Hello All,
I think I have used most all of the fabricated air hammers out there and most all the "factory" models and this is may take.
First let me say I have been smithing for 14 years now and own a 50 weight Molag and have for years (12 now) and bought a 3B nazel several years ago. I production forged under a 250 Little giant, 50# beaudry, 25# Little giant, a 1B Nazel and the smaller big blue for two years at New Castle Iron in Fort Lauderdale, FL. doing general forgework (architectural and knives on the side..I was one of three smiths there and we all used the tools). I have been lucky in that I get invited to demo around the US from time to time and get to see and use many different tools without having to own them myself. Does this make me an expert?...Nope...unless I am more than 50 miles from home that is.
Nor am I a master of anything and never claimed to be.
The general concept is that the air hammers give more control over the blow then the mechanicals however I have used some mechanicals (LG, Beaudry, Fairbanks, Molag..I own a 50# Molag) which have had very good control. A brake on the flywheel of these will allow for single blow..or very close to it..and more control over the hammer in general. All in all you can tool up and do most things with any hammer provided you are working within its capacity (size of stock and throw of hammer).
The longer you work with a machine the better you can adapt to its capacity.
What you want is a hammer that can knock the snot out of something or just give er a tap.
As far as factory hammers go:
The Nazel is king in my book (again, I own a 3B Nazel) for hammers you will find in the US.
The Chambersburg is next in line and most will see no functional difference between the two.
The Massey in the UK is a great hammer and if you find a working one buy it.
I have used the Striker in the 160 (165?) and 50 weight size and I think for most they are good. I was going to buy one when they first came to the US and spoke to the California seller -Cosgrove at length about the machine.
I am not familiar with the other Chinese import hammer other than some unfounded rumors which was more of a "I heard that so-and-so had issues with them", but when I talked to so-and-so he had no recollection of ever owning or running one so...?
The two Turkish hammers hit good -- Sahindler and the Saya, but they top out at 150 weight I think. They have the need for kitty litter inside the frame to soak up the oil that comes from the internal lube of the machine. Keep up with maintenance and you get a tool you can use.
The Kuhn are good tools that prove out over time, but seem to be expensive...German manufacture being what it is I see no reason not to recommend it however.
Fabricated air hammer:
I have used most of them I think.
Keep in mind that they are smaller hammers and need outside air. Most need a bit more air than you will be told to keep up with production work, but if you forge only one thing at a time then you should be able to run with a good 5Hp unit and 80 gallon tank.
Big Blue
I worked with a company in Florida and we used the hell out of a big blue and it worked (six hours a day for about three months). You need to keep up with oiling the guides and keep them tight. Also fill the cavity of the frame with sand or it will ring. We had it bolted down and it wobbled a bit, but the frame was solid so maybe it was poorly shimmed on my part.
Seemed to hit a bit light all in all.
Phoenix
The one I used had good control, but hit light in my opinion.
Bull:
Never used one
Kinyon plans:
the hammers differ with the builder and though the plans are good if you are handy I think there are still valve issues as none of the hammers I have tried which were built from these seemed to hit as hard as I thought they should. Much has to do with the weight of the anvil and the rest of the tool...the idea being that all the energy goes into work and not vibration or other unneeded action.
if you are handy then build one as it is the cheapest way to go.
Iron Kiss:
I did a talk in Baltimore and was taken out to meet Larson and see his hammer. I had heard good things by folk who I trust and needed to check it out.
Keep in mind here of my bias with this statement and the above OPINIONS.
The 90 and 150 (160) hammers that John Larson builds are the flat out best fabricated hammers that I have used to date and I was surprised after the first ten seconds of using it. The 90 hit like a the other 150's I had used and there was no sense of the ram holding back or choking. I think he works the valving different and therefore gets power to the ram in a way that allows it to give a full stroke.
The rod in the air cylinder seemed larger then the other hammers use and this is good as I have heard (but not seen) of other rams bending.
John said he had some issues with a few hammers and has changed the parts where needed to prevent this future problems.
Larson had three hammers there, one of which was an odd self contained which he fired up and it worked, but was not something he nor I would recommend at this time and I think he has moved on to only outside driven machines.
The current octagonal style allows for more bearing surface in the guides and I like this as without good guides the dies will fall where physics tells them and not where we want them to go.
Keep in mind that this and other hammers are not for cold work.
The iron Kiss is the only fabricated hammer I will recommend and I intend to purchase the 150 weight later this year to allow for open die work in my shop.
That said..let me say that it is not a Nazel.
Here ends the unpaid endorsement.
My advise is to use all the tools you can before buying and to ask those who have them what they think of the tools. Also I would encourage the asking of this question :
"So, how many hammers have you production forged under and how does this one compare?"
Ask a blacksmith or a full time knifemaker as, and I am sorry here guys, a hobby smith may not be the best judge of what is good. This is not to say that the full-time folk ARE a good judge, but I would rather hear how a hammer works after 40 hours of weekly work then 2 on a weekend. Also the jump from hand hammer to ANY power hammer is a big one and if I had only used one power hammer then I would say it was the greatest thing since whatever the last greatest thing was. The person you want to get advice from is someone who hates everything, but says "well, this tool ain't bad".
If any of the above statements offend then I am sorry, but this is how I see things. I will field all complaints to this number 920-824-5755 or email
ric@doorcountyforgeworks.com
Ric Furrer
Door County Forgeworks.com
Sturgeon Bay, WI
