Gussstahl - Joiners Hammer?

**Pittwater Pete** · 9th January 2016, 07:34 PM

I've been on the look out for a European Joiner's hammer. I recently saw this old one on ebay. It looked a bit rough and rusty but I really liked the shape and thought it would make a good user so I bought it for AUD $15.50. This is what it looked like.
image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg
It's got a nasty nick out of the 'passenger side' front striking edge. It's a bit hard to see on the photos and is worse, in reality, than I had expected. The handle is Wallaby Ted too and seems too short and too thin for my 'big ballooka' hands.
The simple solution was to start linishing to reshape the head to get rid of the rust pitting, the nicks, and then some polishing to finish it off nicely. I didn't want to loose the hallmark (if that's what it's called), but luckily it is deeply inset and very nice. I don't have any proper machinery for this sort of thing, so I just used my belt linisher with a 120 grit belt. I linisher away keeping the hammer head cool with water throughout the shaping phase.
When I had finished shaping, the sanding belt was Wallaby Ted too, so I loaded it with some polishing compound (the green one - not sure what it's called but it's polish and wax combined in a block about 50 x 50 x 150 - it's for polishing metal but I use it for the final hone on my chisels and plane blades). Anyway, now the blunt sanding belt is a metal polishing belt (all for the same old price). I happily polished away without fuss until I was happy with the finish. I wasn't going for shiny, just neat and tidy as a user.
With the hammer head all sorted, the next step was to make a new handle. It needed to be a bit longer and thicker than what was on it (probably not original). I grabbed an off cut of Crows Ash and shaped a sholdered tenon with a small tenon saw and then chisel. The handle was shaped with an old draw knife given to me recently (never had one before - so much fun & easy to use too). Two wedges from American Black Walnut and then couple of coats of wipe on poly. This is the result, and I'm loving it.
image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg
The 'hallmark' say "VERGISS MIEN NICHT H & S" which translated is "FORGET ME NOT" which is also the name of a flower. Hence the flower logo. I don't know what the "H & S" is?
GUSSTAHL means - Cast Steel in German.
That's all I know. any further info would be appreciated.
An idea of its age would also be good.
Many thanks and best regards.
Pete.

**Pittwater Pete** · 9th January 2016, 08:42 PM

Just as an aside, this is a 'forget me not'.
image.jpg
Pete.

**cava** · 9th January 2016, 10:11 PM

It's come up a treat. Good score.

**Uncle Al** · 10th January 2016, 08:32 AM

Gees, that came up well Pete. Interesting way of polishing steel using an old belt on a linisher. I'll keep that one in mind.
The handle looks first class as well.

Alan...

**Bushmiller** · 10th January 2016, 09:11 AM

Great job Pete.

Probably didn't look as good as that even when new. Nice job with the handle.

Regards
Paul

**Sawdust Maker** · 10th January 2016, 10:02 AM

Nice resto
cool handle
pretty speccy looking tool

H&S = Harold & Saxon [?]

**P.W.H.** · 10th January 2016, 10:27 AM

this is a German carpenter's hammer by comparison. No, it's not broken, the long spike gets used to pin the hammer to a roof beam and then you use the hammer as a handle to carry it. (I use mine to carry strainer posts with it, when I'm fencing - makes easy work out of what would be a 2 man job otherwise). It also has an indent at the top for starting nails with one hand. Not a bad idea if you're standing on a purlin on a high roof, or on a ladder.

**P.W.H.** · 10th January 2016, 10:36 AM

Your typical German joiner's hammer has this shape. An offset cross-peen with a square butt end. The boilermaker's hammer (Schlosserhammer) has the cross-peen centered on the head. I've seen the shape of the hammer you posted some place, but for the life of me I can't remember in what context.

**P.W.H.** · 10th January 2016, 10:49 AM

I can further tell you that your hammer was made by Söding & Halbach in Hagen, Westfalia.
I found an id on the logo (first link) and a company history (second link)

Amboßschmieden

Willkommen beim Portal der Archive in NRW (in German, sorry, it seems they ran from 1783 to 1966).

That's all I've been able to dig up.

**Pittwater Pete** · 10th January 2016, 02:41 PM

Thanks PWH
Very Interesting info. My distant family ancestors come from Westfalia and there is a distant relative still on the original farm from Early 1600's. I visited 10 years ago. This makes this hammer and even better find for me. My Dad reads German so I'll get him to look into it a bit further. If love to know how old it is.

**Pittwater Pete** · 10th January 2016, 06:01 PM

I've found another hammer the same as mine in DaveTTC's tool box. I don't know how he took it but, but he got it. I should lock my toolbox

Pete

**DaveTTC** · 12th January 2016, 01:02 PM

Well I don't know how I missed this. Maybe I been working too hard.

Man dos that polished head being a smile to my face when the picture finally loaded.

Stunning job there Pete.

Now we could show you how to turn a handle on the lathe similar to what you have but chances are the draw knife was faster.

Yes now that little hammer from my box ... where is it? I can't find it!

Dave

The Turning Cowboy

**Pittwater Pete** · 12th January 2016, 08:38 PM

You could have had an easier time fitting the replacement floorboard if you had your SpongeDave hammer handy.

**DaveTTC** · 12th January 2016, 08:39 PM

A big sponge on hammer

Dave

The Turning Cowboy

**GarciaJ** · 13th January 2016, 11:59 AM

Originally Posted by Uncle Al

Gees, that came up well Pete. Interesting way of polishing steel using an old belt on a linisher. I'll keep that one in mind.
The handle looks first class as well.

Alan...

What Uncle Al said! So nice to bring an old thing back to life... And the genealogy was interesting too...

Sent from my C5302 using Tapatalk

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