Nylon hammer

[stampingdelight]

what is everyones thoughts on the nylon hammer for leather working? I have been using a rubber mallet & wanted to upgrade so thought to ask for feed back,

[bruce johnson]

With no disrespect, anything will be a step up from a rubber mallet. The soft face of the rubber mallet absorbs a lot of the force so it doesn't transfer to the leather. Once you upgrade there are a ton of choices. There is the mallet style, not as popular as the maul but available. Materials may be urethane, versions of nylon, or rawhide. There are fans of each.

If you look at mauls, there are a lot more options. If you've never used a maul they look a little intimidating. You are hitting a small object with a round object. The learning curve goes pretty fast though for most people and once they use a maul they don't go back to a mallet. You can buy mauls in all kinds of quality and price levels. I have had mauls through here from $15 Amazons up to $225 custom-made's. Head material could be a whole topic by itself – urethane, nylon, Delran, other exotic plastics, rawhide all have fans. Some materials are more slippery than others, some are more durable, and some just have a certain "feel" that a person prefers. Straight versus tapered – again fans of each. With the straight mauls you need to hold your elbow higher than you do with the tapered maul. The tapered mauls for many people are easier to use for longer runs, especially if you've had shoulder injuries or just have large projects. With the tapered maul I can have my elbow at my side instead of up level with my shoulder. That makes a huge difference. Handle material is another factor. Wood and plastic handles tend to transfer more vibration than leather. That can also be a fatigue issue. There are some rubberized sort of handles or foam covered that are okay. I prefer the stack leather handles - less vibration and better grip for me.  Finally handle shape – everyone has a favorite. I like a handle shape that is fairly narrow behind the head so I can almost ring my thumb and index finger to grip it. Then widening out past that so the maul doesn't slide up my hand as I use it. Some like a big fat bulb at the end, some like a gentle taper. It's all personal preference and definitely one size does not fit all. Everybody has a favorite, some for me just fall right into my hand like an old glove and others feel like I'm holding the fat end of a bat.

You get into weight of the mauls and that is another factor. My belief is that everyone tooling leather needs a 1 pound maul. That will do most stamps with little effort. You may find with larger basket and geometric stamps you want something heavier. Then the 1.5 or 2 pound mauls fall into place. You may find for small faced sharper stamps like seeders and bar grounders that a lighter maul is easier, and I like a 12 ounce maul. 

I sell mauls from Wayne Jueschke. I do that because I believe in them, I've been a user for probably close to 20 years. The first maul I bought from Wayne is still in great shape after thousands of hits. Like pretty much all leather tools I was a user for a long time before I became a seller. I like the handle shape, I like the material, I like the balance of the Jueschke mauls. Other makers to consider for better quality mauls would be Barry King, Clay Miller, and Ed LeBarre. I know that Barry and Clay make mallets as well as mauls. I'm not sure if Ed makes a mallet.

Hope this helps, – Bruce

 

 

[bruce johnson]

As a follow-up, at one time when I was doing a lot of semi-production work I figured up the cost per hit of my one-pound Jueschke maul. It is on some posting on this form someplace. On a rope can cover between beveling, border, and basket stamp or floral patterns, I had at least a thousand hits. At that time I had done about 150 rope cans. On that $90 maul, it had cost me 0.06 cents per hit. Good tools generally pay you back in either dollars or ease and pleasure of use.

[JDFred]

Personally I prefer rawhide mallets.  I also have a Bakelite mallet from Tandy that I got when I first started and still like.  I’ve tried to use mauls and never liked the feel of them.  I have a weighted mallet I got as a gift and I have the same problem with it.  I personally don’t like the weight in the handle, I like the weight forward in the head.  I think it is because that is what I’m use to with the other hammers I use in my life.  But a good balanced striking device weather that be a weighted maul or mallet, or a regular mallet is important as is sizing the weight to the job at hand.  Hope this helps.

[chuck123wapati]

I'll add to what Bruce was saying about the good tools. Not only good, but the right tool for the job, they were invented not only to make the job easier but also safer and to keep you healthier in the long run. The right weight maul or mallet to do the job, a good sharp knife, is essential, also, so your muscles and joints, especially, don't overstress, or the properly sized awl and needles for the thread size, and don't be afraid to use pliers so the joints in your fingers don't take the abuse. Just a couple of examples that affect you over time, kinda like loud noise and wearing earplugs. It may not seem like a big deal, but a few years down the road........

[dikman]

As Bruce said, a rubber mallet is probably the worst thing you could use as regards stamping efficiency. There are also many posts on here about people making their own.

[tsunkasapa]

I have two sizes/wights of the poly mallets and like them fine. I've tried a couple of the round mauls and don't care for them. But that may be because I was a carpenter for 40 years and I'm used to doing things with a 'hammer'. But the poly mallets work fine.