On The Function Of A Tinners Hammer

By Author: Sam Stortz
Total Articles: 32
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A hammer is a tool that generally uses impulse to alter the shape of a material or to drive small pieces of hardware with a certain degree of precision. Despite the very basic nature of the use of a hammer, no two hammers are exactly the same. Many different trades and crafts have specialized types of hammers for their own proprietary uses. Consider that there are brick hammers, dead blow hammers, engineer’s hammers, soft face hammers, and others, such as the tinner’s hammer on which this article will focus.
A tinner’s hammer is a specialized type of hammer for tradesmen that work with sheet metal, specifically soft metals like aluminum or copper. Although there is not a standard design for sheet metal hammers like these, there are a few features that you will see among them that enable some of the following functions.
One of the primary ...
... functions of a tinner's hammer is to generally alter the shape of a sheet of metal such as stainless steel, aluminum, or copper. Consider that some of these metals are fairly soft, and that the steel face of a hammer, even a smooth face, would dent and dimple the surface of the sheet metal.
For this reason, many tinner’s hammers are made from non-marring materials that are softer than the metal upon which they’re used. For example, many of these tools are made with PVC heads that enable fairly precise manipulation of sheet metal without the fear of damaging the medium. With the right amount of mass in the head of the hammer, the tool can be used to form and shape metal without marring it. While this isn’t always a prime concern, in any scenario wherein the sheet metal is fully polished, coarse, dented seams will not result in a nicely finished job.
More specifically, these types of tools are often used to form seams and pound them flat or flush before they are soldered. For this particular purpose, many tinner’s hammers have flat faces to form correspondingly formed seams. You may also see some of these hammers with pointed, wedged or angled faces for more precise manipulation of the material. This is useful for working in tight corners where the wider face of a hammer would get hung up. A wedged or pointed face is also highly useful for finishing seams in corners and elsewhere where there is little clearance.
Another common feature of tinner’s hammers that enhances their functionality is that many of them are dead blow hammers. A dead blow hammer is a hammer with an inner compartment that is often filled with a material like shot or sand. This lags behind the head of the hammer during the stroke, falling forward after the face has made contact with the sheet metal material. This ensures a lower impulse but a fuller transfer of energy because it helps to eliminate rebound which wastes a little bit of energy.
To learn more about these types of hammers and other tools used by roofers and craftsmen that work with sheet metal, visit John Stortz & Son at Stortz.com. For well over 150 years, Stortz has been providing tools of the highest quality, ranging from sheet metal benders and brick hammers to snow guards and soldering tools. They have a wealth of resources on their website for those who want to learn more about these tools and plenty of options for others interested in purchasing them.
If you still want to learn more about roofing processes and the tools that professionals use, contact a member of their team at 888-847-3456 today.
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