Comparison Of different Hammers

Uses Of Sledge Hammers:

A sledgehammer is a unique tool that is often portrayed as something
used by criminals as they break apart slabs of concrete. A
sledgehammer is very heavy and represents a much larger version of
the handheld hammer you are used to using. A sledgehammer, though
very useful, is not seen much outside of construction or demolition
sites. One can use a sledgehammer for all kinds of jobs and the article
that follows will share with you some of those.
Concrete Slab Removal
There may come a point in time when you may need to have
concrete removed. This can be a poorly poured concrete basement
floor to your sidewalk. Unfortunately you cannot just lift up large
concrete slabs and expect to move them. It is also very costly to rent
or hire a pneumatic hammer to break the slab. Even a bulldozer
cannot remove the concrete without it first being broken into smaller
pieces that are more easily managed. A sledgehammer is used to
break up concrete by combining weight with force. As you swing the
sledgehammer downward you generate kinetic energy which, when
it strikes the concrete, reverberates through the concrete, hopefully
cracking it. Repeated use of the sledgehammer will slowly but surely
break the concrete.
Bolts into Concrete
Concrete is a very dense substance which making drilling in it
incredibly hard. The drills that exist that have the power to drill into
concrete and the bits needed to do so are very expensive. If you
have a need to install bolts or hooks to concrete you can use a
sledgehammer to achieve this project. The bolt needs to be steel
and thick to withstand the power generated from the swinging of a
sledgehammer.
Stake Driving
Not every sledgehammer is made from metal and the earliest was
wood. It consisted of a handle and a larger mallet. This type of
sledgehammer is still in use today by carnivals and other places that
have frequent outdoor functions. Small stakes can be pounded into
the ground with a rubber mallet or other smaller version of a
sledgehammer. Large stakes used to hold down very large tents are
driven into the ground with a sledgehammer like this as it does not
damage the stakes.

 Home Demolition
A sledgehammer can be used to destroy nearly anything that you
put in its way. Many contractors will use a sledgehammer to take
down entire walls. When the sheet rock, plaster or drywall is no
longer needed a sledgehammer will make very short work of
removing it. The same also applies to the wall studs and joists that
makeup an interior wall. Heating and air conditioning ducts are also
easily removed with a sledgehammer.
Removing Exterior Walls
Walls that are meant to stand the test of time seldom stand up to
the force of a sledgehammer being swung by someone skilled in its
use. Solid concrete walls will take longer to break through but
concrete blocks and bricks are fairly easy. As you hit the wall the
mortar cracks, which makes it easier to remove the walls.

Tests on hammer materials:

Compression Test
Introduction:
A compression test is any test in which a material experiences opposing
forces that push inward upon the specimen from opposite sides or is
otherwise compressed, squashed, crushed, or flattened. The test
sample is generally placed in between two plates that distribute the
applied load across the entire surface area of two opposite faces of the
test sample and then the plates are pushed together by a universal test
machine causing the sample to flatten. A compressed sample is usually
shortened in the direction of the applied forces and expands in the
direction perpendicular to the force. A compression test is essentially the
opposite of the more common tension test.
Purpose of Compression Tests:
The goal of a compression test is to determine the behavior or response
of a material while it experiences a compressive load by measuring
fundamental variables, such as, strain, stress, and deformation. By
testing a material in compression the compressive strength, yield
strength, ultimate strength, elastic limit, and the elastic modulus among
other parameters may all be determined. With the understanding of these
different parameters and the values associated with a specific material it

may be determined whether or not the material is suited for specific

applications or if it will fail under the specified stresses.
Elongation Testing
The increase in a sample's gauge length measured after a rupture or
break divided by the sample's original gauge length is referred to as
elongation. The greater the elongation, the higher the ductility or
elasticity of the material.
Elongation cannot be used to predict the behaviour of materials subjected
to sudden or repeated loading. Some non-rigid materials like rubber and
some plastics have very high elongations prior to break. Cross-head travel
can be used to measure elongation of specimens with uniform width
dimensions. If the specimen is in a dog-bone or dumbbell shape with a
reduced cross-sectional region called gage length, an extensometer will
be required to measure elongation within the gage length region by
attaching it directly to the specimen and tracking movement as the
material is stretched to failure.
Vibration Testing
Vibration Testing is performed to determine if a product can withstand the
rigors of its intended use. Thermotron is a global leader in highperformance vibration shaker manufacturing including electrodynamic
shakers and repetitive shock vibration tables.
By choosing a Thermotron Electrodynamic Shaker you will be able to test
shock, sine, random, and more in pre-programmed profiles on
the WinVCSII Controller. When you choose a Repetitive Vibration Shock
Table, users can generate a multi-axis vibration test over a range of
frequencies.

Izod Impact test

Izod impact testing is an ASTM standard method of determining the
impact resistance of materials. A pivoting arm is raised to a specific
height (constant potential energy) and then released. The arm swings
down hitting the sample, breaking the specimen. The energy absorbed by
the sample is calculated from the height the arm swings to after hitting
the sample. A notched sample is generally used to determine impact
energy and notch sensitivity.

The test is similar to the Charpy impact test but uses a different
arrangement of the specimen under test.[1] The Izod impact test differs
from the Charpy impact test in that the sample is held in a cantilevered
beam configuration as opposed to a three-point bending configuration.

Causes Failure in hammer:

Anything that interferes with the flow of compressive and tensile stresses will also
increase the level of fatigue stress being applied to the tool, and thus, increase the risk
of early fatigue failure of the tool.
1. EXTERNALFORCES
The main cause of increased fatigue stress in a tool is any form of side force
during operation which creates bending. It can cause wearing off on the top part
of hammer resulting in rounding at top edge.
2. BLANK-FIRING
This is any situation where the hammer strikes the top of the work , but the
working end of the tool is not in proper contact with the work piece. This includes
when the tool slides off the work, and also on a break-through of thin concrete
slabs or boulders.
3. COLD
Low temperatures cause the tool to be more susceptible to fatigue failure. Tools
should be warmed before extensive use by moderate or light breaking.
4. MECHANICAL
and
THERMAL
DAMAGE
Any form of damage to the surface of a tool renders it more liable to suffer fatigue
failure. Care must be taken to prevent scratches, gouges, weld marks on the tool,
or pick up between the tool and tool bushing due to lack of lubrication or
excessive bending. Avoid scratches or gouges to the surface of the tool.
5.

CORROSION
Keep tools well-greased and sheltered from the weather when not in use. A rusty
tool is more likely to suffer fatigue failure.