One of the most frequent questions that I’m asked about our company is how we deal with all the nails that come to us in the reclaimed wood that we buy. I usually answer by singing the praises of our de-nailing crew who work outdoors, year round, using metal detectors, chisels,  hammers and a custom tool that we call a “slide grip” to prepare material for the saws. But the reality is that, as good as our crew is, a few nails still find their way into our mill -and boy can they do a number on a saw blade! When a nail sneaks into the mill, the first place that it is likely to make itself know is at the Head Saw or Re-Saw. Anyone who has worked in the mill longer than a week will recognize the distinctive loud pop and snap of the band saw blade breaking. Most of us cringe at this sound but Carl Jensen smirks through his beard in delight. That’s because Carl is our full time blade-sharpener, chisel-grinder, chainsaw-tuner and master tinkerer. He’s got an arsenal of sharpened band saw blades in arms reach so that the saw will be up and running again before you can say “down time”.

The “slide grip” that I mentioned earlier: Carl invented it. He has also been fabricating them for us for nearly two decades. Just clamp the “slide grip” on that ‘ol rusted nail and a yank or two will bust it free from the gnarliest barn timber you can bring us.