Nails
There are dozens of different types of nails used for different jobs. And
within each type there are a wide variety of sizes. Look at fig.1 to see
how nails are measured and to learn some of the lingo so you’ll sound
like a pro when you go to the hardware store.Different Nail Sizes:This system originated in 15th century England, when the "penny" size determined
what one paid a blacksmith to forgea hundred nails of that size of nail (one paid three
pennies to get a hundred nails of the size called the "3-penny" nail). This price became
obsolete before 1500, but has continued to be so entrenched in convention, that its use
persists to this day. Now we use it primarily as a measureof length(approximate, at
least). We abbreviate the "penny" with the symbol "d", which came from the
"denarius", an early Roman coin.
Next, let’s look at different nails and what they’re used for.Figure 1 Used bypermission fromhttp://www.sizes.com/tools/nails.htm