Remember those funny banana hammers we featured a few days ago? Well, they recently went viral in Taiwan and the Japanese manufacturer is struggling to keep up with demand.
Iron Factory Ikeda, a typical precision metal manufacturing plant in Hiroshima, Japan, started making banana-shaped mallets in 2019 and followed it up with steel banana hammers a year later. Over the years, the company developed different variations of the wacky product, including smaller versions modeled after baby bananas. They were popular enough to remain in production, but last month, banana hammers went viral online and sparked newfound interest among consumers not only in Japan but around the world. For example, people in Taiwan are apparently ordering them like crazy…
“Friends in Taiwan, how do you want to use it?” Iron Factory asked on its X account. The company also added new photos of dozens of banana hammers fresh off of the production line, most likely headed to Taiwan.
The exact purpose of banana hammers – apart from novelty gifts – remains unknown, but according to Iron Factory Ikeda, they satisfy people’s desire to hammer nails using fruits. Plus, they also make great paperweights.
メタルバナナの注文がまだ止まりません。
台湾の皆さん、何に使われるんですか? pic.twitter.com/hn9om1AzuM— IRON FACTORY IKEDA (@IRON_IKEDA) December 12, 2023
Big banana hammers cost 11,877 yen ($80), while the smaller version is priced at just 3,287 yen ($22). Both are available online.