This may be one of the few tools in the world that cannot be improved. A lot of carpenters have pulled a lot of nails over the years with no change in the design Open the jaws, position them over the nail, operate the built in sliding striker and the tiny hardened jaw tips dig in and grab the nail head with little damage to the surrounding material. All that's left is a simple pull back on the fulcrum foot and a 16d comes right out of an oak plank. This whole operation only takes a few minutes of practice before you are a pro. No worries that that hammer swing will slide of an irregular face of a pry or crowsfoot. One hand operation is easy leaving the other to hold your balance in high or narrow places. If you only have a few nails to pull every now and then this expensive gorilla is probably not worth it But if you have a lot of errant nails and you value your labor and the material you are working on this is the probably most economical solution. As with all striking tools use safety glasses when using this tool . Crescent 56 Nail Puller
I dad had one of these that his dad gave him. I couldn't wait so I bought it myself. This is the only nail puller that really works. It will pull any nail with little damage to the wood, it will pull small finishing nail to the largest spikes. Dont waste your money or effort on any other puller than this one. It has the durability to be handed down generation after generation.
Drive a 16d with an air powered framing nailer. If you don't like it, pull it right out with this. Any other bar or pliers will make a big old mess on your material. The way an air nailer countersinks a nail, you have to get below the surface of the wood. This tool does that, with a lift of the handle, then a firm slam down. Then when you rock it back onto the foot, the nail is pinched tighter than any thing else can pinch without cutting the nail. Keep a steady pull on the handle and the nail WILL come out. Amazing. Old ideas are still sometimes the best ideas.
This is one of the great tools my dad had. Besides being a cantankerous old coot, dad was a farmer, machinist, tool and die maker, airframe mechanic and general expert with his hands, tools and machinery. He always had the best tools. If he couldn't buy it, he'd make it. Roughly forty years have passed since I last used dad's nail puller; but, when something works well, I tend to remember it. My back fence recently moved to the top of my honeydo list when my wife decided she wanted every other picket removed. She wanted to better enjoy the view and yet keep wandering kids out of our pool. Exasperated with the splintered mess I was making of the redwood with the Roughneck, Superbar and similar nail pullers available at the local hardware stores; I began searching for a puller like dad had. Luckily, I only had to go half way across the country to find it. The Cooper 56 appears to be the same excellent tool I used on dad's fence forty years ago.
I have always wanted one of these nail pullers, now after years of searching through hardware and home improvement stores never able to find one, my search has come to an end. This model may not be as sturdy as the older models, but this nail puller is more than adequite for most people. All claw type nail pullers rely on the head of the nail being in tact or relatively close to the surface of the wood. Though your first impression may be that this tool is a bit pricey, it can save the do-it-yourselfers a lot of time and frustration. One Caution: While using this tool, make sure you have the jaws in place directly over the nail head. My father has broken two of the old models my grandfather gave him by having the jaws to the left or right of the nail head.
Reviews on this item are a bit exaggerated I think. It's a good idea, but let me warn you, it's not for a situation where you have a fully sunk nail and want to save the board. The hammer slide will sink the jaws nicely around the nail and eventually you'll get them under the head well enough to grab it and lever it out, but it's going to leave a big hole. I guess you can still re-use the board if you're going to paint it, simply by filling the damage.
Do be careful using the sliding hammer though, I got too enthusiastic and didn't have my hand in the right place, ended up with a blood blister of enormous size even though I was wearing leather gloves... a real pincher!
Before spending $40 on this item, you might think about what it's actually doing for you, because the best part of this tool is that it squeezes it's grip on the nail as you leverage it out. You can do pretty much the same thing with a large pair of channelock pliers, but of course those won't hammer themselves in to grab the nail below the surface.
I did find this to be a great tool for removing rotted siding because it would sink past the head of the nail in a single slam, making big nails easy to pull because when you extend it, you have a lot more leverage than with any hammer.
Plus this dude will never wear out and probably won't break unless you drop it from the roof onto concrete.
$40 is a lot for a nail puller. There are other little wedge-type pullers that cost a lot less and you can knock them under the nail head with a hammer, causing less damage to the board. Your choice of course. I have it and I'm not sorry I bought it, but... well you know.
This is one of the finest tools I have ever owned although it is also the ugliest. I found mine in a small hardware store in central New Hampshire 30 years ago. It was cheap then and I thought it was a hoot not realizing what it could do. Even though it weighs too much and is too long, I always keep it in my tool bag. I love to see the look on the faces of even experienced carpenters when I use it. Can't leave it lying around a job site if you know what I mean.
The secret to using it is to set one side of the jaws at the nail head and then lightly tap the sliding handle until the jaw seats under the head, then keep tapping it as you lever the tool over the head. When the other jaw is engaged just pull the nail out with a wonderful creaking sound. You can get pretty fast with it after a while.'
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