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Thread: How do you get old nails out of salvaged wood?

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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Minnesota
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    2,287

    How do you get old nails out of salvaged wood?

    I've got some 150+ year old timbers that I'm pulling all kinds of old, rusty nails out of. Some are square cut, some not. Some come out in one piece, some not. Some I have to "dig" into the wood to get out, some not.

    Anybody got a slick tool or method for getting nails out without damaging the wood?

    Jason

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
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    The Hartland of Michigan
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    7,628
    I'm doing the same thing with some 100 yr old wood. Digging and pulling. A crowbar gets the big ones out.
    Never, under any circumstances, consume a laxative and sleeping pill, on the same night

  3. #3
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    Nov 2007
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    Quote Originally Posted by Myk Rian View Post
    I'm doing the same thing with some 100 yr old wood. Digging and pulling. A crowbar gets the big ones out.

    +1 on digging and pulling - make sure you use a metal detector!
    Sawdust is some of the best learning material!

  4. Hi,

    There would have been this nice solution: http://www.nailkicker.com

    Unfortunately, they are unable to produce this product anymore. If you can find a used one, I think it would be your best option.

    Benoit

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    South Dakota
    Posts
    1,632

    Me too

    Digg'n and pull'n, screwing up a bunch of wood but I can't find a better way either. And use a metal detector.
    The Plane Anarchist

  6. #6
    I have one of these.....works pretty good if you don't have much to grab, it tightens up as you apply more pressure...

    http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com/...er-613231.aspx


    maybe a cat's paw? puller too.
    Dave W. -
    Restoring an 1890 Victorian
    Cuba, NY

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Forest Grove, OR
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    1,167
    If I can't drive them through the board then I use a plug cutting bit to cut a shallow circular hole around the nail head and attach a pair of vise grips, then twist and lift. I either fill the hole with the next sized plug cut out of a raggedy area of the board, or just plane off the top of the wood until the plug holes are gone.

    I'm thinking about building a really powerful electromagnet to just draw the nails out, much like a Quarter Shrinker.
    http://capturedlightning.com/frames/...n=bookmarkfeed

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
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    Minnesota
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    2,287
    The plug-cutter sounds like a great idea!

    Jason

    Quote Originally Posted by Josiah Bartlett View Post
    If I can't drive them through the board then I use a plug cutting bit to cut a shallow circular hole around the nail head and attach a pair of vise grips, then twist and lift. I either fill the hole with the next sized plug cut out of a raggedy area of the board, or just plane off the top of the wood until the plug holes are gone.

    I'm thinking about building a really powerful electromagnet to just draw the nails out, much like a Quarter Shrinker.
    http://capturedlightning.com/frames/...n=bookmarkfeed

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Josiah Bartlett View Post
    If I can't drive them through the board then I use a plug cutting bit to cut a shallow circular hole around the nail head and attach a pair of vise grips, then twist and lift. I either fill the hole with the next sized plug cut out of a raggedy area of the board, or just plane off the top of the wood until the plug holes are gone.

    I'm thinking about building a really powerful electromagnet to just draw the nails out, much like a Quarter Shrinker.
    http://capturedlightning.com/frames/...n=bookmarkfeed

    That device might work very well for shrinking other things, too. If so, there may be a market for that in Borneo, New Guinea and some tribal regions in South America!

    If one were to market it those areas you'd want to be sure not to go in with a "big head" attitude!
    Stephen Edwards
    Hilham, TN 38568

    "Build for the joy of it!"

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    1.5 hrs north of San Francisco, CA
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    There is a screw-extractor that is like a small diameter (e.g., 1/4") hole saw that works great.

    http://www.woodcraft.com/catalog/family.aspx?id=2000983
    http://www.amazon.com/1-4-Diameter-S...658885&sr=1-17



    This "Nail Extractor" is my favorite for pulling nails once you have it partially exposed.

    http://www.nailextractor.com/

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Pickering, Ontario.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Wayne Cannon View Post
    There is a screw-extractor that is like a small diameter (e.g., 1/4") hole saw that works great.

    http://www.woodcraft.com/catalog/family.aspx?id=2000983
    http://www.amazon.com/1-4-Diameter-S...658885&sr=1-17



    This "Nail Extractor" is my favorite for pulling nails once you have it partially exposed.

    http://www.nailextractor.com/
    That's the 'tube extractor' I was describing. I now see that Rockler sells them too, but at a higher price. In reading the reviews http://www.rockler.com/findit.cfm?pa...4&cookietest=1, user's experience is spotty however they offer some advice that is useful. Since the tool lacks a starting center spur, like a brad point drill bit, use a block of wood with a hole in it to guide the tool, and where possible use a drill press rather than hand-held drill to get a better result and less wear on the tool. The cutting action causes a lot of heat so cool it with water frequently.
    I am wondering if it's better to make one from stainless steel tube than buying these?
    btw, I tried one of these metal detectors (the larger one) http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...5125&cat=1,240 and it seems to work well even at a depth of several inches.
    Last edited by Rick Thom; 11-08-2009 at 7:56 AM.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Whidbey Island, Washington
    Posts
    120
    [QUOTE=Dave Wagner;1253616]I have one of these.....works pretty good if you don't have much to grab, it tightens up as you apply more pressure...

    http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com/...er-613231.aspx


    Dave - I bought one of those, but have been pretty frustrated. I can't get it to grip the nail well, particularly if the head is gone already. Any secrets as to how to use it? Does the nail head have to be intact and protruding a bit above the surface?

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Lexington, South Carolina
    Posts
    111
    I've used the nail puller Dave referenced with good success on heart of pine timbers. You do have to have about 1/4" of the nail to latch on to. If the nail has broken off flush with the board surface or below it, I use a cheap chisel to chop out an area (about 2" in diameter) around the nail. Use the sliding hammer on the puller to get some purchase on the nail and lever it out. You should approach the nail from the opposite direction that its going into the board.

    Explaining this is a lot more difficult than doing it.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Northern Michigan
    Posts
    5,009
    I have welded another nail to the old head on occasion when I needed to save as much wood as possible and then just pull it out, but I am a fair welder as my hobby used to be off road racing. Just a quick zot with a MIG and they pull right out without much damage. I wet the wood first to slow the burn. Usually one pass with a plane will take off the char.

  15. #15
    [QUOTE=Dave Sharpe;1253823]
    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Wagner View Post
    I have one of these.....works pretty good if you don't have much to grab, it tightens up as you apply more pressure...

    http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com/...er-613231.aspx


    Dave - I bought one of those, but have been pretty frustrated. I can't get it to grip the nail well, particularly if the head is gone already. Any secrets as to how to use it? Does the nail head have to be intact and protruding a bit above the surface?
    I have on old one of these that was my Daddy's. Still works great.
    Stephen Edwards
    Hilham, TN 38568

    "Build for the joy of it!"

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