There's many different ways to remove nails and a bunch of different tools to remove them with. We've come up with seven. Do you use something that we haven't listed? Well then toss it into the comments section below. Cheers all!
1. Nailkicker by Reconnx - pneumatic nail remover. The nailkicker is made specifically for Deconstruction and works by shooting the nails out of wood and other materials.
2. Stiletto Clawbar with Dimpler - Considered the "Bling" of the tool world, the Stiletto Titanium Clawbar Nail Puller with the patented DimplerTM is the high end answer to pulling nails. The Dimpler works with a small tap of your hammer to create a recess around the nail head allowing the claws to slide underneath, thus reducing the chance of chipping the wood. Made of titanium, the Stiletto Clawbar is five times stronger than steel, yet lightweight so it won't weight you down.
3. Nail Jack is a nail puller that digs and grips. Inventor Michael Foley states "My new extensively patented and patent pending nail puller is coming out this year...it's called the Nail Jack, and I welcome questions and comments from tool guys like me. The version shown is a bit primitive compared to the "state of the art" coming out in quantity, but it's been a long road, and I can't wait to show you all what I think will simplify the nail pull!" Birth of the Nail Jack: "Years ago, our inventor was struggling with some baseboard that he had to remove in order to replace some ugly shag carpeting in his otherwise nice home. Because of the quality of the wood, our guy had no intention of replacing the perfectly good baseboard, but how to get all those brads out? Obviously the guy who first installed it loved his brad nailer, because there was a day's work to get them all out in order to reattach the baseboard after the new carpeting was in! Yes, he tried nippers and linesman's Pliers, there wasn't anything else available. Grip too hard, and you cut right through, now there's even more work! Finally, he's had enough, and like hundreds of weekend warriors, he headed out to the tool shed. Some welding and some grinding later, he had his first prototype, and on that very day…the Nail Jack was born."
4. Cats Paw - Designed to work in conjunction with a hammer, a cats paw is designed to be driven under the head of a nail that is flush with the surface. Watch the video to see the cats paw in action.
5. Hammer - You can always use the claw of a hammer to pull nails if you've got nothing else. The side of the hammer's claw will provide the most leverage but the shortest pull.
6. Nippers - You can use nippers to pull trim nails out of the backsides of moldings to save the finish on the front.
7. Linesmen's Pliers - Besides pulling nails, linesmen's pliers can be used to grip, turn and pull a variety of things. In the video below, Popular Mechanics senior home editor Roy Berendsohn demonstrates some simple tricks to remove stuck fasteners - nails and screws.
more nail pullers written by kevin broderick , March 06, 2008
I have spent many hours using a product called "The Extractor" from Jefferson tools while doing deconstruction work for Habitat for Humanity. We have to pull out the old nails before offering items for sale from donated houses. People race for these leaving the rest of us to use channel locks or something similar. A nice tool.
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