Crack Hammer

This is a two-pound crack hammer; they also come in the three-pound size (or, presumably, 1 kilo and 1.5 kilos). It's suited for breaking outcrops and boulders of hard rock to collect large specimens, and also for driving a chisel or drill. If you do a lot of hammering rocks or work in metamorphic terrain, this can do things that the standard hammer can't. It weighs more than a standard rock hammer and is useless for prying or grubbing. All rock hammers should be used wearing eye protection, because chips from rocks or from the hammer can fly in all directions.

I got the head of this hammer as a gift, discarded by another rockhound, and installed a new handle. It's made in Japan and is very solid. I have also made good use of it in demolition work around the yard.