The AMPCO 7920 sledge hammer costs $900—for a reason. It's made of completely non-sparking, non-magnetic, corrosion-resistant, beryllium-free metal*, the better to work in environments where an errant spark could go all explodo.
Tool Pr0n: A $900 Sledge Hammer [Toolmonger]
* Fuckin' beryllium.
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Haha, that little note must be the funniest thing I read all day!
What's with the little holes in the handle? Do they make it more aerodynamic?
David B.
Explosivo
Fuckin' beryllium is actually irrelevant to the no-sparks-permitted issue. Beryllium copper is no more sparky than pure copper, but the alloy is much harder than pure copper (you can make springs out of beryllium copper; there's one in my special knife for killing major world leaders), and so it's more suitable for use in tools.
Beryllium is also very poisonous, though. This isn't an issue for most beryllium-copper tools, since you can't get a significant beryllium dose even if you spend your lunch breaks licking your BeCu pliers. But a sledgehammer probably makes some shavings in normal use, and inhaling those would be bad.
It's also no big deal if a sledgehammer's made from a relatively soft alloy, since it has no high-torque parts or cutting edges, and nobody cares if its faces become uneven.
If I pay this much for a hammer, it had better turn me into a Norse god when I pick it up.
I'll bet most of these get bought on OPM because someone's spec'd them as necessary for some application.
These tools are pretty extreme. We had a box full of them on the fire engine for Haz-Mat response. I bought a few for my own kit over the years. BeCu is better for tools that cut like pliers, pipe wrench jaws and screwdrivers, especially Phillips tips that seem to wear out too quick even in tool steel. Some cutting & scraping tools are now also CuproNickle. Alumninum Bronze and BeCu tools are also safe to use around MRI machines and other insane magnetic fields. The good news is if you live around the oilpatch, or in an oil refining area, you can sometimes find these goodies at flea-markets & garage sales. Oh, the little holes were supposed to act like suction cups and make the grip more non-slip.