I’ve found quite a bit on the internet about quality screws, and what differentiates them from cheap screws, but what about well-made nails. Which company makes the best nails? I’ve read about Mar-Mac, but what are the other companies? What makes their nails better? Better steel? Something about how they are made? How do they perform better over time? Less likely to sheer, rust, pop? Thanks!
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Brand name nails? Now there's something I never considered. I've always just bought whatever nails the contractor's supply houses stock. Usually branded with their own logo,
50# at a time. Never asked for a specific brand. It's been a long time since I needed 50# of non-gun nails, but I'm old enough to remember buying nails by the pound, weighing them out into a paper bag. I'm old enough, too, to remember calling a 50# box of nails a keg, and I can remember having a real wooden nail keg when I was a kid. I did kid stuff with it. I have what's left of a keg (metal) of sheet metal screws that I acquired when it was half full and must have weighed more than 50# then. My son will get them when I die.
I would guess that the best nails come from the company that advertises them the most. Next time you see and ad for nails, remember the brand and buy that one, or not.
Where do you buy branded nails? Nails are pretty simple things and I suppose there could be differences but I've never noticed and like mikemahan3 I haven't bought a box of loose nails in 20 years. It used to take about 450 pounds to build a typical 1500 sf frame house. No wonder my elbow hurts.
How many of those boxes did you bring back half full, stash in the shop and then buy a new one. Seems that a lot of halves got buried hoping to get mixed with the next box brought back......
More so with remodels or additions.
Had an opportunity to buy the spinning nail bin from one of our yards that closed down. Didn’t know where to put it. Man, I miss that yard and the guys....... Remind me to tell you the story about The day Miss Makita showed up for a calendar signing.
When I had friends and relatives working tract framing I never had to buy gun nails, and all my boxes came half full.
Funny you should ask. I'm cutting way back, no crew anymore, just using subs and only taking the good jobs. I needed to clean my barn out and have been working on it for the last 2 weeks. I looked at half-full boxes of nails then picked them up and tossed them in the dumpster. I threw away 5 or 6 one-pound boxes of cut nails but did save one for some reason. I stall have to go through my gun nails and compare them to the nail guns I stll have and toss the ones that don't fit.
A local scrap place would turn these old nails into new ones. (or something else useful)
Take it from the coyote Acme makes the best nails.
they need to be branded. 5 0r 10 yeaRS AGO LOWES SOLD ME HD GALV NAILS. THEY WERE PRE RUSTED.in the box when I openned it. they offerred to send me another box free. I said no thanks,