Removing flush finish nails

[Doug Hobkirk]

My mind is filled with foolish hope. This is probably a good example.

Any suggestions on how I can remove the nails with minimal damage to the wood?


The wood is just over 1/2" thick where the nails are, so the nails can only be 1/2" long at most
The nails do not have heads
The nails are flush with the wood
I do not need to reuse the nail holes - I could use new locations or use suitable tacks w/ a larger diameter in the same location
The surface with the nails can only be seen if someone really tries - it's the inside surface of a roll-top desk. But I prefer to minimize damage.

My idea is to drill a small hole on each side of each nail that will allow me to get the tip of my smallest needle nose pliers in to pull the nail out.

Thanks

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If you want to know the details, read on - I often don't realize that some piece of arcana is relevant.


The wood is the bottom piece on the tambour (?) top of a roll top desk.
I cannot fabricate a replacement piece. It has a patina that matches the rest of the desk, a lock that a prior owner epoxied in place, and would require router bits & experience that I don't have.
The individual slats, including the bottom piece, all have 3 slits slightly under 1/16" thick and a little over 3" wide. Three strips of webbing run through these slits to connect all the slats. [I am more familiar with a canvas backing glued to the back of the slats.]
The nails I need to remove hold the old, ripped webbing in position.
I cannot nail the new webbing on the back flat of the bottom slat - the second slat would not line up correctly.

[Joe Scharle]

I can't tell if it's possible, but I pull finish nail through instead of backing them out.

[glenn bradley]

I'm assuming we don't want to push them through as the other side is the 'show' side(?). My gut tells me to grab the nail as you describe and then drill the damaged area with a good 1/4" Forstner or bradpoint bit and plug the hole with some face-grain plugs or just dowels if it is in a real non-view area.

[Richard M. Wolfe]

A real, real strong magnet? :rolleyes::D

The two things that come to mind are driving them through enough to grab from the other side (you said they do not have heads) or if there aren't a whole lot of them and you can hold the piece steady enough you might try drilling them out.

[Doug Hobkirk]

I do NOT want to push them through - that would represent 12 holes on the leading edge of the roll top, 4 near each finger recess and 4 above the lock assembly. I just won't do it, even though it's oak.

But I like the idea of filling the holes with a dowel after drilling it bigger. Thanks Glenn.

[Steven J Corpstein]

I have taken a small plug cutter and gone down around the nail, this gives enough room usually to get on the head with a stout pair of needle nose pliers and twisting it out. Then I filled the hole with a plug of the same wood, very carefully trying to match the grain of the original wood like others have suggested.

You'll have a tough time drilling a finish nail out, the drill will want to lead off and go down on the side of the nail in the softer wood. You will also get lots of metal filings that will be embedded in the wood making the finish questionable, and may rust and bleed through later. Just my $0.02 worth

[Jim Holman]

It is almost impossible to match the old oak with new oak plugs. I would try to remove as much of the ribbon as possible, careful, the wood will be brittle. Then you can use a small chisel or what have you to pry the nails out a bit at a time from inside of the slot. If this does not work, use a hacksaw blade to cut them off and file the remainder flat inside the slot. Then just leave the heads alone where they are.

[Lee Schierer]

It looks from here like your piece is actually two pieces. How did they get eh cloth in the slot if it was one piece. Carefully pry up the piece using the slot where the cloth is and a putty knife. Once the strip is free, pull the nails through or back them out.

[Josiah Bartlett]

Another option would be to somehow grind them off flush between them and whatever they are holding, and just leave them there, or center punch them and carefully drill them out so you don't touch the wood, just the nail, thread a screw or and easy out into the hole, and pull them.

[phil harold]

It is almost impossible to match the old oak with new oak plugs. Not that hard, it is amazing what can be done with colored pencils, stain and wax



I would try to remove as much of the ribbon as possible, careful, the wood will be brittle. Then you can use a small chisel or what have you to pry the nails out a bit at a time from inside of the slot. If this does not work, use a hacksaw blade to cut them off and file the remainder flat inside the slot. Then just leave the heads alone where they are.

+1 on this method

if this still does not work, you can cut the wood with a knife where the pocket is and pry out with the nails and then nail and glue them when install the new webbing

[Jim Rimmer]

I do NOT want to push them through - that would represent 12 holes on the leading edge of the roll top, 4 near each finger recess and 4 above the lock assembly. I just won't do it, even though it's oak.

But I like the idea of filling the holes with a dowel after drilling it bigger. Thanks Glenn.
Push them through or pull them out - aren't you going to have a hole? I would try to push them through to minimize damage on the finished side.

[David Sharp]

You can make a small plug cutter with a short piece of steel brake line and a triangle file and a bench grinder. You can go around the nails on one end and pry it off or drill them all out.

[Walt Nicholson]

Use a small, very sharp chisel or carving tool and start an inch or so from the nail working with the grain toward the nail and cut a splinter. Carefully remove the splinter so you can grab the side or head of the nail and work it out. then replace the splinter with a little glue and all you have left is the small nail hole. I have seen (but can't remember where) a very small plane that is used to peel up a small piece of wood without detaching it, nailing the piece in place and then re-gluing the curled up piece so the nail is completely hidden. Just another thought.

[James Artibee]

Walt, I think LeeValley has what you're thinking about. JIM

[Jim Heffner]

Doug, If you can, why not take a small diameter punch and try and drive them on through the wood and pull out from the backside? Another option
is use a small diameter plug cutter and cut around the nails, break off the
small piece of wood plug, grasp the nail with small vice grips and pull,and twist it out of the hole. Afterwords, cut a new plug for the hole and cut and finish it flush with the surface.

[Myk Rian]

I do NOT want to push them through - that would represent 12 holes on the leading edge of the roll top, 4 near each finger recess and 4 above the lock assembly. I just won't do it, even though it's oak.

But I like the idea of filling the holes with a dowel after drilling it bigger. Thanks Glenn.
Well, if you dowel them, you'll wind up with HUGE holes. I would pull the nails through, but,,,,,:confused:
Just what is it you're trying to do?

[Paul Saffold]

+1 for Lee's suggestion. Gently separate the 2 pieces. If you think the pieces are glued as well as nailed, I'd try some heat, like from a hair dryer, working slowly from one end with a putty knife. Heating as you go. It may take awhile with the dryer to soften the glue. Another heat source could be a clothes iron with steam. The glue will re-harden when it cools so don't try to heat too large an area at a time. If this works you will have exposed the nails enough to pull them out. Working on the back side, or what is the inside of the tambour, will preserve the patina on the more visible side.

Good luck with which ever method you use. It would be nice to see some pictures after you have made the repair.

Paul