[TheForge] Just watched the Mythbusters try to shatter hammers

[Ron Childers]

Ur right, Bruce; Lots of idiots get away with violating all kinds of safety
rules; ie grinding w/o a face shield or glasses, welding w/o goggles, etc.
About 35 years ago my knucklehead business partner was beating on a bearing
race and he was not wearing any eye protection- something shattered and, "Do
you see a piece of steel in my eye?" "Yes". "Get the needle nose pliers and
pull it out". "Hell, no, I'm taking ur butt to the doctor". "No, I'm not
going, u do it". I wrapped a string from a shop rag around the ragged piece
and yanked it out, squirted some Visine in his eye and he went back to work.
He was lucky. If he had lost the fluid in the eye he would have lost his
sight.

Ron C

-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Bruce Freeman
Sent: Thursday, November 30, 2006 8:35 AM
To: theforge at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Just watched the Mythbusters try to shatterhammers

They might have thought to consult persons like us who've seen it
happen!

Just wait till all the kids on the block start whacking hammers
together in imitation, and one loses an eye!

How many of us DON'T have some tool that has shattered off a piece?  I
have at least one cracked hammer in my shop.

Who is it - an ABANA demonstrator I think - who tells an anecdote of an
old blacksmith who gets a piece of a ball pein in his leg, staunches the
blood, and goes right on working?

And if a hammer won't shatter even when it's hardened first, then it's
either mild steel or at least not medium-carbon steel (but probably some
alloy).

I think it fine that hammers don't shatter, but I don't think you
should bet on it.

Bruce
NJ

>>> justinf at pixelations.com 11/30/2006 12:10 AM >>>
Mostly they were using claw hammers, set up in a rig to smack two 
hammers face-to-face.  They even tried hardening the hammers, and at
the 
end they aimed a hammer at Chinese Anvil-Shaped Object.  No shattering,

not even any chipping.

They concluded that hammers don't shatter, even if abused.

Comments?


--Justin Fisher,
generally avoiding hitting my hammers with other hammers.
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