Nails have been known to mankind for a long time. But in their present form, they appeared with the advent of the first machines for the production of metal nails. Until then, these connectors were made by hand and from other materials.
Instructions
Step 1
The most ancient iron products are found on the territory of Tartary, which was located in the central and northeastern regions of present-day Russia. Before the advent of crafts, people used stone fragments, fish bones, wooden sticks and other suitable objects as a connecting element.
Step 2
Why would a man need a nail?
The ancient Russians knew how to erect wooden houses and other buildings without using any connecting elements. The secrets of this skill have been lost today, since there is no longer any need to skillfully process the wood, creating grooves so precise that the log cabins were lined up without a single gap. With the development of crafts, shipping, trade, it became necessary to build prefabricated temporary parking areas for soldiers, boats and ships, means for land transportation.
Step 3
All this required stronger and more reliable connecting elements, which became the nail. At first it was made of wood, and with the advent of the possibility of obtaining copper alloys, it became copper. Soon, people noticed that when tin was added to copper, more durable and beautiful products were obtained. Nails began to be made from more suitable alloys. Thus, this connecting element has been improved until recently, when it became possible to obtain high-quality steels and other metals.
Step 4
How were nails made?
Machines for making nails were not created until the beginning of the 20th century. With the advent of this technique, it became possible to obtain up to several hundred products in one minute, and before that, blacksmiths were engaged in this painstaking work. In the shoemaking business, nails began to be used since ancient times, but they were wooden. Until the beginning of the last century, shoemakers hammered short sharp birch rods into the soles of the size of half a modern match, which swelled from moisture and held the soles firmly.
Step 5
Today, almost all nails are made of steel, and ship nails are made of copper and brass. Roofs are covered with a layer of zinc, which prevents the development of rust. In England, at the end of the 20th century, they tried to make nails from fiberglass. As it turned out, they are not inferior in strength to steel ones. In Germany, they prefer to produce nails coated with a thin layer of polymer. In Japan, the Kotoko company has been producing plastic nails for many years. They are highly durable, but can only be used with wood. Plastic connecting elements are advantageous in that they do not spoil the saw blades, but are easily cut with the wood.
