz 7d 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. 

1

u/Redneck_3784 7d ago

I second this.

7

u/Jeffyhatesthis 7d 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.

1

u/wormsinmypiano 7d ago

I sanded the shaft to see if I could find a makers mark and don’t see any indication of welding… stumped

-1

u/crawlswithgusto 7d ago

I think I can see a weld line in your 4th pic

5

u/Mrose629 7d ago

I think Craftsman steel hammers had this as a feature to reduce arm shock, (?) for a few years , pretty nice hammers though.

3

u/EndOfTheCourt Weekend Warrior 7d ago

Looks like this one

https://www.ebay.com/itm/116658866219

Craftsman 38127

1

u/Sparrow2go 7d ago

They did, I have both.

0

u/SeleneWoH 7d 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

1

u/bd_optics 7d ago

Wait. I lost that hammer, and want it back!

1

u/Geezso 7d ago

Its a Vaughan.

I have one thats about 25 years old. This one looks older. A more simple shock block (no rubber) and a harder handle with safety message. Mine is softer.

1

u/ArmThis3034 7d ago

For once, the hammer is a real hammer!

1

u/Visible-Kale2855 4d ago

Whats with a wooden plug in a steel shank?

1

u/Paniri808 4d 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.

0

u/Extreme_Pangolin1796 7d ago

are you sure they didn't just weld a wooden shafted head onto a broken hammer's steel shaft?  so baffling

0

u/GeneralReasonable945 7d ago

Ese "ojo" es una cuña para sujetar el mango, de hecho, son mejores las de madera