on the trail of the elusive duck hammer

[Bobby Wong]

http://www.toolsofthetrade.net/power...ming-hammers_o

Quote:

Shark Corporation

24-oz. High-Brow Claw Hammer: I was surprised when I pulled “The Duck” out of its box. This Asian hammer is unlike anything I’ve seen before. It has a long nose like a trumpet, a rounded high-brow head and sharply curved claws, all set atop a long straight wood handle. You can fit a nail between the claws and the back of the head for starting beyond your reach. There are little hammer faces on each side of the head so that you can drive nails or hit nail pullers with the hammer cheek in a tight spot.

I found this tool interesting, but it wasn’t well received in the field. My carpenters said it was poorly-balanced and they didn’t like the “Duck” head. And, although you can yank out a 16d nail with only one pull, they didn’t like the curved claws either. The straight handle was unpopular them, too. It only costs $25, but even this bit of good news did not sway their opinion of this strange bird.