The Fretz HMR-22 is a texturing hammer with a fine, grainy face that leaves a stippled pattern closer to worn sandstone than a mechanical texture. It's one of the hammers we reach for most in workshops, since the pattern reads as natural and irregular rather than stamped or repetitive.
Like the rest of the Fretz range, the head is cast from 420 stainless steel and hardened, so the texture holds up strike after strike instead of smoothing out with use. The hardwood handle is shaped and weighted to balance the head, which makes it easier to keep your strikes even and controlled, particularly over a longer texturing session.
Oxidising your piece once you're done brings the sandstone texture out properly. The recesses darken while the raised surface stays bright, so the grain of the texture actually reads instead of disappearing into a flat, even tone. It works well across a whole piece or in smaller, isolated patches for contrast against a smooth surface.
This is a finishing tool, used once your piece is already shaped. Rest your work on a steel bench block for a solid surface to strike against, and build the texture up gradually rather than trying to get there in a few heavy blows.
