I have owned this hammer for a couple of years now. I actually bought it @ one of the 2 big home centers (I forgot if it was orange or blue) from their closeout table.

At first I was excited by it. However, since the first month or so I have found that I do not reach for it as much as a my standard Stanely claw hammer.

I suspect that if I was doing a rough framing job I would make a point of using it. But, for everyday small jobs, trim work & woodworking I find the head too big & less natural.

I have been a professional builder and woodworker for almost 40 years. I have built many new homes from the ground up, as well as additions and remodels where I had to use a framing hammer all day every day for months on end. My opinion of the new style framing hammer is lower than low. For one thing its shape is just a hatchet handle with a hammer head. 99% of hatchet work is done with the blade, so it makes sense to have a directional handle. As most REAL carpenters would probably agree, the hammer is used on both ends as well as sometimes striking with the sides of the head as in close quarters work. The claws on a ripping hammer (same thing as a framing hammer) are used to shape wood, clean out notches and pry in addition to pulling nails. The ONLY advantage to the head-foreward sweep of the hatchet handle is for nail-killing power.That is why I make a differentiation between real carpenters and tract-building framers who are only trying to sink as many nails as possible,as quickly as possible, with as few blows as possible. If a nail bends, they do not pull it, they just mash it over and start a new one. If you have ever bought, or worked on one of these homes you would honestly have to agree that quality of craftsmanship was the first thing sacrificed to speed. Forgive me John Kelsey, but you said it all in your opinion piece. "It looks like a Nike sneaker...a really trendy design, identifying you as a cool kind of carpenter guy". Now my opinion (obviously debatable) is that there is no better hammer than a Vaughan wood handled framing hammer. I use a 24oz. milled face only for framing. All the rest if the time I work with a 24oz. smooth face framing hammer. For a lighter touch such as finish work I just choke up on the handle a bit. You don't have to hit something hard simply because you use a big hammer; it's all in the control. Contrary to some folks belief, a wood handle absorbs plenty of shock if the user is holding the hammer properly. The metal shafted tools HAVE to have rubberized grips because they transmit so much shock. The reason I favor the Vaughan brand is because the handle is a bit "fatter" than other brand's wood handles. The thicker the handle (within reason), the less hand fatigue you will experience. As a matter of fact, noticing how these "image" hammers are crowding out the traditional hammers on the retail shelves, last year I bought 4 new Vaughan 24oz. smooth faces. Even though it has been a dozen years since I broke a handle, I wanted to make sure I had enough to last me my lifetime.