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A steam hammer is a power-driven hammer used to shape forging
Forging

Forging is the term for shaping metal by using localized compressive forces. Cold forging is done at room temperature or near room temperature....
s. It consists of a hammer-like piston located within a cylinder. The hammer is raised by the pressure of steam injected into the lower part of a cylinder and falls down with a force by removing the steam. Usually, the hammer is made to fall faster by injecting steam into the upper part of the cylinder. Steam hammers that fall by their own weight are called steam drop hammers.






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A steam hammer is a power-driven hammer used to shape forging
Forging

Forging is the term for shaping metal by using localized compressive forces. Cold forging is done at room temperature or near room temperature....
s. It consists of a hammer-like piston located within a cylinder. The hammer is raised by the pressure of steam injected into the lower part of a cylinder and falls down with a force by removing the steam. Usually, the hammer is made to fall faster by injecting steam into the upper part of the cylinder. Steam hammers that fall by their own weight are called steam drop hammers. Steam hammers vary greatly in weight from 45 kilograms to 90 metric tons.

The steam hammer was invented around 1837 by the Scot
Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
 James Nasmyth
James Nasmyth

James Hall Nasmyth was a Scotland engineer and inventor famous for his development of the steam hammer....
, in Manchester
Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. Manchester was granted City status in the United Kingdom in 1853....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 and produced in his Patricroft foundry which he built adjacent to the (then new) Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Liverpool and Manchester Railway

The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world's first inter-city passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and were hauled for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives....
 and the Bridgewater Canal
Bridgewater Canal

The Bridgewater Canal is a canal in North West England that connects Runcorn, Manchester, and Leigh, Greater Manchester. It was commissioned by Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester....
; an original Nasmyth hammer stands facing his foundry buildings (now a 'business park'). A larger Nasmyth & Wilson steam hammer stands in the campus of the University of Bolton
University of Bolton

The University of Bolton is a university in Bolton, Greater Manchester, England....
.

The intended first use of the steam hammer lay in forging the paddle shaft of the SS Great Britain
SS Great Britain

SS Great Britain was an advanced Atlantic liner designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Steamship Company's Bristol-New York service....
. However, the paddle technology was replaced with the screw propeller, and implementation of the hammer was left to the Schneider Electric
Schneider Electric

Schneider Electric is a France global company. It was founded in 1836 by two brothers, Eug?ne I and Adolphe Schneider.In the first part of the 20th century, Schneider et Cie associated itself with Westinghouse Electric Corporation who were a major international electrical group at the time....
, Creusot foundry in Le Creusot
Le Creusot

Le Creusot is a French commune in France in the Sa?ne-et-Loire d?partement in France and the Bourgogne r?gion in France. ...
, France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
.

The steam hammer was one of many machine tool
Machine tool

A machine tool is a powered mechanical device, typically used to fabricate metal components of machines by machining, which is the selective removal of metal....
s invented around this time which allowed for large scale industrialisation and the use of machines to build machines. Using the same principles of operation, Nasmyth also developed a steam powered pile-driving machine.

External links

  • , American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
    Excellent reference article which also explains the reasons for the demise of the steam hammer.


See also

  • Creusot steam hammer
    Creusot steam hammer

    The Creusot steam hammer was a giant steam hammer built in 1877 by Schneider Electric in the France industrial town of Le Creusot. With the ability to deliver a blow of up to 100 tons, the Creusot hammer was the most powerful in the world until 1891, when the Bethlehem Iron Company of the United States purchased patent rights from Schneider...
  • Trip hammer
    Trip hammer

    A trip hammer is a massive powered hammer used in agriculture to facilitate the labor of pounding, decorticating and polishing of grain; in mining, where ore from deep veins was crushed into small pieces; and in finery forges, for drawing out blooms made from pig iron into forgeable Wrought iron....
  • Power hammer
    Power hammer

    A power hammer is a type of mechanical forging hammer used by blacksmiths and manufacturers from the late 1800's through the modern day. The power hammer typically consists of a frame, anvil, and a reciprocating ram holding a hammer head....