Best tips for skew nailing?

[hahalj]

I will start building the framework for my upcoming storage this weekend, so I'd love to have your best advice and tips on how to do toe nailing of studs well! What are your best tips? I will hand nail everything, nothing other than a regular handheld hammer... :x

 

[Jonatan Aasa]

Plan so you have space to swing the hammer; toenailing in tight spaces can make the construction go backwards.

Place your foot on the other side when nailing a stud into the sill, also have a 5-10mm sliding allowance for the stud to the line.

Hit the nail straight into the stud before angling, so the nail doesn't slip between the fibers.

If angling near end grain, it can help to flatten the tip of the nail to prevent wood splitting.

Do not use four-inch nails.

 

[hahalj]

Thank you! But why not 4-inch nails? Seems to be common otherwise.

 

[Jonatan Aasa]

Galvanized four-inch nails hold like nobody's business, if you hit a knot, you'll have a bent nail that's really stuck. Besides, the timber will crack everywhere. If it's not six-inch lumber, I would steer clear of them; I assume you're working with three or four-inch timber if it's a shed.

I had a boss who was determined to use galvanized four-inch nails for roof battens; it was miscalculated, and we had to remove all the battens. That was a very amusing process.

 

[hahalj]

Will use 45x120mm (2x5 inch) lumber in the floor joists. In the wall studs, it will be 45x95mm (2x4 inch). I don't know if I understand you correctly, but do you mean that I should use thinner nails?

 

[AG A]

Can't you nail the framework while it's lying down instead? It's usually much faster and easier when everything is still. Skew nailing also becomes completely unnecessary, as you just nail through hammarband and sill.

 

[hahalj]

Yes, the walls should be nailed lying down, no toenailing is needed for the load-bearing upright studs, but there will also be cross braces between these for the paneling; these must be toenailed if they are to be placed on a straight horizontal line. The floor joists will be nailed straight through the edge joists on the outer sides, but must be toenailed to the beam in the middle.

 

[Jonatan Aasa]

It takes away some of the feeling of hammer woodworking to build wall elements, if you want it to be efficient, toe nailing with a nail gun is incredibly more efficient. And if you're building frameworks while they are lying down, it's more convenient to use screws.

You can toe nail 95 mm studs with 4-inch nails, but I believe it is over-dimensioned as it holds better with 3-4 pieces of 3-inch nails than 2 pieces of 4-inch nails. The risk of turning the wood into scrap is greater with 4-inch nails, especially if you're not familiar with the process.

 

[Jante]

When you toe-nail the crossbars, you can cut a piece of the rule that you place against the bottom plate and use as support when toe-nailing from above, ensuring all the crossbars are at the same height.

Jante

 

[Jonatan Aasa]

Kortlingar are quite outdated, go for spikläkt instead. It's probably faster anyway.

 

[camaro1969]

Can't you alternate the heights of the crossbars for the panels? That way, you won't have to toe-nail them and can nail them normally.

 

[Jonatan Aasa]

Probably won't be the prettiest nail line then

 

[hahalj]

It removes some of the feeling of hammer woodworking when building wall elements, if you want it efficient, then angle nailing with a gun is incomparably much more efficient. And if you're building frameworks lying down, it's smoother to screw.

You can angle nail 95s studs with 4-inch nails, but I consider it over-dimensioned as it holds better with 3-4 pieces of 3-inch nails than 2 pieces of 4-inch. The risk of making a mess of the timber is greater with 4-inch nails, especially if you're not accustomed to the process.

Efficiency is not a priority for me, I have the whole summer to finish
I'll think about the nail length, I'm not entirely convinced about using weaker and shorter nails, but, well... screw, yes possibly, but it's a cost issue. I'm trying to keep costs down, I'd rather have it take longer as long as the result is equivalent.

When you angle nail the cross studs, you can cut a piece of stud that you place against the sill and use as support when you angle nail from above, that way you get all cross studs at the same height.
Jante

What if I then build the walls lying down without cross studs and then raise the walls and set the cross studs afterward? Good tip, it should both make it easier to raise the walls and set the cross studs afterward.

Cross battens are quite outdated, go with nail battens instead. Probably goes faster anyway.

The storage should be uninsulated and to stay within the outer dimensions of the shed while maximizing the internal space, it has to be cross battens between the standing wall studs. 35 mm nail battens all around would mean I exceed 15 sqm.

Can't you place the cross studs for the panel alternately at different heights, so you avoid angle nailing and can nail as usual

The thought has crossed my mind, but it would show from the outside even with painted panel... no, I'd rather have it a bit complicated to make it look nice.

 

[Matti_75]

You MUST use four-inch nails as three-inch nails do not penetrate deeply enough into the wall plate and sill. Bend about 15-20mm of the tip of the nail about 30-40 degrees to make toe-nailing easier. In this way, you drive in the nail as usual and the nail pulls itself straight down into the sill without coming out on the other side during toe-nailing.

 

[hahalj]

Thanks for the tip!