HAMMER SAFETY Safety in Hammering Although hammers appear to be the basic of tools, they can be very dangerous if not used properly and with care. A quality hammer is a safe hammer, but all hammers should be treated with care and respect. Practice makes perfect certainly applies to hammering. Along with remembering to wear safety glasses for all hammering jobs, there are some other general rules to follow when maintaining a high safety level for hammering: 1. Make sure the handle of the hammer fits tightly on the head. 2. Do not strike a hard steel surface with a steel hammer. This may cause small pieces of steel to fly and injure someone. 3. Do not use the hammer handle for striking, and never use it as a pry bar. This may cause the handle to split which could result in a cut or pinch to the user. 4. Always strike the surface squarely - avoid glancing blows. 5. Always wear safety goggles. 6. Never strike any hammer with or against another hammer. 7. Discard a hammer with a chipped or mushroomed face. 8. Do not use steel hammers on concrete, stone, or hard metal objects. 9. Replace loose or cracked handles (see the Hammer Maintenance Guide). 10. Discard hammers with cracked claws or eye sections.

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