Cottle Mallet 19 cm, Plain Head

What the Cottle mallet is

The Cottle mallet is the striking half of the nasal osteotomy. An osteotome or chisel on its own does not cut bone. It needs a blow on its end, and in the nose those blows have to be light, even and placed exactly. The bones are thin, and the line of the cut decides the shape of the face when the swelling has gone. A small steel head on a slim handle lets the surgeon or an assistant tap rather than hammer.

Google AI Mode, read on 5 November 2026, describes the Cottle mallet as a surgical instrument used in rhinoplasty, septoplasty and other ENT and plastic surgery. In its words, it is made to give a controlled blow to osteotomes, chisels and gouges when the nasal bones are reshaped and rebuilt. It describes a two sided head whose faces differ in shape. Our photograph shows a plain cylindrical head with flat ends, so that is the head we describe and the one we ship.

Gemini, read the same day, places it in ENT, plastic and reconstructive and facial plastic surgery, on rhinoplasty chisels, osteotomes and the nasal bones. It lists the Cottle bone mallet, the Cottle solid steel hammer and the cottle mallet 19cm as catalog names. Buyers who start wider type stainless steel mallet, or surgical hammer.

In a rhinoplasty the Cottle mallet is held lightly near the end of the handle and swung from the wrist, landing on the end of the osteotome while the surgeon steers the blade along the side of the nose. Each tap moves the blade a little, and the surgeon listens and feels for the change that says the bone has given.

Key design features

A plain steel head

Our photograph shows a plain cylindrical head of steel with flat ends. A steel face on a steel osteotome gives a firm, direct blow: the force goes into the cut with little lost to the head. Gemini puts that firmness as the difference from a mallet with synthetic faces, which softens each blow. For a lateral osteotomy, where the blade has to go through the bone in a few clean steps, that firm blow is what the surgeon wants.

A slim neck

Between the head and the handle the steel narrows into a slim neck. The neck keeps the head small and close to the end of the handle, so the weight sits where the blow comes from. It also leaves room to see the end of the osteotome as the head comes down on it, which matters when the assistant strikes and the surgeon holds the blade on its line.

A flat faceted handle

The handle in our photograph is flat and faceted, widening toward its end. A flat handle does not roll in the fingers, so the face of the head comes down square each time. The widening end gives the hand a stop, so the mallet does not slip forward on a wet glove.

Nineteen centimeters

At 19 cm the Cottle mallet is long enough for a short, controlled swing from the wrist and short enough to work close to the face. Light, repeated taps are the work of a nasal osteotomy, and a short mallet keeps each one small and in control. A longer mallet swings further and lands harder, which suits the dense bone of the jaw better than the bones of the nose. The longer patterns in our range, the Hajek at 21 cm among them, are there for that heavier work.

What the listing gives you

One pattern at one price, read off the listing on 5 November 2026. What it tells you is set out below, and where each detail was read from. The old copy gave head weights that disagree with each other, so no weight is printed.

Where it is used

AI Mode and Gemini, read on 5 November 2026, name these cases for the Cottle mallet. The cases below are theirs; the reasons in the last column are ours, read off the head and the handle in our photograph.

What it does, and what it must not do

The Cottle mallet strikes the end of an osteotome, chisel or gouge. It never strikes bone directly, and it is not a lever.

How it compares with the rest of the mallets

Six maxillofacial mallets make up this family on our site. The heads and handles are read off each listing’s own photograph, the lengths off the name and the prices off the order form, on 5 November 2026. No weight is printed.

Materials and finish

Every Cottle mallet we make is formed from high quality medical grade stainless steel. The steel itself is made to a German specification. We do not publish a grade number.

The Cottle mallet has a plain steel finish. Look at both faces of the head before each case. A face that has been dented or burred by a careless blow glances off the end of the osteotome, and that mallet should be set aside.

Caring for it

Rinse the Cottle mallet as soon as the case ends, before blood dries on the head and along the facets of the handle. Brush it, wash it, dry it, and steam sterilize it on the normal cycle with the rest of the tray. Store it so the faces of the head do not knock against the edges of the osteotomes beside it. Keep it with the osteotomes it drives, so the pair are picked up together.

Ordering and wholesale

The Cottle mallet is made by Adas Instruments in our own workshop and sold direct, which is why the price sits where it does against the catalog houses. Order one for a single tray, or in quantity for a hospital list or a distributor line. We do OEM work under your own brand and your own item numbers. Send us a sample and we will hold a run to your pattern rather than ours. Stock items ship from our own workshop. Backorder items take 10 to 12 working days to make. Every instrument carries a three year replacement warranty against manufacturing defects. Production is controlled under an ISO 13485 quality management system.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Cottle mallet used for?

It gives a controlled blow to osteotomes, chisels and gouges in rhinoplasty, septoplasty and other ENT and plastic surgery, when the bones of the nose are reshaped. Ours is the 19 cm pattern with a plain steel head, at 27 dollars.

What is a surgical hammer called?

In the operating room it is called a mallet. A surgical mallet is a small hammer made to strike the end of an osteotome, chisel or gouge, so the blade cuts the bone; the mallet itself never touches the bone. Ours carry the names of their patterns, such as Cottle, Hajek and Mead.

How is the steel Cottle different from the one with synthetic facings?

Gemini puts it in the blow. The steel head gives a firm, direct blow to the osteotome. The Cottle with synthetic facings softens each blow and cuts the noise, for the lightest work on fine nasal osteotomes.

Is the Cottle mallet head flat at both ends?

Our photograph shows a plain cylindrical head with flat ends. AI Mode describes a Cottle head whose two faces differ in shape, and we do not claim that for ours. Ask us for a photograph of both faces of the head before you order.

Can it be autoclaved?

Yes. The Cottle mallet is stainless steel with no coating, and it goes through the normal steam cycle with the rest of the tray. Dry it fully, and store it so the faces of the head are not dented by other instruments.

Related products and categories

Three more mallets from the same maxillofacial tray: the Cottle rhinoplasty mallet with synthetic facings, the Hajek mallet, 21 cm and the lead filled mallet, 19 cm. The rest of the range is under maxillofacial instruments, which sits inside our ENT instruments.