The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1905-09-13
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SEPT. 10. 1905.
CUT AND WIRE NAILS
METHODS BY WHICH THEY ARE
TURNED OUT IN VAST QUANTITIES.

TURNED OUT IN VAST QUANTITIES.
The Wire Nall Process Is simple and
Almost Wholly Automatic, while
the Cut Nail Process Is Less Auto
matte and Much Harder.
The making of nails is one OF the
oldest American, as 1t IL one OF the
oldest English, Industries, but In Great
Britain the greater part OF the product
has been hand work. In America ma
chine work.
or modern nails, the wire or French
nails and the common cut nails are
made In quantities which far exceed
all other kinds. The wire nails have
increased enormously In general use
during recent years, but there are still
many purposes for which cut nails are
preferred.
The process Of making wire nails ID
exceedingly simple and almost wholly
automatic. large reel or spool OF
wire of size equal to that OF the
shank of the nail to be made feeds
forward at each revolution Of the ma
chine II piece OF wire equal to the
length of the nail and a fraction OF an
inch more.
This Is seized firmly by clamps
which stralghten while they hold 1t,
and at the same time pair OF jaws
so cut the wire AZ to leave sharp
point to the nail.
Before the clamps let go their hold
n hammer, the face of which Is die,
strikes the other end OF the wire a
sharp blow, which forms the head.
The clamps have corrugated sur
faces. not merely to hold the nall more
securely but to impress upon 1t
series OF ridges and depressions, which
make it harder to draw out when
once driven home.
The making of cut nails IL less auto
matte and much harder. Any one who
has seen n nallmnker Mt work VIII I'M
dcrstund the aptness OF the old expires.
sion, to work like nailer" The iron
for cut nails IL first rolled into sheets,
the thickness of which IL equal to the
thickness of the nall 1t IL then cut
into plates as wide AZ the nall IL long
and of such length AZ u man can han
die conveniently. say from fifteen to
twenty Inches.
The null cutting machine Is heavy,
compact piece of mechanism, not much
larger than n sewing machine, before
which the nailmaker sits on stool.
1t consists of but little more than
pair of shears, strong enough to cut
iron three elghths of an inch thick, and
heading hammer.
Any one who Will examine u cut nail
Will find that the shank tupers, not on
all four sides from the head, as he may
have supposed, but on two sides only
The other two sides are parallel. 1t Is
the neglect TO notice this fact which
leads SO many persons to start nall
into wood in way which splits 1t
From small furnace near the ma
chine the nallmaker draws plate
which has come to dun red heat
Holding this by means OF pinchers, he
feeds the edge farthest from him TO the
jaws of the machine. As they descend
they shear tapering strip from the
edge. This IL seized by clamps. which
hold 1t Just long enough for the head
Ing hammer to strike the blow which
forms the head and then drop II.
Now, If the mailer were simply
to push the plnte forward again the
taperng character OF the strip which
is Sliced Off would destroy the rectan-
gulnr shape of the plate. and the nails
would neither be of II length nor have
square heads and points. TO obviate
this difficulty the plate must be turned
over between every two nails that are
cut, SO that the head of the nail viii
come alternately from one side OF the
plate and from the other
This and II IL the principal part Of
the nnilcr's work is done with u slim
pie turn of the wrist. and the plate Is
fed forward as before. Az the ma
chimes run Mt considerable speed, ana
the flop" must be accurately timed
in order that the end OF the plate may
meet the shears ut the right moment
and In the right place, the difficulty
and the tiresome nature Of Il nall
makers work may be imagined. Some
idea of 1t muy be had by holding the
thick end Of shingle In pair of
tongs and attempting no to turn II
with single motion Of the wrist that
alternate sides will lie uppermost on a
table,
a good nailmaker will make from
two to four tlops that IL, will cut from
two to four nails II second. the smaller
nails, of course. being made more
rapidly than the larger ones As the
plate grows cool II is returned to the
oven to be reheuted, and another plate
takes its place
\ nuilmukers hands and arms al
ways show the character OF his work
by the tremendous development Of Ger
tain special muscles and by callouses,
which become as hard rs horn.
The common names OF nails sixpen-
NY cightpcnny, tenpenny, and so forth
are believed to be corruptions Of six
pound eight pound and ten pound,
names given In England 10 denote the
weight of one thousand OF given Kind
OF nails. Sixpenny and eightpenny
was an easy step from "sixpun' and
"eightpun'." Edward Williston Trentg
in Youths Companion.
The other Way Around.
N. lAit Attt1A