Awesome Nails

Garage 54 proves yet again that just because something can be done doesn’t mean it should be done. This time, the Russian auto channel fabricated a set of tires made from thousands of individual nails, then fitted their Mercedes G-Wagen with them to see how it would handle. They provide good grip on snow and ice, but they gather more trash than a Katamari.

The Karakuri Channel loves to make unique mechanical art. This time, they designed and built a gadget that turns nearly 300 brass nails into a moving wave. To make it work, they removed the tip of each nail and attached a sleeve and a ball bearing. A motor turns interchangeable discs against the balls to create wave patterns. Watch with subtitles.

We’ve seen how a skilled carpenter can create a traditional Japanese Kumiko lattice. Neil from Pask Makes wanted to see if the same sort of pattern could be created using another material – steel nails. He started with a wooden template to hold the nails in place, then welded them together and smoothed out the rough bits.

Melting steel normally requires a very hot, gas-fired furnace. But NileRed shows us how a relatively inexpensive induction heater can be used to turn a pile of nails into a molten blob, thanks to the heat generated by 3500 watts of electricity being conducted through the metal.

If you’re not careful hammering nails, you can really smash your fingers. But Veysel Çelik has his nailing technique down to a science. We watched in awe as the professional builder banged in nail after nail in exactly the right spot with just a tap and a hit every time.

Despite the name, a 3″ long 10-penny steel nail costs about four cents. We’re certain that this handmade golden nail by W&M Levsha cost quite a bit more to create. With its surface engraved with intricate patterns, this is one nail that you definitely don’t want to strike with a hammer. Wait until you see its secret purpose.

With up to 150 tons of force, a hydraulic press should have no trouble driving a nail into a piece of wood. But what happens when you up the challenge and add dozens of nails beneath its powerful crushing head? Watch and find out just how many nails a single press can drive at the same time. Nailing Level 1000 here.

We’ve all heard the expression “dead as a doornail,” but we certainly didn’t know its origin. History and weapon enthusiast Malcolm P.L. explains the true meaning of the phrase while demonstrating the building technique that inspired it.

Ever wonder how they get all the nails in a box to lay in the same direction? In this all-too-short and all-too-silent video clip, they show how a pile of randomly grabbed nails immediately point in the proper direction when dropped between a pair of electromagnets. Here’s another machine that does it without human intervention.

You’d think that slicing up resin blocks filled with nails on your table saw and then grinding them down on a lathe might be a bad idea for the well-being of your tools (and your body), but that didn’t stop maker R Humphrey from testing out the idea. The resulting bowl he created has some really cool textures and patterns.

We’re gonna just go ahead and say it now… maker Tim Sway really nailed it with this build. While he wasn’t able to craft this electric guitar entirely out of nails, he still managed to keep its wooden core nice and small, and it looks particularly gnarly with all of those bent and rusty nails sticking out of its body.