Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

[Irby G.]

Has anyone (is it even feasible) taken the hammer apart , melted the lead, and poured it back into some sort of (maybe tin??) form around the head of the hammer and restored the hammer? Possible or no?

(edit...better not be tin as the melting point is ~450* and lead is ~650*. Maybe a thin sheet of iron)

[Kevin M.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

I've heard of it being done, the procedure I can't help you with.

KM

[Gary S.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

I thought I remembered a procedure in a long past Restorer. Iirc, the gist of the article was to build a "fence" around the head of the hammer, using pliable metal, perhaps aluminum. Then, molten lead was poured into the newly made form and allowed to cool. The form was taken off, the excess lead trimmed up and, voila, a new hammer.

Anyone else see this article or am I imagining it?

[Mike G.]

I remember it too

The author used an orange juice can as a mold...

[Jean C.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

After you restore the hammer, buy a 5# lead hammer from someone like Northern Tool or Harbor Freight to use when removing/installing the wheels.
Best regards,

[John D.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

Has anyone (is it even feasible) taken the hammer apart , melted the lead, and poured it back into some sort of (maybe tin??) form around the head of the hammer and restored the hammer? Possible or no?

(edit...better not be tin as the melting point is ~450* and lead is ~650*. Maybe a thin sheet of iron)

Try McMaster-Carr for lead hammers and molds to redo their lead hammers. They come in all sizes. www.mcmaster.com

[Wayne M.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

I thought I remembered a procedure in a long past Restorer.
Anyone else see this article or am I imagining it?

Two-page article you recall is in NCRS Restorer, Vol 13 #4 (Spring 1987). Seems easy to do (haven't tried it personally); results impressive, although not NOS GM for judging purposes.

Suggest using the "M*u*t*h*e*r Thumper" (type into Google, with asterisks removed). The Cobra guys use this on their KO's. The head weighs 6 lb. Grab it by the chrome handle for accurate whacks.

Dropped by Hartford WI, where the guy makes and sells these [he loads his own ammo, which supplies his lead]. He got a chuckle when I related that on our NCRS discussion board, if you typed in the nickname of his hammer, it got censored.

[Jack H.]

Re: I remember it too

Hum, that sounds like Rocky Mountain Chapter founding member, Dan Tillapaugh, to me... Dan put on a chapter tech session on this a few years back and it WAS an aluminum orange juice can he used as the 'mold' for pouring fresh lead to restore his factory original hammer.

[Wayne M.]

Re: I remember it too

Hum, that sounds like Rocky Mountain Chapter founding member, Dan Tillapaugh, to me... Dan put on a chapter tech session on this a few years back and it WAS an aluminum orange juice can he used as the 'mold' for pouring fresh lead to restore his factory original hammer.

Right you are, Jack --- Dan T. & Jim Braswell (article in Restorer reprinted from Rocky Mountain Chapter Newsletter).
But the article says to use a 10 oz. TOMATO PASTE can .

[Ken A.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

Use a tin can & a large hose clamp. Use a Mapp gas propane torch & buy (beg) some used laed wheelweights and you be done in 10 min or less.

[Gene A.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

Oh my god, you guys are not swinging a lead hammer at your wheels right? I got the special knock off wheel spinner wrench from Corvette Central and it is very nice. Dennis Portka sells it too!

[Edward B.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

Be very careful when heating wheel weights. They contain many impurities and are prone to spitting and popping off little pieces of very hot metal while they are melting.

[Gary B.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

I thought 'Doc', #14 had an article or post on redoing hammers a couple of years ago.

[David D.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

Would one of the hammers that contain the 'shot' work? The shot is enclosed in a plastic like hammer head.

[Stephen P.]

Re: Knock-off hammer all knocked up.

The plastic covered "dead blow" hammers won't stand up to the impact required to properly tighten the KO's. There was also a response above concerning one of the KO wrenches. My experience is that they will not tighten the KO spinner as effeciently as the lead hammer.