A hammer is the oldest known tool for driving nails. It has been used for thousands of years and is still widely used today.
As a matter of fact, a claw hammer is one of the essential hand tools for any handyman or homeowner. It is extremely useful for driving nails in and out of materials.
Hammering Injuries and Hammering Safety
That being said, a hammer causes most of the fingertip crush injuries in the workshop. This is due to the fact that when hammering a nail, you must hold it in place with one hand while swinging the hammer with the other hand.
Consequently, when the hammerhead misses the nail, it inevitably lands on your fingers, resulting in potential injuries.
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The risk of hitting your fingers with a hammer is even more when working with small nails. This is because small nails are difficult to set especially when working in an awkward position.
But some people, especially those who utilize tack nails and other small nails for delicate projects use needle nose pliers and other hacks to fix the nails. And although these hacks are not so effective, at least they keep fingers safe.
For instance, my wife uses needle nose pliers to hold 1-inch nails for her string art projects. It is not the best tool for the job but it has saved her fingertips and fingernails. No more blood blisters on fingertips and bad bruises on the fingers.
Nail Holder Pliers, What Are They?
Thankfully, there are better pliers for holding nails while hammering. The nail holder pliers.
These pliers are purposely designed for holding nails in place when hammering. They work like an extra pair of hands, taking the beating on behalf of your hand and fingers.
Nail holding pliers are more effective than needle nose pliers. They have different size notches on the jaws for various size nails.
These finger-saver pliers also have stepped jaws which enable them to hold nails of different lengths. The narrow section is for fixing short nails such as tack nails and anything smaller than 2 inches. The thick section is for holding larger nails.
My Favorite Nail Holder Pliers
There are many tools for holding nails while hammering but my favorite is Jelanry nail holder pliers. These pliers are made of sturdy plastic and have multiple slots for various nail sizes (1mm to 6mm diameter). I use them with any type of nail including regular nails, brad nails, and roofing nails.
What I like about this tool is that it is lightweight, durable, inexpensive, and holds nails securely. No more bending nails or smashing my fingers with a hammer.
My wife also uses it to position small nails for hammering in her string art projects and when hanging picture frames in the house.
But these hammering safety pliers from Jelanry stores have one major drawback. Their jaw tips are too thick for very small nails. As such, needle-nose pliers remain the best option for half-inch nails.
Conclusion
Overall, nail holder pliers are necessary to have when using a traditional hammer to drive nails. Whether you are a homeowner, DIYer, professional framer, or carpenter, this auxiliary hammering tool keeps your fingers away from the path of the hammer, preventing you from smashing your fingers when you miss the nail head.
Nail holding pliers are also handy for anyone hanging pictures or decorations at home, office, or for a living. They are a perfect gift for a wife. These pliers not only protect the fingernails but also make it easy to hammer small nails straight.
And if you have arthritic hands or hand tremors, nail holder pliers are a necessity. They let you hold nails more steadily while protecting your digits. Perfect solution for anyone who cannot hit the same place twice in a row with a hammer.
Unlike needle nose pliers and other nail holder tools, nail fixing pliers hold nails more securely. They also make it easy to hammer nails properly in tight spaces without bending them.
However, most nail holder pliers tend to struggle with very tiny nails. In such situations, your trusty needle nose pliers can be a better option.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nail holder pliers only work with straight nails such as brad nails, regular nails, tack nails, and roofing nails. You cannot use them with U-shaped fencing nails. The best tool for holding fencing nails is fencing pliers.
Nail holder pliers are purposely designed to hold nails in position for hammering. You cannot use them to pull nails. Furthermore, most nail fixing pliers are made of plastic and dont have jaws for digging into a nail. Some of the best pliers for extracting nails from materials include end cutters, side cutters, fencing pliers.
