how did the system for sizing up nails in hardware stores come about?
 

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in hardware
stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me out. who
came up with the system, where did it come about, when, etc. thanks.

guitarpick said:

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in hardware
stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me out. who
came up with the system, where did it come about, when, etc. thanks.

The system of 16d, 8d etc was based on the cost of the nails.
16 penny, 8 penney was later replaced with d.
Exactly when, I'm not sure, but I think it was sometime in the late
1800s in the USA.

FWIW,

Greg G.

Greg G. wrote:

guitarpick said:

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in hardware
stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me out. who
came up with the system, where did it come about, when, etc. thanks.

The system of 16d, 8d etc was based on the cost of the nails.
16 penny, 8 penney was later replaced with d.
Exactly when, I'm not sure, but I think it was sometime in the late
1800s in the USA.

FWIW,

Greg G.


'd' was the British symbol for penny. I think it was much earlier than the
late 1800s. May even have been as early as 16th century?

Even earlier. Denarius, a Roman penny.

I've heard two stories, one that they were so many pence per hundred, the
other that they weighed so many pounds per hundred. Of the two, the first
sounds more likely.

"Lobby Dosser" wrote in message
news:%iJcd.2404$5l3.1808@trnddc02...
Greg G. wrote:

guitarpick said:

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in hardware
stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me out. who
came up with the system, where did it come about, when, etc. thanks.

The system of 16d, 8d etc was based on the cost of the nails.
16 penny, 8 penney was later replaced with d.
Exactly when, I'm not sure, but I think it was sometime in the late
1800s in the USA.

FWIW,

Greg G.


'd' was the British symbol for penny. I think it was much earlier than the
late 1800s. May even have been as early as 16th century?

"George" george@least wrote:

Even earlier. Denarius, a Roman penny.

Trust me to get the wrong Millenium! But hey, there were Romans in
Britain. :o)


I've heard two stories, one that they were so many pence per hundred,
the other that they weighed so many pounds per hundred. Of the two,
the first sounds more likely.

"Lobby Dosser" wrote in message
news:%iJcd.2404$5l3.1808@trnddc02...
Greg G. wrote:

guitarpick said:

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in
hardware stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me
out. who came up with the system, where did it come about, when,
etc. thanks.

The system of 16d, 8d etc was based on the cost of the nails.
16 penny, 8 penney was later replaced with d.
Exactly when, I'm not sure, but I think it was sometime in the late
1800s in the USA.

FWIW,

Greg G.


'd' was the British symbol for penny. I think it was much earlier
than the late 1800s. May even have been as early as 16th century?

From this site.....http://www.appaltree.net/aba/nails.htm

We still use the term "penny" when referring to a nail's size. It is
believed that this term came into use in the early 1600's in England. The
English monetary unit was the Pound Sterling (£) which was divided into
Shillings and Pence. The cost of 100 nails in Pence in the 1600's is how we
refer to nail sizes to this day. For example, 100 small nails that sold for
4 pence were called 4d nails (4 d is the abbreviation of 4 pence). 100
larger nails that sold for 16 pence are 16d nails. And so on.


Greg G. wrote in message
...
guitarpick said:

i've always been curious to know how the sizing of nails in hardware
stores came about. hopefully you tool experts can help me out. who
came up with the system, where did it come about, when, etc. thanks.

The system of 16d, 8d etc was based on the cost of the nails.
16 penny, 8 penney was later replaced with d.
Exactly when, I'm not sure, but I think it was sometime in the late
1800s in the USA.

FWIW,

Greg G.

Mark Hopkins wrote:
From this site.....http://www.appaltree.net/aba/nails.htm

We still use the term "penny" when referring to a nail's size. It is
believed that this term came into use in the early 1600's in England. The
English monetary unit was the Pound Sterling (£) which was divided into
Shillings and Pence. The cost of 100 nails in Pence in the 1600's is how we
refer to nail sizes to this day. For example, 100 small nails that sold for
4 pence were called 4d nails (4 d is the abbreviation of 4 pence). 100
larger nails that sold for 16 pence are 16d nails. And so on.

How quaint :) I (in Ireland) buy nails either in inches, or millimetres!
Makes more sense to me ...

--
Alun Saunders

On Tue, 19 Oct 2004 08:25:58 +0100, Alun Saunders
wrote:

Mark Hopkins wrote:
From this site.....http://www.appaltree.net/aba/nails.htm

We still use the term "penny" when referring to a nail's size. It is
believed that this term came into use in the early 1600's in England. The
English monetary unit was the Pound Sterling (£) which was divided into
Shillings and Pence. The cost of 100 nails in Pence in the 1600's is how we
refer to nail sizes to this day. For example, 100 small nails that sold for
4 pence were called 4d nails (4 d is the abbreviation of 4 pence). 100
larger nails that sold for 16 pence are 16d nails. And so on.

How quaint :) I (in Ireland) buy nails either in inches, or millimetres!
Makes more sense to me ...

Actually, the current 'd' designation of nails corresponds, according
to current issue of WOOD mag., to length in inches as follows:

1. 2d = 1 in.
2. Each increment adds 1/4 in. up to 16d
3. Above 16d, each increment adds 1/2 in.
4.Note that all numbers dont exist e.g. 20d is next increment above
16d.

Thus a 10 d is 3" and 20d is în.