Easier to just reverse a fork truck over them. That's what the lads I work with do. I'd advise taking the goods off the pallet first though. That's what the lads I work with don't do.
I've been doing this for years and using them for anything from raised garden beds to bird houses chicken coops, there's really no end to the things you can make with the FREE wood. Blessings
Thank you Taff! That was very helpful. I'm in Spain so it may be difficult to find one of those very handy tools that you are using. I see pallets thrown out daily here but don't bother picking them up because of the hassle it is dismantling them! Gracias!
Tore apart 100's of pallets about 17-18 years ago helping my Dad make 350 feet of picket fencing, I used a spade and a crow bar as a wedge and it just as fast as fast, fence is still standing btw :)
Fastest 4 minutes and 12 seconds ever! Well done! I’m going to invest in one of those board removers today as the other methods are just too painful to bear!!👍🏽😎
I’ve been doing this for 40 years, mostly with gorilla bars, but also by hand back in the early days. I also recycle the nails. Sometimes they need a couple of whacks to straighten them, but they are often perfect for outdoor projects. Thank you for sharing your method. I really need to get one of those bars.
OMG! I've taken apart many pallets, cursing each one. I've used various methods but not this one. I wondered why the nails were so tough to get out. While I don't have this tool, I'll fashion something to give it a try today. Thank you. What you're doing looks effortless compared to my usual method: pry bar, hammer, jig saw, cursing. :-)
Having watched this video I bought myself one of these Roughneck pallet busters off eBay £26 with free postage. Arrived very quickly. Used it this morning to break up a large pallet and could not believe how well it worked. Really impressed!
I used to put them through a horizontal bandsaw that cuts all the ring shank nails in a minute. It depends what you need the wood for. We were rebuilding custom pallets so the nail bits in the wood did not matter.
There's a pneumatic de-nailer gun available on Amazon for under $60 that is designed expressly for removing nails from pallet boards. This will save you from joint pain in your elbow from the repetitive motion of removing thousands of nails. You're welcome.
Two points: - 1. Pallets are untreated wood and no good for anything outside. In NZ they will get invaded by an insect larva known as "Borer" even inside. 2. While a reasonably well-paid but cashless newly married in about 1976, I made a bed frame that sat on cast-iron rails connecting some nice antique bed ends we had, all from pallets. I can't have thought it was a difficult problem dismantling them, as I don't even remember how I did it, probably just crowbar and claw hammer, I do know I still have a jar of the recovered and straightened nails I kept because "just in case I needed them" and "you can't throw away perfectly good and still useful nails". Reduce, reuse, recycle; we had that then.
Thanks for your comment, what a wonderful part of the world you live in always wanted to go to NZ, the bed sounds awesome. We have a scrap man that comes round once a week now that will collect the nails for recycling 😁 thanks for watching 👍
Haha, I bought some pallet dismatling tools from FFX a few weeks back and I've been waiting to find the time to do a video on how to break them down since. I was gonna do it today but got sidetracked picking up a load of free hardwood. Nice video. Thanks.
For the really spindly nails that bend easily I use a small bolt cropper to cut them half way down, I find they pop through easier. Good video, I definitely need one of those tools
Nail removal process 1) turn over in soft grass or dirt, nails are facing skyward, sledge down nails 2x at a time, let sledge weight do the work. 2) If I'm really lazy, nails face downward over concrete, heavy boot stomp next to each pair of nails. Companies in my area always post in free section of Craigslist, always an abundance.
Those pallets are basically an IKEA wood-deck. Yank of one side of boards, turn it around, add a framework of some structural planks, put pallets on top and use the loosened boards to fill in the gaps. Complete wood-deck!
You got another subscriber. Ever since a family member said that I'm useless at diy. I have to challenge myself now, as I decided to start on my pallets I found your video, and you are not American so I can say that your video is a good find. On a mission now to dismantle pallets and start making stuff for myself. The reason they say useless is because I'm in my early 60's. All I can say is.... I'm not dead yet and also....BRING IT ON !
My dad used to call me a "lightning carpenter". "Never strikes twice in the same spot." Course now that we are all using nailers or screws it only counts when you are removing nails.
My daughter has collected 100s of used pallets for me to use to make stuff for her.... I told her that if I was charging her for my time, it would be cheaper to buy new materials. With this tool, plus the pneumatic denailer that other guy mentioned, I might be enthusiastic about it! Thanks friend!
I picked up 6 pallets and I will build this tool this week and make a video as well. I need to disassemble at least 50 pallets to line the inside of my man cave. I have 2 local business that told me I could take all the pallets needed. Nice tool for sure.
I use a high speed hitachi grinder to remove the nails.....cuts them off and grinds them down smooth, no big chunks busted out from trying to retract the nails....also, leaves the nail heads in which can be a nice decorative touch when building rustic or farmhouse projects
Those ribbed nails are the worst! I 'attempted' to break apart a pallet with those nails using a pallet breaker just like yours over the weekend. All I managed to do was pull the nails through the pallet boards causing massive tear-out on the back of the boards and splitting most of them. The nails just stayed put in the stretchers. If the nails aren't ribbed, the breaker works a treat. Those ribbed nails hang on so hard that I couldn't even extract them from the stretchers afterward without the heads pulling off the nails. I even tried to extract them with proper pincer-type nail pullers only to have the nails actually break off from the tensile force applied before they would let go of the timber!
Over here in America, a similar tool is 'The Gutster' which is a demolition tool, quite similar to yours, but a lot closer between the tines - designed to straddle a 2x4. Also, most pallets I have come across, use either 'Box Nails' or HD Staples. Both have an adhesive coating that makes them almost impossible to remove without ruining the wood.
I just cut along the 2x4s with a wood blade in my recipricating saw, then cut the 2x4s into 12" segments since the only thing pallet wood is good for is backyard firepits.
I build pallet furniture and taking part a pallet could be easy, if you have the right tool. The power tool I use is the Sawzall with blades that cut through nails easily. Usually, with one 12" saw blade, I can cut up about 20 or more pallets before blade goes dull. Using a hammer and pry bar to pull boards loose will be hard to not to crack the boards! Good Luck.
Thanks for you lovely comment 😀 in next Friday video I'm making a large laundry hamper out of the reclaimed pallets, with an extra compartment built in for my workshop clothes 😄
looking forward to see you make something cool out of that pallet wood, good sir. thank you for the advice, I wasn't even aware of an invention such as a pallet breaker. take care 💕
DMWI Years ago I saw someone using a special bit in an air chisel to remove nails from trim boards and salvaged 2x4’s on a job site. The same type of air hammer/chisel used to separate metal panels, cut panels and take apart ball joints on vehicles. The bit had a hollow indentation that he placed over the sharp tip of the nail. With a squeeze of the trigger the nail was forced completely out of the board and into the waste bin beneath the board. The bin supported the board, same as your trailer. Safety Glasses Recommended.
Thanks, I I barrowed a tool similar to yours and was not sure how to use it. I have a lot of work to do and I'm sure this process will make it easier and more productive.
@@thewelshwoodman649 it was very easy and I got the hang of it rather quickly. I am going to make my own. Some of the boards broke out but got enough for what I needed. Thanks again.
I am glad to use the pallet buster, and recently got an Air Locker deNailer. SO MUCH EASIER. I had to buy a (very) small air compressor ($69.99) and the hose and fittings ($19.99) to go with it. Most nails on thin boards pop out with few needing pulling frim the flip side. Thicker boards may need them pulled, but still easier to pry out than before. I'm planning to re build my fence, build a greenhouse and a chicken coop. Saving a pile of 'prettier' boards to make coasters to sell.
Over here in the US, the most common pallet is the 48” x 40”, this is about 80% of the wood pallet market. That is close to 1200 x 1000 mm. So those will be more difficult to get because they can be resold or exchanged. So if you want free pallets, try and find companies that might be getting imports, although these can be cheaply made and may have been treated with chemicals to make them resistant to insects. Some of them are heat treated to kill any wood boring insects as well. Some companies making construction materials use odd sized pallets, so look for these at commercial building supply stores.
Thank you for your video, I didn't know these existed but I'm going to buy one immediately! Cannot wait to start using it and look forward to more of your videos :-)
Thanks for your comment dawn, they work really well on the slat style pallets like the ones in the video, these ones I tend to get free locally. I tend to stay away from the block style euro pallets as even with this tool they can be a nightmare to take apart. Thanks for watching.
I used pallets in my woodstove for years. I used a sawsall, with a metal cutting blade. I would stand the pallet on end, and run the saw down each side between the slats and the inner rails. The two outer rails then, would fall right out. I would then use my circular saw (carbide blade), and cut the slats (still nailed to the middle rail) into thirds, which means cutting about six inches either side of the middle rail. The remaining pieces of slat on the middle rail knock right off very quickly with a hammer. I never bothered pulling or removing any nails. I would just bend them over. They can be removed from the stove ash easily with a magnet. I could do about three of these pallets in this way, in the time it takes you to do one using the process you are doing. My wood stove was small and 12 inch long was fine. Your wood still has to be shortened in a standard US wood stove with a 17 to 18 wide firebox.
Thanks for your comment 😁 that sounds like a super efficient way of making fire wood. I tend to use the Pallets to make reclaimed furniture so try to keep the boards the entire length rather than cutting them to maximise the amount wood from each Pallet, I try to remove the nails/any metal as I tend to run the boards through my thickness plainer, so don't want to damage the blades. Thanks for watching 👍
@@thewelshwoodman649 I lived in eastern New Mexico USA, so, lack of hardwood trees here made used pallets the best alternative for a wood stove. Most of them were all hardwood, like white oak, and were not in good shape for re-using the wood. Many had been repaired a time or two.
In the past I've used my Stanley Fatmax Fubar 3 demolition tool. Prying at an angle is a little awkward with that thing, so I can see how your tool is much better suited.
If you add a small block on the top of the hammer it will be twice as easy to remove the nails as you currently have to move the hammer 45 degrees before it starts to lock into the nailhead.
Paul’s ::::yes, a more efficient fulcrum you have devised ! I had to become aware of a ‘catapult’ effect from “bending torque” on the nail shank as the nail point emerged from the hole........(( tool & shop guys and gals are creative scientists and we have a real good time...lol... )......thanks, Paul.
I know this was uploaded years ago. But there is now a pneumatic tool you can get quite cheaply that slides over the shank of the old nail and drives it back out with one strike. That said great video and thank you.
Using the trailer as your work-support means that the sides and base act as sounding boards and amplify the noise substantially. You can avoid that by resting the work on something solid and massive such as a number of breeze block made into 2 piles with a small gap between.
we had one of those forks where i work to aid in dismantaling pallets it lasted around three months before it broke and went back to using barrers and a post or any odd pieces of wood that would do the job.
I find pallet board a little thin for the roughneck tool. The better way is to use wooden spacers off the ground and hammer the remaining pallet down, forcing the wood and nails out, without splitting and wasting wood. It destroys less wood and is nearly as quick. I also invested in a pneumatic denailer someone else mentioned. Once used you wont go back to manual denailing! great tool!
@@coopergaffney2012 I have a palm nailer and it doesnt have the power to push the nail out. A air operated denailer really hits the nail hard and it shoots out of the wood with some speed. You could try a palm nailer but you will find they are just not man enough for the job.
Thanks for your comment Edward, I like using these style of Pallets with the boards running across as I get them free and they are easier and faster to take apart. This breaker will still work on the block style Pallets I tend to use it to leaver up the boards just enough so I can use a wrecking saw to cut through the nails as I have found that's the quickest way of taking them apart. I hope this helps 😁 thanks for watching 👍
I really like those heavy pallets with blocks in the middle. Very heavy and sturdy wood. WhatI do is to use the pallet buster to remove the slats on the back first. For those blocks, I hit them hard with a heavy mallet first. They won't come off, but there is a space to put your pry bar in to lift them off the pallet. Then for the nails I use the AP air locker gun to punch out those spiral an ribbed Shank nails out. It can take 10 to 15 minutes.
Things that make you go huh. Several years ago I obtained about 100 pallets to use to make my wife a shed covered with pallet wood. I needed to take apart all the pallets and came up with a tool that is amazingly similar to the one shown. Made it out of some scrap steel that I had lying around. Hopefully someone is making money on this.
Thanks for your comment Blake, I tend to break up a load of pallets in one go and to denial them in the week during working hours, to try not disrupt the neighbors to much, I've since put pipe insulation phone around the trailer rim which has really dampen the nose.
No wete: when removing the fasteners, rather than hammer the full length (+ occasional misses and or bending) only a single tap to expose the head, then pry out in a single motion, will save even more time!!
I found it's better to put a piece of wood under the claw hammer and lever the nail out as the pull action is more in line with the nail. A long nail gets pulled at an angle without the wood, requiring more effort. With lots of nails to remove, any reduction in effort is a good thing! Think I'll make one of those pry bars!
No. The fastest, easiest, and most reliable way to take apart a pallet is with a chainsaw. Ringshanks? You're LUCKY! Most the the pallets I've taken apart are TWISTED shank. They don't come out. Period.
Good job. Sadly all the pallets I get hold of seem to have the blocks at every ‘joint’!!! Also they have had some sort of nail party going on with 4 or 5 nails hammered in per block. Any tips on dismantling this type?
Thanks for your comment Alistair 😁 Euro style Pallets can be tricky to dismantle I've tried using recking saws in the past to cut the nails off at the block section as well as using a club hammer to knock the blocks off (works better with the chipboard style blocks) both methods are hard work but you can get there in the end 👍 I hope this helps
@@thewelshwoodman649 cheers. I have occasionally come across some straight forward pallets, but the last few times my free pallets have had the blocks everywhere. I have just taken the circular saw to them and easily cut shorter pieces (for shorter projects!!) and kept the blocks for my wood burner. I think going forward I will try to be more selective although some outlets in and around Inverness are good enough to let me have them so I don’t want to turn my nose up at them!!
About 5 hours a week for me - I use it as firewood and collect it a trailer at a time every time I go to town (I live on some acres a few kms out of town). I have a pile of cut and stacked pallet wood out there 8 feet high, 20 feet long and 30 feet wide. But I'll use it all this coming winter.
I've used one of the 2x4 boards of the frame if a (free) pallet to pry the other boards up. Sometimes using another (free) board as a fulcrum is necessary. My total cost is $0.00
Pro tip: When hammering the nails out, they don’t need to be hammered all the way down, just a few touches and you can pry it on the other side. Saves time
@@thewelshwoodman649 I usually put about 10 of loose fiberglass insulation in the bottom of a five gallon bucket and just rest the board over the opening. The nails come out so fast that they need something to cushion or they'd bounce out. If I'm de-nailing long deck boards, I just hang the handle over the board and slide between sawhorses. It will even do rusty nails. And you must say PEW PEW
Iv'e used a pneumatic nailer (without nails of course) to remove nails. Just feed the protruding nail into the nose of the gun and pull the trigger. Pops the nail right out.
Great work. Most places if you collect enough nails and scrap metal you can sell it. At very least it should be recycled and not binned if you're collecting as much as you are.
Easiest way to get the nails out of that pile of boards is pour a little diesel on top and light on fire open a beer or two and a couple hours later presto nails are removed and you didn’t break into a sweat
Thanks for your comment that's a fair point I tend to only denail the Pallets during working hours on weekdays only about once every few months, I've added pipe insulation foam around the trailer lip to dampen the sound, I now have a tree stump with a hollow I can use 😁 thanks for watching 👍
Diolch David, glad this video came in handy, I still find the pallets with the batons are the best ones to get as they are easier to take apart than the square block type and you get way more wood for your time 👍 pob hwyl Tom 😁
@@thewelshwoodman649 As a Welsh speaker I would like to say it's great that you are promoting the Welsh language on your channel. I found your channel this afternoon and I have loads to watch during the coming weeks. Diolch i ti Tom a phob lwc yn y dyfodol.
Easier to just reverse a fork truck over them. That's what the lads I work with do. I'd advise taking the goods off the pallet first though. That's what the lads I work with don't do.
Would love a fork truck, I'm sure it would come in handy 🤔
😂🤣😂
I ordered Turf to do my garden and the Pallet it came on is now a decent looking Garden Gate, never waste anything if you can reuse it. 👍
Thanks for your comment Andrew I really like your attitude towards reusing 😁I hope you have a lovely evening 👍
Andrew: repurposing at its best...imo
I've been doing this for years and using them for anything from raised garden beds to bird houses chicken coops, there's really no end to the things you can make with the FREE wood. Blessings
You make it look so simple, I tried once to dismantle a pallet and said ‘never again’, thanks for sharing.👍😃
Thanks Cliff 😁 I've had quite a bit of practice and tend to now only pick up the Pallets I think I can undo easily now days 👍 thanks for watching
@@thewelshwoodman649 what to look for to find the easyest once?
Thank you Taff! That was very helpful. I'm in Spain so it may be difficult to find one of those very handy tools that you are using. I see pallets thrown out daily here but don't bother picking them up because of the hassle it is dismantling them! Gracias!
So the TH-cam algorithm shows me a man taking a pallet apart, strangely satisfying 👍🏻
Thanks for your comment, glad you found it satisfying 😁
It sure helped me! Didn't know of the existence
@@adolfofiorini thanks for your comment Adolfo I'm glad the video came in handy 😁
@Been4th N Multiplied awesome tip thank you 😁👍
Lord knows how I am here. But I have learned to dismantle a pallet. Thank you 😁
Tore apart 100's of pallets about 17-18 years ago helping my Dad make 350 feet of picket fencing, I used a spade and a crow bar as a wedge and it just as fast as fast, fence is still standing btw :)
I use a couple of car scissor type jacks
Fastest 4 minutes and 12 seconds ever! Well done! I’m going to invest in one of those board removers today as the other methods are just too painful to bear!!👍🏽😎
That's a great tool, the Fremen of Arrakis will find that useful for worm riding thousands of years from now!
* In a parallel universe
I’ve been doing this for 40 years, mostly with gorilla bars, but also by hand back in the early days.
I also recycle the nails. Sometimes they need a couple of whacks to straighten them, but they are often perfect for outdoor projects.
Thank you for sharing your method. I really need to get one of those bars.
Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it 😁
What is the bar in the video call ☺️ much appreciated ☺️
I used to work for a pallet company and we used a similar tool, but more compact for tighter spots. It was a great tool! Very heavy.
Thanks for your comment I can see a more compact version being really useful 😁 thanks for watching 👍
OMG! I've taken apart many pallets, cursing each one. I've used various methods but not this one. I wondered why the nails were so tough to get out. While I don't have this tool, I'll fashion something to give it a try today. Thank you. What you're doing looks effortless compared to my usual method: pry bar, hammer, jig saw, cursing. :-)
Thank you for your comment I really appreciate it, I hope this helps 😁
Having watched this video I bought myself one of these Roughneck pallet busters off eBay £26 with free postage. Arrived very quickly. Used it this morning to break up a large pallet and could not believe how well it worked. Really impressed!
Thanks for your comment Harr, glad it is working well for you 😊
I used to put them through a horizontal bandsaw that cuts all the ring shank nails in a minute. It depends what you need the wood for. We were rebuilding custom pallets so the nail bits in the wood did not matter.
There's a pneumatic de-nailer gun available on Amazon for under $60 that is designed expressly for removing nails from pallet boards. This will save you from joint pain in your elbow from the repetitive motion of removing thousands of nails. You're welcome.
Thanks for your tip much appreciated 👍
Guessing that you need to buy a compressor also ... ???
@@Jester-Riddle I've got a small compressor not sure it has the power to run one of those denailers though 🥺
Aww diddums, does your wickle elbow hurt...
Two points: -
1. Pallets are untreated wood and no good for anything outside. In NZ they will get invaded by an insect larva known as "Borer" even inside.
2. While a reasonably well-paid but cashless newly married in about 1976, I made a bed frame that sat on cast-iron rails connecting some nice antique bed ends we had, all from pallets. I can't have thought it was a difficult problem dismantling them, as I don't even remember how I did it, probably just crowbar and claw hammer, I do know I still have a jar of the recovered and straightened nails I kept because "just in case I needed them" and "you can't throw away perfectly good and still useful nails".
Reduce, reuse, recycle; we had that then.
Thanks for your comment, what a wonderful part of the world you live in always wanted to go to NZ, the bed sounds awesome. We have a scrap man that comes round once a week now that will collect the nails for recycling 😁 thanks for watching 👍
You can treat the wood after you free it up. Not a real problem other than extra time and effort.
Try Aussie hardwoods - they don't get borers. Nor does Aussie Cyprus pine if you can get it.
a lot of pallets in the us are white oak..which is one of the best woods for outdoors
Haha, I bought some pallet dismatling tools from FFX a few weeks back and I've been waiting to find the time to do a video on how to break them down since. I was gonna do it today but got sidetracked picking up a load of free hardwood. Nice video. Thanks.
Thanks for your comment I'll have to check out your video when it comes out :-)
For the really spindly nails that bend easily I use a small bolt cropper to cut them half way down, I find they pop through easier. Good video, I definitely need one of those tools
Thanks for the tip Howard I'll definitely be trying that in the future 😁
I just hold them in place with a pair of pliers.
I do this too, makes a massive difference.
Nail removal process 1) turn over in soft grass or dirt, nails are facing skyward, sledge down nails 2x at a time, let sledge weight do the work. 2) If I'm really lazy, nails face downward over concrete, heavy boot stomp next to each pair of nails. Companies in my area always post in free section of Craigslist, always an abundance.
This is a great video about taking pallets apart. And that tool looks ever so handy. Cheers.
Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it 😁
Those pallets are basically an IKEA wood-deck. Yank of one side of boards, turn it around, add a framework of some structural planks, put pallets on top and use the loosened boards to fill in the gaps. Complete wood-deck!
Cool idea Andreas 👍😎
You got another subscriber. Ever since a family member said that I'm useless at diy. I have to challenge myself now, as I decided to start on my pallets I found your video, and you are not American so I can say that your video is a good find. On a mission now to dismantle pallets and start making stuff for myself.
The reason they say useless is because I'm in my early 60's. All I can say is.... I'm not dead yet and also....BRING IT ON !
Love your attitude Helen I hope you have lots of fun making things 😊 thanks for your comment and subscribing 😁
My dad used to call me a "lightning carpenter". "Never strikes twice in the same spot." Course now that we are all using nailers or screws it only counts when you are removing nails.
My daughter has collected 100s of used pallets for me to use to make stuff for her.... I told her that if I was charging her for my time, it would be cheaper to buy new materials. With this tool, plus the pneumatic denailer that other guy mentioned, I might be enthusiastic about it! Thanks friend!
I wonder if the pneumatic denailer is much different than a palm nailer. I'll have to look it up.
With some projects, I leave the nails in, and just cut them off with an angle grinder where they protrude. They add a little character.
Thanks for your comment it would be interesting to hear how you get on with the palm denailers 👍
I picked up 6 pallets and I will build this tool this week and make a video as well. I need to disassemble at least 50 pallets to line the inside of my man cave. I have 2 local business that told me I could take all the pallets needed. Nice tool for sure.
Sounds like a fun project Jorge, I look forward to seeing the video 😁
Hey! Bank you for this video. Will the pallet breaker work on pallets that have wood closer together? I have about 50 of them…
I bet you're flavour of the month when you do this on a quiet sunny Sunday afternoon
Thanks for your comment John I tend to do the de-nailing during working hours in the week only about once a month, not to be to much of a pain 👍
@@thewelshwoodman649 As a night shift worker, you are my personal nightmare.
Agreed. What I don't get, is how he can sit there and tolerate the noise he's making.
@@timsilva1944 that's not noise! It's Welsh! ;-)
@@andrewohone hahaha
You should provide the name and or link to the product you mentioned in your description.
Neighbors must love listening to you pound out those nails on the trailer amplifying all that racket
I use a high speed hitachi grinder to remove the nails.....cuts them off and grinds them down smooth, no big chunks busted out from trying to retract the nails....also, leaves the nail heads in which can be a nice decorative touch when building rustic or farmhouse projects
Put the whole pallet on the ground. Set fire to it. Barbecue.
👍🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣EXACTLY
Do you have an Amazon affiliate link? Can’t see I on my phone. Didn’t know one existed till your video!
Just ordered a pallet breaker. Didn’t even know there was such a thing. Thank you for posting this.
Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it 😁
How much?
Those ribbed nails are the worst! I 'attempted' to break apart a pallet with those nails using a pallet breaker just like yours over the weekend. All I managed to do was pull the nails through the pallet boards causing massive tear-out on the back of the boards and splitting most of them. The nails just stayed put in the stretchers. If the nails aren't ribbed, the breaker works a treat.
Those ribbed nails hang on so hard that I couldn't even extract them from the stretchers afterward without the heads pulling off the nails. I even tried to extract them with proper pincer-type nail pullers only to have the nails actually break off from the tensile force applied before they would let go of the timber!
Over here in America, a similar tool is 'The Gutster' which is a demolition tool, quite similar to yours, but a lot closer between the tines - designed to straddle a 2x4. Also, most pallets I have come across, use either 'Box Nails' or HD Staples. Both have an adhesive coating that makes them almost impossible to remove without ruining the wood.
The Gutser what a cool name for a tool 😁 thanks for sharing Paul 👍
Ding dong bell. Noisy neighbour .....when removing nails......love the roughneck tool
Thanks John luckily I've got very understanding neighbours 😁 thanks for watching 👍
Oh I bet the neighbours love you!! All that hammering on the trailer!!😂😂. Brilliantly explained tho!!
Thanks Pedro, tend to only do this once every few months in the day to make it less annoying, but luckily I have nice neighbours 👍
Brilliant, cheers! I've been doing the reciprocating saw method, but yours is easier still. Liked the laundry hamper you made as well! Bravo
Thanks Aturax I really appreciate your comment 😁
@@thewelshwoodman649 greetings from North Wales by the way! Cheers
Yep......have one a friend of mine made for me about 5-6 years ago. Can't beat it.
Thanks for your comment 😁
The Roughneck Pallet-Breaker is definitely well worth having....it makes life a great deal easier!
The Roughneck Pallet-Becker
I just cut along the 2x4s with a wood blade in my recipricating saw, then cut the 2x4s into 12" segments since the only thing pallet wood is good for is backyard firepits.
Thanks for your comment Randy, I tend to use the reclaimed planks for woodworking projects 😁 thanks for watching 👍
I need one of those, spent 3 hours disassembling 5 pallets yesterday. Haven’t been so tired in my life…😅
I build pallet furniture and taking part a pallet could be easy, if you have the right tool. The power tool I use is the Sawzall with blades that cut through nails easily. Usually, with one 12" saw blade, I can cut up about 20 or more pallets before blade goes dull. Using a hammer and pry bar to pull boards loose will be hard to not to crack the boards! Good Luck.
Yes I agree. I use a DeWalt 9 inch demolition wood with nails. It works great
I'd like to meet you one day, you seem like just genuine good guy! Can't wait to see what you build with the pallet wood! 👍
Thanks for you lovely comment 😀 in next Friday video I'm making a large laundry hamper out of the reclaimed pallets, with an extra compartment built in for my workshop clothes 😄
I can't believe I just sat and watched someone pulling nails out of wood.
And enjoyed it.
WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME????
Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it 😁 I hope you have a fantastic evening 👍
You're a man. It's not a disease except to a Democrat.
Great video. Thanks! Ordering my pallet breaker now. 👍🤠😁
looking forward to see you make something cool out of that pallet wood, good sir. thank you for the advice, I wasn't even aware of an invention such as a pallet breaker. take care 💕
Thanks for your comment, next Friday I've got a laundry hamper video coming out - made from the pallets I've reclaimed. Take care 😃
I thought a bar was where a girl would go and grab a drink.. My Dad will Love this.. this is great. ty for sharing,, great piece of advice.
DMWI
Years ago I saw someone using a special bit in an air chisel to remove nails from trim boards and salvaged 2x4’s on a job site.
The same type of air hammer/chisel used to separate metal panels, cut panels and take apart ball joints on vehicles.
The bit had a hollow indentation that he placed over the sharp tip of the nail.
With a squeeze of the trigger the nail was forced completely out of the board and into the waste bin beneath the board.
The bin supported the board, same as your trailer.
Safety Glasses Recommended.
Thank you for the idea that sounds like a really efficient way for removing the nails 😁
Thanks, I I barrowed a tool similar to yours and was not sure how to use it. I have a lot of work to do and I'm sure this process will make it easier and more productive.
Thanks for your comment Jeffrey, I'm glad the video helped best of luck with the work 😁
@@thewelshwoodman649 it was very easy and I got the hang of it rather quickly. I am going to make my own. Some of the boards broke out but got enough for what I needed. Thanks again.
@@jeffreyyeager1398 thanks Jeffrey, I'm glad the tool worked for you and it made the job easier 😁 I hope you have fun using the wood 👍
This is very very helpful but i wonder where to get that tool u use?? And what does it called??
I am glad to use the pallet buster, and recently got an Air Locker deNailer. SO MUCH EASIER. I had to buy a (very) small air compressor ($69.99) and the hose and fittings ($19.99) to go with it. Most nails on thin boards pop out with few needing pulling frim the flip side. Thicker boards may need them pulled, but still easier to pry out than before. I'm planning to re build my fence, build a greenhouse and a chicken coop. Saving a pile of 'prettier' boards to make coasters to sell.
Thanks for the tip I will look into getting one 👍
Over here in the US, the most common pallet is the 48” x 40”, this is about 80% of the wood pallet market. That is close to 1200 x 1000 mm. So those will be more difficult to get because they can be resold or exchanged. So if you want free pallets, try and find companies that might be getting imports, although these can be cheaply made and may have been treated with chemicals to make them resistant to insects. Some of them are heat treated to kill any wood boring insects as well. Some companies making construction materials use odd sized pallets, so look for these at commercial building supply stores.
Thanks for your comment 😁
That tool is also used to remove decking boards. Awesome gadget
Thank you for your video, I didn't know these existed but I'm going to buy one immediately! Cannot wait to start using it and look forward to more of your videos :-)
Thanks for your comment dawn, they work really well on the slat style pallets like the ones in the video, these ones I tend to get free locally. I tend to stay away from the block style euro pallets as even with this tool they can be a nightmare to take apart. Thanks for watching.
I used pallets in my woodstove for years. I used a sawsall, with a metal cutting blade. I would stand the pallet on end, and run the saw down each side between the slats and the inner rails. The two outer rails then, would fall right out. I would then use my circular saw (carbide blade), and cut the slats (still nailed to the middle rail) into thirds, which means cutting about six inches either side of the middle rail. The remaining pieces of slat on the middle rail knock right off very quickly with a hammer. I never bothered pulling or removing any nails. I would just bend them over. They can be removed from the stove ash easily with a magnet. I could do about three of these pallets in this way, in the time it takes you to do one using the process you are doing. My wood stove was small and 12 inch long was fine. Your wood still has to be shortened in a standard US wood stove with a 17 to 18 wide firebox.
Thanks for your comment 😁 that sounds like a super efficient way of making fire wood. I tend to use the Pallets to make reclaimed furniture so try to keep the boards the entire length rather than cutting them to maximise the amount wood from each Pallet, I try to remove the nails/any metal as I tend to run the boards through my thickness plainer, so don't want to damage the blades. Thanks for watching 👍
@@thewelshwoodman649 I lived in eastern New Mexico USA, so, lack of hardwood trees here made used pallets the best alternative for a wood stove. Most of them were all hardwood, like white oak, and were not in good shape for re-using the wood. Many had been repaired a time or two.
@@newmexicojoe5443 sounds like a fantastic alternative to me 👍
In the past I've used my Stanley Fatmax Fubar 3 demolition tool. Prying at an angle is a little awkward with that thing, so I can see how your tool is much better suited.
Thanks for your comment Matt 😁
If you add a small block on the top of the hammer it will be twice as easy to remove the nails as you currently have to move the hammer 45 degrees before it starts to lock into the nailhead.
Paul’s ::::yes, a more efficient fulcrum you have devised ! I had to become aware of a ‘catapult’ effect from “bending torque” on the nail shank as the nail point emerged from the hole........(( tool & shop guys and gals are creative scientists and we have a real good time...lol... )......thanks, Paul.
I know this was uploaded years ago. But there is now a pneumatic tool you can get quite cheaply that slides over the shank of the old nail and drives it back out with one strike. That said great video and thank you.
I always love it when I find another tool that I need....
Thanks for your comment Mark 😁
A useful tool that I had never heard of.
Thanks for your comment Paul 😁 I hope the video helped 👍
-your hammer is like lightning ...
-so strong?
-No ... don't hit twice in the same place
Thanks for your comment Toma
All I need is a pallet breaking tool and a decent trailer and Im set to go! Thanks for more good tips ☺
I would highly recommend the pallet breaker you could denail over a bucket too 😄
Using the trailer as your work-support means that the sides and base act as sounding boards and amplify the noise substantially. You can avoid that by resting the work on something solid and massive such as a number of breeze block made into 2 piles with a small gap between.
Thanks for the tip Robert 👍
we had one of those forks where i work to aid in dismantaling pallets it lasted around three months before it broke and went back to using barrers and a post or any odd pieces of wood that would do the job.
Sorry to hear that, I've had mine for over two years now and it's still going strong, thanks for watching 👍
Wow that tool weighs 20 pounds!!!!
You are soooo strong.
WOW !!!!
Thanks for your comment Frankie 😁 thanks for watching 👍
I find pallet board a little thin for the roughneck tool. The better way is to use wooden spacers off the ground and hammer the remaining pallet down, forcing the wood and nails out, without splitting and wasting wood. It destroys less wood and is nearly as quick. I also invested in a pneumatic denailer someone else mentioned. Once used you wont go back to manual denailing! great tool!
Thanks for your comment and the tips :-)
could i use a palm nailer to de nail? works the same jut in reverse
@@coopergaffney2012 I have a palm nailer and it doesnt have the power to push the nail out. A air operated denailer really hits the nail hard and it shoots out of the wood with some speed. You could try a palm nailer but you will find they are just not man enough for the job.
That's all fine since most shown look pretty new .How would it work on a very used and older pallet?
Thanks for your comment Edward, I like using these style of Pallets with the boards running across as I get them free and they are easier and faster to take apart. This breaker will still work on the block style Pallets I tend to use it to leaver up the boards just enough so I can use a wrecking saw to cut through the nails as I have found that's the quickest way of taking them apart. I hope this helps 😁 thanks for watching 👍
I have a similar pry bar and use it on the older pallets as well as old decks. The increased leverage and the two forks make a world of difference.
@@Apollyon67 I hadn't thought about using it on old decking thanks for the idea 😁👍
I really like those heavy pallets with blocks in the middle. Very heavy and sturdy wood. WhatI do is to use the pallet buster to remove the slats on the back first. For those blocks, I hit them hard with a heavy mallet first. They won't come off, but there is a space to put your pry bar in to lift them off the pallet. Then for the nails I use the AP air locker gun to punch out those spiral an ribbed Shank nails out. It can take 10 to 15 minutes.
@@MrAlexandermartis Thanks for the advice I really appreciate it, I shall have to look into an AP air locker gun :-) thanks for watching
Things that make you go huh. Several years ago I obtained about 100 pallets to use to make my wife a shed covered with pallet wood. I needed to take apart all the pallets and came up with a tool that is amazingly similar to the one shown. Made it out of some scrap steel that I had lying around.
Hopefully someone is making money on this.
Bet your neighbours love you, doing that over a metal trailer.
Thanks for your comment Blake, I tend to break up a load of pallets in one go and to denial them in the week during working hours, to try not disrupt the neighbors to much, I've since put pipe insulation phone around the trailer rim which has really dampen the nose.
I was think the same thing that amplified the banging " LOL tground
Glue rivet or grommet thick rubber strips to you banging area.
Stop caring about the neighbors level of comfort ! I am sick of the neighbors caring about what goes on outside their property ! Grow up !
jesusoftheapes it is grown up respect not to annoy other people.
Your neighbors must love you doing the hammering on your metal trailer, for "hours".
Excellent video and great advice. Cheers !
Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it 😁
No wete: when removing the fasteners, rather than hammer the full length (+ occasional misses and or bending) only a single tap to expose the head, then pry out in a single motion, will save even more time!!
Thanks for the tip I really appreciate it 😁
But even getting the head out first the nails tend to curve as you pull them out.
I set my boards on a blacksmiths anvil to pound the nails through, as it makes very little noise: something the dog appreciates!
Brilliant idea thanks 😁
I found it's better to put a piece of wood under the claw hammer and lever the nail out as the pull action is more in line with the nail. A long nail gets pulled at an angle without the wood, requiring more effort. With lots of nails to remove, any reduction in effort is a good thing!
Think I'll make one of those pry bars!
Thanks for the tip Allen much appreciated 😁
If you have two or three pieces you can add them as the nail comes out and in many cases the nail comes out straight enough to re-use.
@@michaelmounteney2034 Thanks for the tip Michael I'll have to give it a go 👍
Great vid, straight to the point, thank you!
No. The fastest, easiest, and most reliable way to take apart a pallet is with a chainsaw.
Ringshanks? You're LUCKY! Most the the pallets I've taken apart are TWISTED shank. They don't come out. Period.
My brother and I pull and reuse twisted shanks all the time.
Good job. Sadly all the pallets I get hold of seem to have the blocks at every ‘joint’!!! Also they have had some sort of nail party going on with 4 or 5 nails hammered in per block. Any tips on dismantling this type?
Thanks for your comment Alistair 😁 Euro style Pallets can be tricky to dismantle I've tried using recking saws in the past to cut the nails off at the block section as well as using a club hammer to knock the blocks off (works better with the chipboard style blocks) both methods are hard work but you can get there in the end 👍 I hope this helps
@@thewelshwoodman649 cheers. I have occasionally come across some straight forward pallets, but the last few times my free pallets have had the blocks everywhere. I have just taken the circular saw to them and easily cut shorter pieces (for shorter projects!!) and kept the blocks for my wood burner. I think going forward I will try to be more selective although some outlets in and around Inverness are good enough to let me have them so I don’t want to turn my nose up at them!!
You’ve gotta ask your self , how often am I going to break up pallets 🤔
Alot...lol
🤣🤣🤣
About 5 hours a week for me - I use it as firewood and collect it a trailer at a time every time I go to town (I live on some acres a few kms out of town). I have a pile of cut and stacked pallet wood out there 8 feet high, 20 feet long and 30 feet wide. But I'll use it all this coming winter.
@@marknovak8471 do you burn logs?
@@nicholasjohn7964 I just dropped logs
I've used one of the 2x4 boards of the frame if a (free) pallet to pry the other boards up. Sometimes using another (free) board as a fulcrum is necessary. My total cost is $0.00
Thanks for your comment Rico 😁
Lol! That is awesome brother! Thanx for sharing.
Pro tip: When hammering the nails out, they don’t need to be hammered all the way down, just a few touches and you can pry it on the other side. Saves time
I hope you have discovered the pneumatic nail Pusher. It's like the opposite of a nail gun.
Thanks I'll look into that it should save me lots of time 😁 thanks for watching 👍
@@thewelshwoodman649 I usually put about 10 of loose fiberglass insulation in the bottom of a five gallon bucket and just rest the board over the opening. The nails come out so fast that they need something to cushion or they'd bounce out. If I'm de-nailing long deck boards, I just hang the handle over the board and slide between sawhorses. It will even do rusty nails. And you must say PEW PEW
@@vDC2me thanks for the tip I really appreciate it 😁
Iv'e used a pneumatic nailer (without nails of course) to remove nails. Just feed the protruding nail into the nose of the gun and pull the trigger. Pops the nail right out.
Thanks for the tip Vincent I really appreciate it 😁
Nice to know thanks
The price of wood today this really pays off. If you have a friend who welds he can weld you up a pallet buster ASAP.
Definitely worth it, managed to make a laundry hamper out of these bits which has come in real handy 😁
If the nails come straight (unbent and with the heads intact), why not keep them to reuse?
At least the brand new Stanley hammer is not a T-shirt ,, you left the barcode sticker on 🤣👍🏼
Great work. Most places if you collect enough nails and scrap metal you can sell it. At very least it should be recycled and not binned if you're collecting as much as you are.
Thanks for your comment Nasim, we have a scrap man that comes round once a week now and collect them to be recycled 😁
I just used a garden fork in the same way and worked a treat
I have got 3 pallet wood project in mind, plus kindling. We'll see how one of these tools goes.
I made my own from stuff I had laying around. I have made more than a few we are on version 3.5 and it is a monster.
That sounds cool Tozzi 😁
I'm going to get one of those pallet dismantling tools for my wife.
Sounds like a good deal! If she's really good-looking they might throw in an angle-grinder too.
@@zantas-handle She's well past her best and I bought her an angle grinder for Christmas.
Jesus, what are you, a bleeding heart Democrat or something? Get her a crow bar and a log splitter or a 12 lb sledgie.
@@marknovak8471 Haha defo no bleeding hearts from me. Maybe your right, it'd be fun to see her swinging a 12Ib sledgie.
I weld so I made my own and it works great... our pallets have flush ends and that big one does not really work so well
Thanks for your comment chuck 😁
Easiest way to get the nails out of that pile of boards is pour a little diesel on top and light on fire open a beer or two and a couple hours later presto nails are removed and you didn’t break into a sweat
Awesome tool. The trailer anvil is very noisy. Do the neighbors care? I would find a more solid and quiet support for de-nailing.
Thanks for your comment that's a fair point I tend to only denail the Pallets during working hours on weekdays only about once every few months, I've added pipe insulation foam around the trailer lip to dampen the sound, I now have a tree stump with a hollow I can use 😁 thanks for watching 👍
Dedicated pallet breaker, I'm out
Just subscribed and I've ordered one from Screwfix. From a fellow Welshman diolch o galon i chi.
Diolch David, glad this video came in handy, I still find the pallets with the batons are the best ones to get as they are easier to take apart than the square block type and you get way more wood for your time 👍 pob hwyl Tom 😁
@@thewelshwoodman649 Wyt ti'n siarad Cymraeg?
@@davidrobertthomas1515 dipyn bach, as I grew up in the South just outside Cardiff I learnt Welsh as a second language :-)
@@thewelshwoodman649 As a Welsh speaker I would like to say it's great that you are promoting the Welsh language on your channel. I found your channel this afternoon and I have loads to watch during the coming weeks. Diolch i ti Tom a phob lwc yn y dyfodol.
Bought expensive pallet breaker upper thing. Broke up pallet. Now waiting until I run across another pallet in a decade or so.
Thank you. Very useful. Jim
Thanks for your comment Jim glad you found the video useful 👍
I never knew the tool existed ... many thanks.
Thanks for your comment Alan I really appreciate it 😁