On 03/11/2020 11:32, TimW wrote:

I have found cutting through nails and punching them out much easier
than trying to extract them whole or to prise the pieces apart, but I
have run out of old blunt hand saws to do the job with. They become
toothless and too blunt after a bit. Some people use a power saw - a
sabre saw? but I don't have one.

TW

I cut the heads off the nails with a thin blade in an angle grinder or
dremmel, cutting at an angle just under the head. The wood then prises
off quite easily. Obviously I try to minimise the area of damage to the
surface, but I'm often planing a mm or so off so it doesn't matter too much.

Alternatively, sometimes the nailed ends can be cut off, and they become
waste.

I think you have to have the attitude that you are harvesting only the
cream of the crop. I use the waste for my garden firepit thingy. The big
blocks are ideal for that.

My son has made garden furniture and planters from pallets. The first
step is often to repair the pallet, sometimes using wood from other,
poorer, pallets.

The main tools for this job are a fairly powerful jig saw with a long
blade, and a reciprocating saw. And a hammer. And pincers.

Bill