The 7 Best Ball Peen Hammers
Editor's Notes
August 08, 2019:
Ball peen hammers are now very rarely used for their intended purpose: peening. However, its shape and weight have guaranteed that it has remained a common choice for specialized and general purpose hammering. They are comfortable to use as a normal striking hammer and the hemispherical side of the head can be used for all manner of tasks in shaping metal.
The Craftsman 9-38466 is an excellent tool that is perfectly simple and perfectly built. It has everything you want your ball peen hammer to have: it has a nice hickory handle, it is attached using dual metal wedges, the head is drop-forged, the faces are nicely ground, the bevels are softly curved so you won't gouge your material, it is very affordable, and it looks like your grandfather would have used it. As far as reliability, nothing will outlast the Estwing E3-16BP because it eliminates the failure point where the head is mated to the handle that is present in other styles of hammers.
Using ball peen hammers can be dangerous. Safety precautions should be observed to avoid personal injury or damage to equipment.