Slater's Hammer and Zax

Slate roofers have long used specialised hand tools that combine nailing, holing and cutting. The two best known are the slater's hammer and the zax.

Slater's hammer

The slater's hammer has a hammer face for driving nails at one end and a long, pointed pick at the other, used to punch nail holes through slate from the back. The shank or side of the head is usually sharpened as a cutting edge for trimming slates, and many patterns include a notch near the head for pulling nails. Leather or wooden handles and slightly curved heads are typical. Regional patterns exist, for example English, French and German styles, each with differences in head length, balance and the shape of the pick.

Zax

A zax (also spelled sax, and sometimes called a slate cleaver or slate trimmer) is a hatchet-like tool with a long blade set off-centre from the handle and a sharp point projecting from the back. The blade trims slates and the point punches nail holes. Because the blade is offset, zaxes are made in left- and right-handed versions. The name is traced to the Old English seax, meaning knife.

How slate is trimmed by hand

The slater rests the slate on a bench iron, stake or slater's anvil, often fixed to a batten or scaffold, and strikes along the edge with the hammer or zax so the slate breaks cleanly along the line of the iron. Cutting from the back leaves a bevelled edge on the face, which is part of the traditional appearance of a hand-dressed slate roof.

Related tools

The slate ripper removes damaged slates; slate cutters (guillotines) provide a mechanical alternative for trimming and holing. Copper or stainless steel nails are generally preferred for fixing slates.

Today

Hand tools remain standard for skilled slaters, especially on heritage roofs, and are used alongside guillotine cutters on new work. Training bodies and conservation organisations in Europe and North America continue to teach hand dressing.