A 16-ounce, claw hammer is the best choice for general use around your home. For serious construction work, a larger and heaver framing hammer is the tool of choice.
Watch this video to find out more.
Further Information
- Heavy Duty Titanium Hammer (video)
- Ryobi Auto Hammer Tool Review (video)
- How to Remove Headless Nails (video)
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Danny Lipford: If there’s a tool that every homeowner needs, it’s the hammer. And nobody is more opinionated about hammers than a professional carpenter.
Joe Denson: If you are looking for a hammer, and you’re not a professional builder, probably the most common hammer for you would be a 16-ounce claw handled hammer. It’s very good, it’s light. You can work with it, it’s not hard.
I think a lot of people would have trouble picking a hammer like this up initially and hanging a picture with it. This hammer has the solid steel construction on it which I really like that, you don’t have to worry about breaking it off. It’s got a long length. It’s 16 inches from top to bottom. Smooth faced, 22-ounce, which is an easy swing. It won’t wear you out throughout the day. Straight claws, it’s just a really universal hammer for me.
Hammers do wear out believe it or not. I know most people have them all their lives. But you’ll get to where you just slide off the head of a nail with this. And one really good trick is that you just take that, lay it on a piece of concrete and rub it back and forth. And you will—it’s just like sanding that thing, but it will texture it up enough to catch the nail.
