DeWalt 20 oz Bricklayer Hammer

Why I reached for this hammer

On a recent patio rebuild, I wanted a brick hammer that balanced control with enough punch to split common modular brick cleanly. I grabbed the DeWalt brick hammer and kept reaching for it over the next few weeks. It’s a 20 oz head on an 11-inch, one-piece steel body with a slip-resistant grip and an extra-wide chisel. That combination makes it nimble in tight spots yet capable of full, confident swings when you need them.

Build and ergonomics

The one-piece steel construction is the headline feature. There’s no joint to loosen, no wood to swell, and no fiberglass sleeve to fray—just a solid forging from head to handle. At 2 pounds overall, it feels stout without being fatiguing. The center of mass sits forward of the grip, which helps the head track straight when you’re scoring and striking a line on brick.

The handle has a straight profile with a textured, rubberized overmold. It’s grippy with bare hands and maintains traction with damp gloves. DeWalt kept the handle length to 9.1 inches (11 inches overall), which gives you fine control during delicate trimming. If you’re used to the longer levers on 24 oz brick hammers, this one will feel more compact and quicker to position.

The face is a 1-3/8-inch square, smooth and heat-treated. It’s sized right for tapping brick into bed without leaving chewed-up marks, though—as with any smooth face—you’ll want a light touch on finished faces to avoid scuffs.

The extra-wide chisel, in practice

The chisel blade is noticeably wider than many brick hammers in this weight class. The advantage shows up when trimming faces or shaving high spots: the broader blade spreads your impact, letting you slice away material rather than gouge it. On clay brick, that translated to cleaner, more predictable splits once I established a score line.

There is a tradeoff. A wide chisel is less surgical in tight recesses and can be harder to drive deeply into very dense units on the first hit. For tight scribe work around conduit or when I wanted to nibble a narrow notch, I ended up reaching for a bolster chisel and mallet. But for most field cuts—halves, thirds, and corner fits—the wide blade did exactly what I needed with fewer stray chips.

Out of the box, the chisel arrived with a working edge, not a razor. That’s intentional on many masonry hammers to avoid a brittle knife edge. I did a quick tune-up on a fine wheel to refine the bevel and then kept the edge with the occasional touch on a diamond file. Five minutes of setup improved the hammer’s bite and gave me smoother splits with fewer follow-up taps.

Tip: If you refine the edge, keep the bevel consistent and cool the steel between passes to preserve the heat treatment.

In the brick and block

With standard clay brick, the 20 oz head is plenty. I could score across the top, wrap the score down the sides, and then pivot to the blade and split on the line with a firm, committed hit. The forward balance helps; you don’t need to muscle the swing to deliver a clean blow.

On concrete pavers and tight-grained, high-fired brick, I sometimes wanted a little more mass. The hammer still did the job, but a second hit was more common. For those materials, that extra-wide chisel remained an asset for cleanup—trim, shave, tap—once the initial split was made.

For block, the tool is more of a trimmer than a breaker. It’s great for knocking off fins and truing edges, but if you plan to knock down multiple CMU webs, bring a bigger hammer or a proper chisel.

Demolition, tapping, and utility tasks

Beyond cutting brick, this hammer is a handy demo companion. The heat-treated face has held up to light prying, tapping ledger shields, and knocking loose old caps and edging. I avoid prying with any brick hammer (leverage is limited and you can slip), but the one-piece build gives confidence for the occasional jobsite nudge.

The smooth face is excellent for gentle persuasion: tapping brick into a buttered bed, coaxing a paver down flush, or seating a strike joint tool. If you want a face that bites on slick surfaces, you’ll miss a milled texture here, but I prefer the smooth face for minimizing marring.

Vibration and comfort

Steel-handled hammers can be hand-numbing if the grip isn’t done right. DeWalt’s overmold knocks down a good share of the sting, and the lighter 20 oz head keeps recoil manageable. After a full morning of trimming and setting, my hands felt better than they do with heavier steel-handled options. That said, compared with wood or fiberglass, you still get more feedback on off-center strikes. A decent pair of gloves takes care of most of it.

Grip shape is neutral—no palm swell and no extreme contouring—so it doesn’t push your hand into a fixed position. That’s a plus in masonry where you change hand positions constantly.

Durability and maintenance

After several weeks of use, the edges show the honest wear you expect from hitting brick: a few witness marks on the face and light burnishing on the blade. No chips, no mushrooming. The heat treatment appears spot-on for this class of tool.

Being bare steel under the overmold, it will spot-rust if you leave mortar water on it. A quick wipe and a dab of oil at the end of the day keep it looking fresh. If you sharpen the edge, I’ve had good results maintaining a modest bevel—nothing too acute—so the edge keeps structure and doesn’t roll.

Size, carry, and balance on the belt

At 11 inches long and roughly 2 pounds, it sits well in a standard hammer loop without dragging your belt down. The compact length keeps it out of the way when kneeling. The extra-wide chisel makes it slightly broader at the head than some, so watch for contact with finished surfaces if you’re squeezing past stone veneer.

Where it fits among other options

This hammer slots between the nimble 16 oz trim-focused brick hammers and the heavy 24 oz bruisers that power through dense pavers. If your day is mostly clay brick with occasional block trimming and light demo, the 20 oz balance hits a sweet spot. If you regularly split architectural pavers or high-density brick, you may prefer a heavier head for fewer blows, though you’ll trade some finesse and add fatigue.

Compared to wood- or fiberglass-handled tools, the one-piece steel build is the durability winner. You give up a bit of shock absorption but gain a hammer that shrugs off weather and abuse.

What I like

• Wide chisel cleans and trims predictably on brick
• One-piece steel build inspires confidence and shrugs off jobsite abuse
• Manageable 20 oz head reduces fatigue over a full day
• Grippy handle remains secure with wet gloves
• Compact 11-inch length is easy to carry and control

What I’d change

• Factory edge is serviceable but benefits from a quick hone for crisper cuts
• Steel handle transmits more vibration than wood or fiberglass alternatives
• Wide chisel is less ideal for very tight notches or dense pavers

The bottom line

The DeWalt brick hammer has become my go-to for everyday masonry tasks because it balances control, durability, and comfort. It’s light enough to swing all day, tough enough to live in a muddy bucket, and the extra-wide chisel earns its keep when you’re trimming faces and dialing in fits. It isn’t the sledgehammer of brick hammers, and the edge rewards a few minutes of setup, but those are reasonable tradeoffs for a tool that handles the majority of brickwork with ease.

Recommendation: I recommend this hammer for bricklayers, hardscape installers, and remodelers who want a durable, all-day tool optimized for clay brick and general masonry trimming. If your workload skews toward dense pavers or heavy demolition, consider stepping up in head weight; otherwise, this hammer strikes an excellent balance of precision and power.