Nails 101

4 years ago

Which Nails and When?

Nails not only are "acceptable" in your woodworking projects but they have experienced a resurgence in popularity. But these are not the wire nails you will find at the typical hardware store. These are the 18th and 19th century variants: cut nails and wrought nails. Both of these types of nails have substantially more holding power then the modern equivalents but require a bit more care when driving them in. First and foremost, in almost all cases you will want to bore a pilot hole before you reach for the hammer.

Rules of Thumb for Cut & Wrought Nails

Pilot Hole Diameter equal to the nail 1/3 from the tip
Nail very near the end of a board should have a larger pilot hole

Depth of Pilot should be equal to 2/3 the length of the nail
The softer the wood the smaller the pilot hole and vice versa.

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