Estwing hammer question...

[Fugio]

So before anyone rips me for something that's probably been asked a million times, yes I did look in search and didn't find anything.

So I did some scrap yard hiking today and found a carload of good trash.

AMong today's haul is an OLD Estwing 12 oz claw hammer. It was just too cute to let it die out there! Ha! I think it cost me around 15 cents.

It's rusty but not damaged. In fact, the face looks like it's never hit a single nail in its life.

It clearly came with the stacked leather handle, but it's all rotted away now. I'll be replacing it soon.

But I noticed that under where the leather would normally be, it has what appears to be a date cast into it.

It says 9-9-53

Do you think that's possibly a date code? Manufacturing date perhaps?

 

[Fordman7795]

i would absolutely say so. All of my leather wrapped estwings came from my grandfather. I know some models are still made with the leather but mine are on their 3rd generation of use. Care to share some pics? I would love it if my scrapyard resold material before melting it.



wow that was some terrible english

 

[Fugio]

Then you would have pooped your pants today. I missed getting a Gransfor Bruks doule bladed axe by about 5 seconds because another guy spotted it first. He took it away for less than a dollar.

Oh, and I was walking towards a Delta drill press in fine shape except for a dead motor. Got about 20 yards from it and the tractor/dozer thing backed over and crushed it right in front of me. Very sad!

Oh, and under a HUGE pile of Walmart bikes I found a vintage mid-90's Diamondback Double X BMX jumping bike in decent condition. Paid 2 bucks for it! I'll probably CL or Ebay flip it as is. Score!

So I wonder what those hammer numbers mean then. Hmmmmm!

 

[Fugio]

Well I just got off the phone with them and they confirmed that they did ut the forging date on the tang up until around the late 1950's. So this one was indeed made on 9-9-1953. Great scrap yard find!

And here's a couple of pics since you asked, including one of the vintage Redline DoubleX BMX bike I got for three dollars. Score!

 

[demographic]

Well I just got off the phone with them and they confirmed that they did ut the forging date on the tang up until around the late 1950's. So this one was indeed made on 9-9-1953. Great scrap yard find!

And here's a couple of pics since you asked, including one of the vintage Redline DoubleX BMX bike I got for three dollars. Score!

I know this is a bit of a thread resurrection but they continued to stamp the date on them (on the part thats normally covered by the leather washers and I assume also on the rubber grip versions but I don't know for sure) till at least 1987 as I have one with 10 23 87 on it, another with 12 21 81 and the oldest has 12 1 39 on it. Obviously that would make the oldest one I own a 1939 version.

I'm pretty sure the steel part of the tang/handle is the same on both the leather and the rubber grip ones although the leather ones also have a steel **** plate.

Two of the ones I own were bought secondhand for a fiver or so and ones my old hammer.
Usually the plastic washers break and then the grip rattles, thats how come I could see the dates, I just moved the washers aside one by one to read the number out one digit at a time.
I plan on attacking an old leather belt to make up some washers (I've also got a section of flat rubber drive belt for a few green washers as well) and likely build up the rivets by welding on two sections of thick nails then peen them over like they did the firat time. Can't be rocket science can it.

 

[Moldyjim]

I am restoring a handful of estwing steel hammers and a camp ax. They all have different dates from 48 to 86.

The numbers are raised and created during forging, not stamped into the tangs. And there is no evidence of a switchable date insert. And on one I can see obvious wear on the numbers.

I really doubt the dates are the actual date the hammers were manufactured, I suspect it's the date the die itself was made.

I can't see any advantage for a manufacturer to change the date stamp every day especially for a forged part. The stress they are exposed to would cause failures if you added inserts.


Engraving the date into the die itself just the once is easy enough. But I did email Estwing to ask. I haven't seen a response yet.

 

[Ton ton]

The claw hammer threads are rarer than hens teeth on garage journal. Thanks for bumping it up.

 

[Inno]

I found a small Estwing-style hammer today (maybe 12 oz.) with a cast-steel one- piece construction.

There's no name on it but it says "PAT. 43345" on the **** end.

Can't find anything useful about early Estwings on Google.

 

[IndyGarage]

Jimmy Diresta's video where he restored some old Estwing hammers recently:

 

[middleofnowhere1]

The leather on my pick hammer is OK for now. Too many other projects ahead of it in line. But I'm trying to find out what the **** stamp means - 16-07 head. I haven't been able to find a number like that in all my googling. Someone did a crummy job grinding the point, but for the 2 bucks I paid for it...

 

[Ton ton]

The leather on my pick hammer is OK for now. Too many other projects ahead of it in line. But I'm trying to find out what the **** stamp means - 16-07 head. I haven't been able to find a number like that in all my googling. Someone did a crummy job grinding the point, but for the 2 bucks I paid for it...

Welcome to garage journal, middle of nowhere.

 

[Wolley]

The leather on my pick hammer is OK for now. Too many other projects ahead of it in line. But I'm trying to find out what the **** stamp means - 16-07 head. I haven't been able to find a number like that in all my googling. Someone did a crummy job grinding the point, but for the 2 bucks I paid for it...

Probably 16 ounce head

 

[cherrybomb]

Back in the day,I was delivering steel buildings to the Estwing plant in Rockford Il.I had a old hammer,so I poked my head in the door and showed a worker,he waved at the foreman to come over.The foreman got the plant manager,pretty soon they got me safety glasses and we were off to the machine to peel off the old rawhide and put on new.Yes thats a date ,under the handle.Man that was neat stuff,I long for the old days,and those kind of experiences.

 

[Mick56]

The leather on my pick hammer is OK for now. Too many other projects ahead of it in line. But I'm trying to find out what the **** stamp means - 16-07 head. I haven't been able to find a number like that in all my googling. Someone did a crummy job grinding the point, but for the 2 bucks I paid for it...

Probably is 16-OZ, not 16-07.