I still don't get why everyone likes using a power hammer for damascus

Met a guy named Mike at the Ohio Blacksmith Conference back in 2019. He told me he does all his pattern welding by hand on a 200 pound anvil. He said power hammers just mash the layers together too fast and you lose control of the pattern. I tried his way with a 20 layer billet and got way cleaner twists than my press ever gave me. Has anyone else dumped their power tool for hand work and stuck with it?

2 comments

2 Comments

avery_walker3014d ago

The whole thing kinda reminds me of how everyone thinks power tools make you faster but sometimes you actually lose something real. Like using a hand plane vs a sander on wood you get way more feel for the grain. Same idea with hammers I guess.

brians2714d ago

Hand planes also force you to work WITH the wood not against it. You learn real fast where the grain changes direction or you get tearout. Power sanders just obliterate everything and you never develop that instinct. There is something to be said for the physical memory that builds up in your hands when you do it the slower way.