Wapiti Talk | Elk Hunting Forum | Elk Hunting Tips
 

For the Love of Hammers

Moderators: Swede, Tigger, Lefty, Indian Summer, WapitiTalk1

For the Love of Hammers

Postby Swede » 02 22, 2023 •  [Post 1]

I must have at least 20 different hammers in my garage and tool building. I have carpenter hammers including ones used for everything from framing to tacking. I have a sledgehammer and splitting maul. I have body and fender hammers and some other small special purpose ones. If you looked around you might think I was nuts about hammers, but I don't love any of them or brag about how great any of them are. They are just useful and even though they all have a purpose and are different, they are still just tools.
Unlike hammers, I have had a special affection for some cars and trucks. It does not make much sense I suppose, but it seems to be just a matter of fact. Even longer than owning trucks and hammers, I have had guns. I started off with toy guns, progressed to a BB gun, and at about 8 or 9 years of age I got a 22-rim fire. At barely 13 years old I got my own high caliber rifle and have had rifles and pistols ever since. I was a gunner's mate responsible for the ship's small arms in the navy and spent some time in the army national guard as an infantryman. I prefer some guns for different reasons and purposes, but I have never fell in love with one yet. All this makes me wonder about why people love their guns or cars and make such a do about them.
Maybe you can share some of your feeling on these things too deep for me.
Swede
Wapiti Hunting - Tree Stand Tactics
 
Posts: 10215
Joined: 06 16, 2012

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby 7mmfan » 02 22, 2023 •  [Post 2]

This is an interesting topic. Love and affection for inanimate objects has always been interesting to me. Humans in general are collectors. We have been programmed over millennia to collect things that could be useful to us. As time went along, and our mental capacity grew that expanded into items that weren't necessarily useful, but were memorabilia. They triggered memories of past hunts, adventures, significant moments in the lives of our ancestors. Fast forward to today and we still have that mentality, but have the capacity to collect so much more stuff. We don't need to be as diligent about what we collect because we don't have to carry it on our backs or travel with it everywhere, it just lives in the garage now.

So, why do people "love" their guns, tools, automobiles? At some point in the past, those objects, or similar objects were involved in a significant memory. Maybe that person's Dad was a classic car enthusiast and they have memories of tinkering with cars, and tapping with hammers on them. Guns make sense to me, since they are a tool that many of us use to put food in our freezers and the memories associated with that tool and the hunt it was used on are usually etched deep into our brains.

For me personally, I have virtually no attachment most items unless they serve a direct purpose. I do have a personal attachment to my guns, fishing rods, boats, etc because I have fond memories associated with them and they are functional for what I use them for. Small trinket items and "collectible" items have no appeal to me. They just end up in boxes in the rafters of the garage. My in-laws love to drop by my house with boxes of stuff that they kept from my wife's childhood and now feel like we should house it. Boxes of old cassette tapes, VHF movies, school projects and report cards. Luckily she has no attachment to those items either, so they just fill up our garbage can that week.

Anyway, people's minds are interesting things. We'll likely never understand what really makes most of us tick.
I hunt therefore I am. I fish therefore I lie.
User avatar
7mmfan
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 1684
Joined: 09 07, 2017
Location: Washington State

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby wawhitey » 02 22, 2023 •  [Post 3]

The gun thing to me, is that nobody seems to ever make guns just the way i like them. Everythings a compromise buying a factory rifle. That one has the wrong twist rate, this one has too long a barrel, theother one doesnt have a flush fit mag, or that stock is no good, or the finish is wrong etc etc. So ive just been making all my guns fit my specific needs / wants. And the more i mess with them and customize them, the more i get into it and the fonder i am of a gun once ive got it "just right". Its no longer just a gun off a shelf, its now my gun. Just the way i want it, and different from anything you can buy off a gun rack. Waiting on parts for a couple different guns right now, and just got a few new parts for my marlin 357 which ill be installing in a couple days.
Real eyes realize real lies
User avatar
wawhitey
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 3572
Joined: 02 21, 2013
Location: Stevens co, WA

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Swede » 02 22, 2023 •  [Post 4]

I think you guys are bringing out the key to the matter. It seems to be a matter of association. If we associate something significant (gun or car, etc.) with fun or good things, we are likely to want to increase that part of our lives. I think being in the military closely associating guns with work likely diminished my association of guns with fun. Still, I have my guns and enjoy hunting. but for me the gun is more or less a tool. I have a few and some I like better than others, but I rarely shoot any of them.
Swede
Wapiti Hunting - Tree Stand Tactics
 
Posts: 10215
Joined: 06 16, 2012

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby wawhitey » 02 22, 2023 •  [Post 5]

Swede wrote: If we associate something significant (gun or car, etc.) with fun or good things, we are likely to want to increase that part of our lives.


Yup, guns are a key component of my main interest in life, hunting. So any effort put into personalizing / perfecting my guns, is just an extension of hunting to me. Its another way to immerse myself in what i love doing.
Real eyes realize real lies
User avatar
wawhitey
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 3572
Joined: 02 21, 2013
Location: Stevens co, WA

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Lefty » 02 23, 2023 •  [Post 6]

I have more hammers than guns a couple small tack hammers Eswing trim, 16, 20 , 22 decking and 22 framer .


But I like my nail guns too Mostly Hatachi and Porter Cable: Framers, staplers and trim guns,,,,
Kast week building a loafing shed for my daughter, sure liked the Milwaukee Sheeter and framer!!!
User avatar
Lefty
Wapiti Hunting - Strategy and Tactics
 
Posts: 6926
Joined: 06 25, 2012
Location: Pocatello Idaho
First Name: Dennis
Last Name: H

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Swede » 02 24, 2023 •  [Post 7]

Lefty wrote:But I like my nail guns too Mostly Hatachi and Porter Cable: Framers, staplers and trim guns,,,,
Kast week building a loafing shed for my daughter, sure liked the Milwaukee Sheeter and framer!!!


You see! It is just as I said. People love their guns, but you have no accolades for your tack hammers, Eswing and framer. Maybe someone will start a hot thread on the Gear/Weapons forum so we can brag on the great attributes of our latest ball peen hammer. On the other hand, maybe that is not the point? Humm?
Swede
Wapiti Hunting - Tree Stand Tactics
 
Posts: 10215
Joined: 06 16, 2012

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby saddlesore » 02 24, 2023 •  [Post 8]

I have my Fathers hammers, my Father in Laws hammers and my hammers. Framers,roofing, ball peen, sledge, blacksmith forming, horse shoeing nail drivers, auto body repair hammers, rubber hammers, leather hammers, and some I don't even know what they were used for. At some time I have used most of them.

As for firearms,I have few my wife bought me , family heirlooms from father and FIL, some I bought myself. I cherish some because of their history, but can't say I love them.
User avatar
saddlesore
Wapiti Hunting - Strategy and Tactics
 
Posts: 2162
Joined: 11 07, 2015
Location: Colorado Springs,CO

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Jhg » 02 25, 2023 •  [Post 9]

D
Jhg
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 864
Joined: 07 18, 2018
Location: Colorado

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby wawhitey » 02 25, 2023 •  [Post 10]

Of hammers and guns

Whether you want to admit it for political reasons or otherwise, guns exist, were invented, for killing things. Whether those things are bipeds or quadrapeds is irrelevant. Guns are made to kill. Thats why they exist.

Now, that being stated, there are a LOT of gun enthusiasts out there who have no desire to kill anything with their guns. Not hunting, not murdering, theyre just gun nuts for the sake of loving guns.

Hammers, they were also created for one purpose.
Pounding the hell out of things. But i doubt there are very many, or ANY hammer enthusiasts/ collectors, that dont use hammers for their purpose.

Just a thought. Interesting comparison for the sake of conversation

My thoughts on the subject... guns are different from other tools. Likely due to the distinction that their sole purpose for existing is to kill things.
Real eyes realize real lies
User avatar
wawhitey
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 3572
Joined: 02 21, 2013
Location: Stevens co, WA

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Jhg » 02 25, 2023 •  [Post 11]

Interesting point.
Also, There are bows and there are spears. Those (besides being too cumbersome to "carry" ) do not carry the baggage guns have because they are much less capable of 1) being at hand for any and all disputes and 2) guns are better at multiple attempts at lethality, single or multiple.

I digress a little, ok a lot, but it has not helped that the gen public has access to nearly full on military rifles, armor, night vis optics etc. Talk about losing the perception battle while also offering the less than stable among us the means for mass destruction. My long held belief is we (we being gun appreciators/users) have literally shot ourselves in the foot in regards to future gun access management and we only have ourselves to blame for being so inflexible. One day the giant will awaken and we will wish than that we had made better use of our common sense a long time ago.
Jhg
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 864
Joined: 07 18, 2018
Location: Colorado

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby wawhitey » 02 25, 2023 •  [Post 12]

Jhg wrote:Interesting point.
Also, There are bows and there are spears. Those (besides being too cumbersome to "carry" ) do not carry the baggage guns have because they are much less capable of 1) being at hand for any and all disputes and 2) guns are better at multiple attempts at lethality, single or multiple.

I digress a little, ok a lot, but it has not helped that the gen public has access to nearly full on military rifles, armor, night vis optics etc. Talk about losing the perception battle while also offering the less than stable among us the means for mass destruction. My long held belief is we (we being gun appreciators/users) have literally shot ourselves in the foot in regards to future gun access management and we only have ourselves to blame for being so inflexible. One day the giant will awaken and we will wish than that we had made better use of our common sense a long time ago.



No, what we, the average person, let alone the crazy kid, have access to is nowhere near what our military has access to. And the common sense thing is nothing but propaganda. Look who does 95% of firearm violence, that will tell you where " common sense" lies, but nobody wants to point out the big fat elephant in the room. All that aside, the whole point of t2a is that citizens have the weaponry available to fight a tyrannical government. Your "common sense"argument is playing into the hand of genocidal tyrants.
Real eyes realize real lies
User avatar
wawhitey
Rank: An Elk Nut
 
Posts: 3572
Joined: 02 21, 2013
Location: Stevens co, WA

Re: For the Love of Hammers

Postby Lefty » 02 25, 2023 •  [Post 13]

Swede wrote:I think you guys are bringing out the key to the matter. It seems to be a matter of association. If we associate something significant (gun or car, etc.) with fun or good things, we are likely to want to increase that part of our lives. I think being in the military closely associating guns with work likely diminished my association of guns with fun. Still, I have my guns and enjoy hunting. but for me the gun is more or less a tool. I have a few and some I like better than others, but I rarely shoot any of them.


xxxx20230225_195832 bb.jpg
xxxx20230225_195832 bb.jpg (59.75 KiB) Viewed 790 times

The 28 oz hammer with the chisel end has all sorts of trapping stories.
That 16 oz Eswing has sunk and pulled a lot of nails
User avatar
Lefty
Wapiti Hunting - Strategy and Tactics
 
Posts: 6926
Joined: 06 25, 2012
Location: Pocatello Idaho
First Name: Dennis
Last Name: H