How to Choose and Break Down Pallets

Рет қаралды 40,631

Жыл бұрын

Call me a hypocrite. I normally dislike pallet wood and pallet wood projects. But even my snooty brain understands there is a place for such material. Unfortunately I go through waves where I do a lot of those types of projects and need to break down large swaths of pallets into project material.
In this video I try some "new to me" techniques and tools to reduce my frustrations at this process and improve efficiency so time is not wasted. I'll also cover the ways I've disassembled pallets in the past.
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DIY Pallet Buster: • DIY Pallet Buster from...
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Tools & Material Used in this video:
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* Stanley Super Wonder Pry Bar: amzn.to/3mlIoCC
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Пікірлер: 117

@RJStockton Жыл бұрын

Thank you for being the first person I've heard in public saying he doesn't like distressed furniture. I can't stand it, personally, and everybody else seems to love it.

@radiationroom Жыл бұрын

I hate distressed furniture too.

@PikkaBird Жыл бұрын

Watch some interior decorating channels, they all seem to hate the distressed look as well as unbridled "farmhouse" styling that it seems to fit into.

@Shirlbw54 Жыл бұрын

Totally agree. I saw one video of someone reclaiming a nice antique from a shabby chic makeover. It may have saved the marriage : )

@flowleopard893 9 ай бұрын

Indeed, I loved hearing it also

@Victor-pc3so Ай бұрын

I worked in a warehouse for over 10 years. I've destroyed probably 100,000 pallets and used their wood to heat my garage and polebarn. The pallets with the square blocks in the corners and center are the best pallets period. They always have great wood and are thicker too. Take a sledge hammer and hit the square block. It will knock it right out and you will have flat panels to work with after that. Easy to get the nails out too when you knock the blocks out.

@spike7703 9 ай бұрын

i am loving my airlocker saves me soo much time... enjoy your videos!

@ShrednESP Жыл бұрын

I get pallets free from work. I have a bunch in my shed, can't wait to get out there look at them and decide to do it another day..lol. Your chopping block / stool was the star if the show. Great info.

@stevejanejamesjassteph5903 Жыл бұрын

Never seen that punching tool before, v good! Love your honest style mate, cheers me up watching and gives me a laugh when I realise Im not the only one that gets frustrated

@rwg727 28 күн бұрын

Thank you! you showed a lot of ways to do it and the air gun was the best for doing a big pile!

@GenRN Жыл бұрын

Recycle, reduce, and reuse! ♻️ Thank you for the inspiration and knowledge!!!

@strrchristmas Жыл бұрын

Like you, I started with a hammer and a nail bar. Progressed to a wrecking bar and a Burke Bar. Eventually, I built my own pallet buster very much like the one you built. AND, like you, what a time consuming pain in the caboose. Research: Nail Kicker V20. The price drove me away instantly. But the pain drove me back. I found a used one on Craig's List. You will never regret purchasing one of these. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND these. Instead of pulling the boards off then driving out the nails from the rear, you use the Nail Kicker on the FRONT and drive the nails through the board into the 2x4 stretchers. Often, the board falls off, many times you can use your hand to pull it off, and once in a while, you'll need a pry bar. Having NO NAILS in the boards cuts the break down time more than in half. IF you value your time in dollars, you will off set the purchase price very quickly if you do a reasonable amount of pallets. IF you BURN them for firewood, you will break down many more and the off set is extremely fast. In the time we have used ours, I could have purchased 6 or more Nail Kickers brand new and still be ahead. Note: The Nail Kickers have 4 different sized heads if I remember correctly. I recommend purchasing 1 or 2 sizes only. Just the sizes you are finding in the pallets you can find. The huge industrial pallets will use larger nails and require the larger size anvils and drive pins. The directions are clear, all tools included, and an oil bottle is supplied with the new ones, although any oil can will work just fine. Add 2-4 drops of oil every 4-8 hours of use. I use more to prevent premature failure of o-rings. Great videos. I enjoy watching all the videos you post. THANK YOU!

@jackthompson5092 Жыл бұрын

I had never heard of this tool to remove nails. Thanks a bunch.

@GenRN Жыл бұрын

That pallet buster is brilliant!

@patrickgrate2084 Жыл бұрын

work in a large metal fabrication shop that uses a lot of sheet steel and coils. Most of the pallets that we get in are made of 3x4 solid oak and 1”-1.5” thick oak planks. A lot of it is worth surfacing and using

@ytrlourenco Жыл бұрын

Nice. Just like you, I too miss the obvious sometimes. The denailer box has the operating pressure right on it. 😂😂

@alanseager 3 ай бұрын

I've had that exact same gun for about 4 years and it still works good , I also have a regular air gun with a ball joint remover to gently pry the boards off, I made one of those pallet busters but being a cripple didn't work too good for me ! hard to use with a walker . in my chair the air hammer is easier to use thank you for the videos enjoy the turning ones this one is a bonus

@ifiwooddesigns Жыл бұрын

I bought a pallet buster and that air nailer and absolutely love them. Although my pallets are for odd jobs, these two tools make the process almost fun. My air nailer is set to 95 psi and the force of it pooping out nails is dangerous. I now use a plastic garbage can and lay thick fabric on the bottom of can so the nails don’t ricochet and shot back at me.

@larryhill6187 Жыл бұрын

I have got pallets from my work place with great wood! Pallets from Southeast Asia with mahogany 50% good dark wood 20% ok 30% light colored l would not use as l read it has a high silica content. Large pallets from Canada that new machinery was shipped in on quarter sawn pine 2x4x12’ l got two 4x4x45” walnut pieces a number of pieces of oak. The imported pallets are HT. The HT stamp means heat treated, kiln dried to a higher temp for a longer time in order to kill any bugs their eggs or large.

@terriesbrook Жыл бұрын

i always learn so much from your channel & look forward to each new episode thanks for sharing! i spent many an hour pounding out & straightening reused nails for my dad

@grahammoreland7547 2 ай бұрын

Pallet splitters can be brought, possibly called floor board lifters, a flat recking bars are better than 'round' ones, a good pair of pliers are useful in straighting nails before driving them out.

@imover9999 Жыл бұрын

Was cool that you showed making sure the ground was wet to help prevent a fire from escaping. That's smart. Also I got a chuckle when the fire started and it startled you. I would have had the same reaction. 😂

@kasper7106 Жыл бұрын

I see a lot of pallets where i work. Every now and then a pallet will come in worth keeping. I have found a couple walnut pallets, a pallet made mostly from quarter sawn oak. But the best one by far was a whole pallet made from curly maple, Even the 3 stringers were curly, some of nicest curl I have seen in person. After cutting the nails out i ended up with about a dozen 1x4x 1/2in pieces that would be nice for drawers or boxes

@Ibaneddie76 Жыл бұрын

Dang that little pneumatic nail remover is really cool, I hate pallet wood because it takes so long to remove the nails but with that little tool it definitely makes pallet wood a good option for outdoor projects or projects where the surface quality of the project doesn't really matter.

@qapla Жыл бұрын

Our nail remover gun came with a swivel air connector. We place the boards directly on the barrel and shoot into it instead of the stool next to the barrel.

@imover9999 Жыл бұрын

I'm only a minute in, and as a budding woodworker (I'm sure most watchers of your channel are) I couldn't agree more. I never understand why people buy that stuff. Apparently it sells well, but I would be so much more fulfilled and happy making things that are truly beautiful. Solid joinery, nice clean finish, let the natural wood express it's natural beauty. Just my two cents, but I'm glad you - as an "influencer" in the realm of WWing say this.

@bgbraker 5 ай бұрын

Here is my suggestion, which eliminates most of the work. Use a dowel making bit to drill down around every nail. The nail cones out with the dowel. Fix the hole later as part of the project, but only to the degree necessary to keep the needed esthetics of each project .

@nathanmitchell4839 Жыл бұрын

I got one used on Amazon for 40% off the already low price last year, love it, for renovation demolition work, reusing wood when it's still good. I had a white oak pallet with 8/4 sides without cutouts for the forks, and a fiddleback maple pallet with thinner planks I used for drawer fronts because on nice wood I'd rather cut the nail holes out of the picture.

@ildefonsogiron4034 Жыл бұрын

Dammit Shawn! I was going to only take a peek at your video and really couldn't stop. It's 1 in the morning and I'm falling asleep. Best regards.

@PuffsDragon Жыл бұрын

I recycle alot of pallet wood. The pallets i get from where i work are usually 4' by 10' for sheet metal. Planks are usually 1" thick. Usually i use my recip saw and a demo blade, slice between the planks and runners. Then i either pop nail heads out or glue them in depending on project.

@patrickgrate2084 Жыл бұрын

I work in a large metal fabrication shop that uses a lot of sheet steel and coils. Most of the pallets that we get in are made of 3x4 solid oak and 1”-1.5” thick oak planks. A lot of it is worth surfacing and using

@PuffsDragon Жыл бұрын

@Patrick Grate we also arr metal fabricators. Im not sure of all yhe species of wood if found but i know oak, fir, and poplar are common. I also found a reddish color wood i think is alder, not sure. One tip if you dont like nail holes, drill and plug with dowels.

@zacculbertson2458 Жыл бұрын

You're great man, I appreciate you making videos. You're very different from a lot of the other wood workers on KZfaq. You make me feel at home being from Texas and all. Yeehaaaw

@riversider681 Жыл бұрын

thank you for sayiing "get go". I hate to hear people say "Gecko"

@nagram503917 Жыл бұрын

I have one great fun to use, it nice to take revenge on all the nails that have fought with over the years. I fire into a drum of water a lot safer then just letting them bounce around. Your video shows a couple flying out of the drum, but these are a great time saver. Loke your video as normal. Thanks Bob

@aurtisanminer2827 Жыл бұрын

That pallet buster is an awesome tool! I can almost never pull those nails up without tearing the wood apart. They tend to use twisted nails that don’t pull easily. I cut the slats off of hardwood pallets and use an old hand plane to resurface them. Not may hardwood trees grow up in these northern parts so pallets are one of our only sources of free hardwood.

@aurtisanminer2827 Жыл бұрын

That pneumatic nail remover is also pretty nifty!

@MartyRaaymakers Жыл бұрын

I always enjoy your vids and have learned so much from you. Thanks

@bwrightaway2877 Жыл бұрын

I used to get a lot of the 8 ft pallets at work, and I'd just save the 2x4's. They're normally twisted and/or warped but I used them for thinks like chicken coops and frames for things around the homestead. My wife had learned that I don't do pintrest pallet creations. Lol

@johnnyb95678 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the education on pallet busting. Still shying away from it, but at least it seems less daunting now.

@gdreclaimed5442 Жыл бұрын

That AirLocker will also work to finish sinking large framing nails as well. Don't use it to drive the nail, use a hammer, but if you get one in a weird spot where you can't get a good swing on the hammer to finish sinking it (like in a corner) this thing works great at driving it the last 1/4 inch.

@nigtturner Жыл бұрын

I like to stack a pile of boards with a lot of weight on it to stop the pallet lifting the bottom two approximately 9 inches in then whilst breaking apart you could fix something to your tree Etc

@boatbeard7767 Жыл бұрын

I'm fully with you on the whole 'distressed' furniture shtick... I spent many years learning fine cabinetry and working at a master craft level. That fake fustic stuff just hurts my eyes and irritates my soul...

@Joshleesmallin 7 ай бұрын

For me I found it much faster to use recip saw with metal cutting blade - slide blade between boards and cut nails - can disassemble a pallet in less than a min - then punch the nails.

@Johonavich49 3 ай бұрын

That was a educational video sir thank you! I'm thinking of making raised garden beds from pallet wood. Is that what you're making?

@fierceflyer5 Жыл бұрын

That Pneumatic gun is a game changer. I gave up on pallets because of the PITA factor

@jeanfrancoislandry385 2 ай бұрын

I liked the video. It confirms what I know.

@laneetherington614 6 ай бұрын

Different pallets require different tools and a little thought. Some are easy and others have so many nails or staples that it takes a lot of time. Any rebuilt pallet has probably got cut off nails and that makes milling them properly impossible. Look for the specialty pallets that have added wood for some special purpose, they have more usable wood.

@zbumbi Жыл бұрын

I make bitdhouses with treated lumber if I have it. Last longer and I don,t have to climb up and replace them. Binds doesn't care I don't do stuff with pellets as I get enough of those at work but a trick is to use two folklifts. One presses down and the other lifts....

@Alysuis Жыл бұрын

Sweet! I've been drooling over some coiled steel loading pallets we throw away at my place of work

@htcinfinity Жыл бұрын

I get so excited to see some nice-looking pallets, old furniture, or some logs that could be milled into usable lumber. To everyone else, they just think I'm weird for getting that excited over some wood.

@KipdoesStuff Жыл бұрын

@@htcinfinity old furniture is my fav. Have to be careful not to tell them that I will be tearing it apart and making something new out of it. Some people think restoration is the only option.

@donscottvansandt4139 Жыл бұрын

Awesome job and info... unlike you I have to use as much free or very cheap as I can ...but then again I don't make nearly as nice of stuff as you. And I have learned so much from you... basically all I know about grain I learned from you! And it has really helped me in my carving skills.... thanks for sharing your knowledge with all of us lowly nubies ! It really helps...

@marcbarash6045 Жыл бұрын

Good information, good video!

@richardwadsworth4259 5 ай бұрын

Use airlock shooting nails out into a 5 gal bucket with a little water in it. Much safer and nail tended to stay in the bucket. Less to find with magnet.

@Shirlbw54 Жыл бұрын

I recently found a possible source of really nice reclaimed wood. I got pieces of a family heirloom piano. It was called 'untuneable' so not even something my sis could donate to anybody. So, a very large, VERY heavy paperweight. I didn't know until we started to dismantle it, but the front panel is a solid slab of gorgeous birdseye maple without a flaw. The keyboard cover is oak. I'm thinking of making coasters from the keys (since the thing is over a hundred years old there may be issues, though, if the white keys are actually ivory.) I want to re-use as much as possible and give my grandmother's piano a second life. My sis wants to turn the inner strings into a water feature. People are GIVING old pianos away.Once I get my shop set up better I am going to have to look in to how to transport the heavy bastards. Until then, pallets. I just this week got an Air Locker and totally agree. Use eye protection always - those nails zing all over the place. Also, don't burn the scrap wood! I am bagging up small pieces for kindling and larger broken pieces for camp wood. Have you SEEN what they charge for camp wood? When I get excess I can probably sell that too!

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

Piano's from before the 50's are most interesting. We use the black keys (many were pure ebony) for accents, pens and such. And much of the panels are actually wide boards not glue ups. Seems after the 50's veneers came into vogue and are less versatile in reuse. Armours are same way.

@333rpd Жыл бұрын

One trick I found. Once you get the bottom boards off, with the top boards down, stand on the pallet and hit the sides of the blocks or stringers with a sledge hammer.

@BFnKC Жыл бұрын

Grabbed one of those for $40 back when lumber was way up, paid for itself on the first batch of reclaimed framing material that would have otherwise been tossed because of the time and frustration of pulling them manually

@thehobbymachinistnz Жыл бұрын

That nail remover seems to work really well. Some off topic questions, why do you have all those rocks on your lawn? And, how do you mow it with the rocks on it?

@Oldguy_newbie-tx3lu Жыл бұрын

interesting video, thanks for posting.

@henrysara7716 Жыл бұрын

Not a super fan of distress furniture. However, I have seen some nicely done. About the nails is a great tool if you are using pallets very like myself. Thy for sharing.

@MortimerSugarloaf Жыл бұрын

The recommended pressure may not be printed in the manual, but it's right there on the front of the box. I guess that kinda counts as the manual, maybe.

@coreywalker2656 Жыл бұрын

Yea 4th bullet 80-120 psi

@kathybirkett7986 Жыл бұрын

great idea!

@timothymallon Жыл бұрын

18:10 Psst Bro, the box says, 80-120 PSI

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

I ain't read'n no stink'n box. This ain't a frozen pizza.

@timothymallon Жыл бұрын

@@wortheffort hahaha that's the best excuse ever! Love it

@brandenhylton8272 17 күн бұрын

Pallets make great strawberry towers.

@mibengal Жыл бұрын

Don't forget the eye protection too. Saw a few ricochets.

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

I ended up crinkling up some packing paper and putting it in the barrel. That stopped all the "bounce". Coulda sworn I filmed and put it in the video. But I guess it got lost somehow.

@platinumlawnservice Жыл бұрын

Great video as always. I did think it was funny though about you not finding the pressure and as youre talking about it, its right on the box. Haha. Instructions from overseas are terrible. Looks like it really works great though!

@arrowdriver Жыл бұрын

Yep right there!

@richardrodgers1883 Жыл бұрын

Yep, don't read the instructions just look at the box.😆

@MrOldclunker Жыл бұрын

OMG Magazine tetanus injectors! LOL When you were talking about not having the psi operating pressure, the box had it right on the front. LOL That's something I would miss as well. I think that denailer is a great tool.

@glowpipe Жыл бұрын

As a metal detectorist and hobby woodworker. Nails in pallet wood is never a issue. Just get a metaldetector pinpointer probe and nails will never bother you again

@loucinci3922 Жыл бұрын

Love that gun - awesome. R u going to run a metal detector across the wood to ensure no metal in there? I harvested palette once. That was enough for me. Thanks for sharing

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

Nope as in video I explained I’m not smoothing the faces.

@johnfithian-franks8276 Жыл бұрын

As I have said before, I use a lot of pallets so when I cannot get my pallet buster in, I use a bottle jack to prise one of the boards off.

@Russ0107 Жыл бұрын

Damn that was awesome!

@christophermckinney984 Жыл бұрын

I too had seen one of these being used to break down pallets, and for the priceIwas willing to try it out, assuming that if it worked for me the way it did in that video, the savings of aggravation would be well worth the price tag. Well…to be honest… I don’t regret a single dollar of its price, and I had a freaking blast blasting 💥nails out of a huge pile of wood. If I hadn’t pulled a double as soon as I got to the woodpile (stepped on two nails at the same time about an inch away from each other 😖 🤕 ), then it might have been a perfect day breaking down pallet wood.

@killiemon Жыл бұрын

Great video as always, i just wanted to respectfully point out that while I'm sure the instructions were terrible and the tool should have had the psi engraved as you pointed out, indeed the operating psi was right on the box in the shot at 17:57 😅

@dpmeyer4867 Жыл бұрын

thanks for the tips

@mathquir190 3 ай бұрын

Look at the bricklayers in the construction sites. They have to get stronger pallets to hold the bricks. I found a lot in oak. (I know ! Oak ! ) Yeah.

@mathquir190 3 ай бұрын

I've found a good technique to save the whole plank on the top and bottom. You put a 2x4 in the same side of the one inside the pallets. Then, you place something under the 2x4 that is trespassing the pallets and then just hammer the 2x4 that is from the pallet. It'll give a even surface under the planks so it don't crack in pieces and... I mean it's easy and you always have spare 2x4 so... ;)

@mathquir190 3 ай бұрын

The pneumatic nail pusher is a taker. 50 $ well invested. I'll watch to buy one.

@jimhyslop Жыл бұрын

I want one of those tools! I don't need it, but I want it 🤣🤣

@legrandeileen4863 Жыл бұрын

Where do the nails go? do they fall off ? I,don't see them falling, thanks in advance . nice work

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

Bucket underneath

@flowleopard893 9 ай бұрын

This was a killer good video. You just saved me a hell of a lot of time. Thank You

@cramerican 10 ай бұрын

17:34 It says 80-120 PSI right on the box.

@andrewknowles4307 7 ай бұрын

The working pressure is on the box even I can read it on the screen from other side of the Atlantic

@jaafarmejri3361 Жыл бұрын

Hi Shawn, please check how the wood was treated and what was it was used to transport. Some pallets were treated with quite nasty chemicals and/or have been used to transport these, in case of doubt wear a mask while working with them. Might be paranoid, but I'd rather err on the safe side of things and see a lot more of your videos than the opposite, cheers. :-)

@wortheffort Жыл бұрын

Covered that in video.

@jaafarmejri3361 Жыл бұрын

@@wortheffort oh, sorry then, must've missed it, ears failing me nowadays.

@tenlittleindians Жыл бұрын

It must be a regional thing because all the local pallets I get are very heavy solid oak without knots. The nails hold on for dear life while trying to rip them apart. 3/4 thick boards and the side boards are oak too. The only time I see pallets of an inferior wood is when they came in from out of state. We lost 100's of thousands of Ash trees here in Iowa to the Emerald Ash Borer insect. Seemed like a waste to see healthy trees cut down and burned to try and stop the spread. Those trees could have been used for pallets if nothing else.

@KipdoesStuff Жыл бұрын

use them for pallets and you risk sending that plague all over the world.

@tenlittleindians Жыл бұрын

@@KipdoesStuff Do you really think mankind can kill every breeding pair of Emerald Ash Borer on the planet? If we were that talented the mosquito and cockroach would have been eliminated decades ago. To think like that is like believing a mask can stop Covid and there's zero data to prove those did anything at all!

@chrisstearns10 Жыл бұрын

Air pressure level is on the box in the shot when you are talking about what the air pressure should be🤦🤣🤣 didn't have the research past looking at the box🤣🤣

@mikaellindqvist5599 Жыл бұрын

You would cry knowing about what ive gotten for free and simply turned into firewood 😂

@joelkton1 Жыл бұрын

Can I add “live edge” to your rant?

@johnbowman6715 6 ай бұрын

You’re welcome to have your own opinion, don’t get me wrong. There’s also some people that thought the Pontiac Aztec looked good. As we say in the south, Bless yall’s heart!

@wortheffort 6 ай бұрын

Copy/pasted bot statement of no relevance to subject?

@roguecthulhu6002 Жыл бұрын

Um, the operating pressure was literally printed on the front of the box.

@thedevilinthecircuit1414 Ай бұрын

DANGER: many pallets are treated with a toxic insecticide called methyl bromide. Most treated pallets are stamped with an 'MB' on a side board, but is it worth the risk to have this in your projects? Not to mention the danger from breathing it in (airborne dust) when machining the wood. It's also toxic when burned (the smoke).

@wortheffort Ай бұрын

Discussed in video that you didn't watch.

@samholborn 4 ай бұрын

Why would you pee people off, it's just what you like, I'm opposite to you, but that's ok, it's what makes the world interesting place, if everyone liked the same thing, that would be a boring life, I subbed, awesome stuff

@rosehavenfarm2969 Жыл бұрын

Natural patina is good. That fake stuff looks awful. Won't have it in my house.

@merikatools568 Жыл бұрын

Not a fan of salad either apparently

@barrywebberley6788 Жыл бұрын

An alternative to using a sawsall to cut the nails shorter for easier hammering is a heavy-duty large bolt cutter. Tedious but a little safer than a sawsall.