Because the hammer's hardness is made to strike something specific, such as soft steel, hardened steel, or brick, don't use it on anything it's not meant to hit. Get the correct tool if you're undertaking significant job. You need more head to obtain more hits—it sounds easy. However, go too far and you'll break your item. If you hit the hammer too hard, it will break. Even if you use special hardwood hammers for beating in nails, they still have a limit to how hard they can be struck before they will break. Most any old hammer should be used with caution because they often have defects that could cause them to break at an inopportune time. Hammers are simple tools but we must treat them with respect. Make sure that you get the right hammer for the job at hand and never use a hammer to hit something harder than itself.