Locksmith Hammer

The hammer in a bike shop isn't a framing hammer. The work calls for a small, controlled tap that seats a part without distorting it. A 17 mm square head is the right size for the work; large enough to deliver real force, small enough not to scuff frame tubes or other parts crowding the workspace.

The 812 Locksmith Hammer is built for that controlled tap. Induction-hardened face means the working surface holds shape through years of impact without spalling or denting. An ash handle absorbs shock from the head down through the grip, which after fifty taps at a stuck bearing race is the difference between a wrist that's tired and a wrist that's hurting.

What the locksmith hammer does well

• Seating a press-fit cup that's almost there. A bearing-press gets the cup most of the way home; a couple of measured taps on the leading edge with the hammer seats it the final 0.5–1 mm if needed.
• Persuading a stuck headset cup out of a head tube. Tap the puller's drift evenly around the cup's perimeter; uneven tapping pulls the cup off-axis and binds it tighter.
• Knocking a bearing race loose from a hub shell after a puller has freed it. The puller breaks the fit; the hammer separates the parts.
• Setting a chain-pin partially through a stuck plate. Rare but real on chain tools where the spindle isn't getting enough leverage.

The ash handle is the detail to notice. Ash absorbs shock far better than fiberglass. After a long day of working stuck headsets, the difference between an ash-handle hammer and a fiberglass one shows up in your forearm.

Sizing

Available in two sizes. The smaller suits fine work in tight quarters; the larger gives more head mass for tougher stuck parts. Most working benches end up with the smaller; a busy shop has both.

Specs

• 17 mm square head
• Induction-hardened face
• Ash handle, shock-absorbing
• Article number: 812 (size varies by variant)

Built in Zreče, Slovenia

Unior has been forging hand tools in Zreče since 1919, and is the official technical partner of multiple World Tour and downhill teams. The locksmith hammer line is one of those workshop fundamentals Unior has been forging from before the cycling-tools division ever existed. The same hardening process that goes into the chain-rivet plier heads goes into this hammer's working face.

Pro tip from our mechanics

The "tap-tap-tap" register a working mechanic uses on stuck parts is the controlled-impact rhythm a real shop hammer enables. A heavy framing hammer can't deliver light taps without overshooting; the small locksmith's hammer can deliver heavy ones with the right swing. Range matters more than mass. Our workshop hand tools guide walks through the impact-tool layer of a working shop: Workshop hand tools every bike shop needs →