Drive chisels and strike work without damaging its surface. To avoid marring, choose a mallet with faces that are softer than your workpiece. Lighter weight mallets are good for tapping work into place and driving a chisel to make small cuts. Use heavier weight mallets when assembling joints, dislodging stuck parts, and making aggressive cuts with a chisel. Longer mallets allow for more powerful swings.

Brass faces are suitable for striking steel, iron, stone, and other hard surfaces.

Fiberglass handles combine the strength of steel with the vibration resistance of wood.

Textured and ribbed grips provide slip resistance.

Mallets with a tether ring are a good choice for working at height. Hook the ring onto a carabiner or lanyard to prevent the mallet from falling to the ground if dropped.