New Tuning hammers

[Ron Nossaman]

> Anyways I've been
>looking through a number of catalogues and I was wondering if anyone has
>some recommendations on a good quality, heavy hammer.
>
>Thanks in advance,
>Derek


Hi Derek,
It's been a long time since I bought a new hammer, so I'm afraid I can't
help much here, but I do have a suggestion.

I use an old Hale extension hammer, and made a second replacement shaft out
of water hard drill rod. I cut the groove with a cutoff wheel in my drill
press with the shaft held horizontal in a vise, and threaded the end with a
pipe die. That's not the point though. The deal is that I carry one handle
and two shafts, with different length heads. One shaft has a short head for
verticals, and one has a longer head to clear the capo bar on grands and
the lid overhang on some verticals. I used to just carry one shaft and
change heads as necessary, but eventually the threads get screwed up ( what
else?) changing heads all the time, and the head never seemed to be really
tight on the shaft. With two shafts, the heads are cranked on tight, and
there's no slop to mess up the threads. I haven't made any repairs on this
setup in the five years or so since I made the change. If you get a new
extension hammer, I recommend trying this. 

FWIW

Ron N