View Single Post
  #16   Report Post  
Posted to alt.home.repair
Robert Macy[_2_] Robert Macy[_2_] is offline
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 796
Default where to get a drywall 'nail locator'?

On Dec 9, 6:48*am, Tegger wrote:
Vic Smith wrote :

So I told my son to get a magnet from an old hard drive I had laying
around.
Best thing I ever used for finding studs.
It'll stick on the wall right over the nail.


I happen to have two old hard-drive magnets handy, so I just tried this.

And IT ACTUALLY WORKS! Provided I use the half of the magnet assembly which
is flat, the magnet does indeed stick to the wall right over the screw.

(The other half of the magnet assembly has a few tangs rising up from the
backing plate, creating an air space between wall and magnet which greatly
reduces the attraction of the magnet to the screw.)

However, it is a bit time-consuming finding studs this way, since with the
magnet you're locating a point (the screw), whereas with a proper stud-
finder you're looking for a line (the wood).

--
Tegger


Again, I can SEE the studs, just can't find the nails/screws buried
beneath tape/plaster jobs. Yesterday, I KNEW there were two each
somewhere within one inch diameter and COULD NOT FIND THEM!!