Wire Cutters

So I caught my neighbour (grin) tossing out rolls of nails, usually fed into a nail gun. Each roll is a ribbon of 1 ¼” nails held in a strip by thin copper wire.

David handed them to me, demonstrating with a pair of pincers how much time and effort it would take to separate each nail from what turned out to be six pounds of nails.

The pincers were stiff, so I put a few drops of oil on each side and snipped away at one roll of nails to start working the oil into the hinges of the pincers.

The next day snipping was easier, to the point where opening the jaws of the pincers was adding to the time taken to snip each nail.

On my bench was a short coiled spring waiting to be dropped into the coffee-tin labeled “springs”.

The spring was a perfect fit for the pincers.

Don’t be fooled; the spring sat well between the handles and was displaced only twice. In this image I have allowed the spring (still destined for the coffee-tin) to roll free; no assembly required!

This is what six pounds of nails look like.

Ideal for tacking wooden structures together this fall and next spring.

I am still pondering whether to return MY pincers (grin) to my neighbour, now that they work well.

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