Variations on Fundamental Tools
At the door of every happy, contented man somebody should stand with a little hammer, constantly tapping, to remind him that unhappy people exist, that however happy he may be, sooner or later life will show him its claws…. —Anton Chekov
We say of someone who is furiously working a task, “He’s going at it hammer and tongs!” There’s no mystery there: watching a blacksmith at his loud, hot trade is a show of strength and energy. The blacksmith grasps the cherry-red iron with tongs and beats it into shape with a hefty hammer. These fundamental tools have a wide range of purposes in addition to shaping metal, and this primer addresses those tools and their uses.
There is no tool more basic than a hammer, yet the evolution of need has wrought hundreds of configurations of it. These variations are worth knowing. As you set out to hone your boat skills on the water and in the shop, you will encounter any number of hammers with special uses. Choose carefully.