Hammers are one of my favorite tools. They say that if you give a child a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. Well, I can solve a lot of problems with a hammer. They’re good for unsticking things that are stuck, moving things that don’t want to move, and driving pieces of metal into wood.

That said, the more I use a pneumatic nail gun, the more I think hammers are the wrong tool for that job. Just point and shoot. Boom.

Hammers are better suited for things that need to be persuaded. Sometimes they’re useful if something just needs a little attitude adjustment. But when you’re sticking cedar shingles to the side of a house, the best tool is one you can strap to your air compressor.