Trying New Style of Hammer, need help

[vannmann]

Well, I went ahead and got a japanese style hammer from japanesewoodworker, 2lb. The part that is throwing me off is the downward angle of the head. Its great when forming a bevel when the actual bevel your forging is pointing away from you, but when you turn the stock over to form the bevel on the other side, and the bevel is pointing towards you, im diggin in above the bevel area because of the downward position of the head and it seems very awkward.

Am I supposed to only form bevels pointing away from me, or can someone give me a pointer on what I am doing wrong?

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

If you watch a video of a Japanese smith forging a blade, you will often see that they are sitting by a low anvil. In many cases the anvil is on the floor, and the smith sits in a shallow hole.This position allows the angled head to strike the surface of the metal flush with the anvil face. If you are standing and use the same hammer, the leading edge will strike first. Get a chair and sit down at your anvil, and the hammer will work fine.

Now, as to what hammer works better/best for forging.
If one has developed the hand-eye skills through practice, any hammer will work. If the skills are not developed yet, a $100-150 Hofi, or an expensive Japanese dog-head won't make the forging much better.

I do like the Hofi shape, and find it easier to use, but a simple $30 2 pound cross peen is the best starter hammer for anyone. I would say that most well experienced smiths still use one 90% of the time.