masonary nails

[lurker]

What are they actually made of (type of steel).
I know they make good centre punches.
Has anyone got other good uses for them, other than the obvious of nailing into masonary (something I have never done).

 

[NazNomad]

Hardened zinc, I think.

Never used them for anything besides their intended purpose.

 

[Ttrees]

I use lots of them for welding and making awls for picking nails and screws in timber and pins for gauges.
Well worth having a few.....
A good example for making you realise how hard it is, to get an accurate hole in a handle

 

[timber]

What are they actually made of (type of steel).
I know they make good centre punches.
Has anyone got other good uses for them, other than the obvious of nailing into masonary (something I have never done).

A few days ago I thought about making a moss rake for the lawn,

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Hardened zinc, I think.

Never used them for anything besides their intended purpose.

How does that work then,zinc hardening?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

When I were a lad an elderly neighbour used to make model carts, and all his chisels etc. were made from masonry nails.

 

[Seiken]

They are of hardened steel, some are so hard that if you hit them wrong the'll snap rather than bend like ordinary nails.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Yes. BB said on a thread a while ago that iirc the Rockwell is something like 61. You are mad if you don't wear goggles.

 

[AndyT]

You can make tiny chisels or gouges from them, for miniature turning. You'd need to take precautions to avoid bending and snapping them in use, but for something like doll's house furniture the forces shouldn't be very big.

 

[Woody2Shoes]

A masonry nail makes a good burnisher for card scrapers or other scraper-type blades. Cheers, W2S