How to Choose the Best Coil Nails for Pallet and Crate Manufacturing

For anyone running a pallet or wooden crate factory, nails are small but absolutely critical. A loose or weak nail can mean a broken pallet, damaged goods, and unnecessary rework. Over the years, we’ve seen that choosing the right coil nails can decide whether your production runs smoothly or becomes a daily headache.

This article shares some real experience from our production line — how we help customers pick the best pallet coil nails according to wood type, material, and machine compatibility.

1. Why Coil Nails Matter in Pallet Production

Pallet manufacturing is not just about wood; it’s about connection. Each joint must hold under pressure, vibration, and repeated use. That’s where coil nails make a difference. They’re made by welding individual nails with thin wires at a 15° or 16° angle and then coiling them together. When used in a pneumatic gun, one coil can shoot out hundreds of nails without stopping.

In our experience, switching from loose nails to coil nails easily doubles efficiency. It keeps every nail at the same depth and angle, and it makes work faster and cleaner. But choosing the right type still depends on what wood you use, and that’s where most problems start.

2. Material: Q235 or Q195 — Know Your Wood First

We mainly use Q235 and Q195 low-carbon steel wire for coil nails. The difference sounds small, but it really matters once you start nailing.

• Q235 steel: tougher and harder. Perfect for hardwood pallets or crates made with denser materials like acacia, oak, or birch.
• Q195 steel: softer and more flexible. Works great for pine or other softwood pallets where the wood gives a little.

Before production, we always ask clients: what kind of wood are you using locally? Choosing the right wire hardness helps avoid jamming or bending during nailing. Sometimes customers underestimate this — until a full container of nails doesn’t work as expected. Testing first always pays off.

3. Shank Type: Grip Strength Makes All the Difference

The shank is what keeps your pallet joints from loosening. For coil nails, there are mainly three types:

• Smooth shank: fast to drive, used for light pallets or low-load packaging.
• Ring shank: our most common type. The small ridges bite into the wood, giving strong holding power and preventing nails from backing out — perfect for export pallets.
• Screw shank: looks like a tiny screw, twists into hardwood for the best grip. If your wood is tough or kiln-dried, this is the safe choice.

We’ve seen customers lose time because the wrong shank couldn’t hold properly. Once you find the right type for your wood, your production becomes stable for years.

4. Nail Head and Tip — Small Details, Big Impact

The head keeps pressure on the surface, and the point decides how the nail enters the wood. For pallet nails, these details matter more than people think.

• Flat head: standard for most pallets and crates.
• Checkered head: adds grip so the nail won’t rise under vibration.

• Diamond point: easy to drive, good balance for most uses.
• Blunt point: reduces wood splitting when material is dry or brittle.
• Chisel point: sharper, better for hardwood.

For most of our export customers, the winning formula is simple: flat head + ring shank + diamond or chisel point.

5. Surface Treatment: Keeping Nails Clean and Rust-Free

We use three main finishes for coil nails — paint-coated, galvanized, and stainless steel. The goal is simple: prevent rust, make feeding smooth, and extend shelf life.

• Glue-coated (painted): helps nails slide better in the gun and adds minor rust protection.
• Galvanized: zinc-coated surface for outdoor and export use. Electro-galvanized is smoother, hot-dip galvanized is thicker and better for harsh conditions.
• Stainless steel: premium option when moisture or salt air is a concern.

Most pallet factories choose ring shank galvanized coil nails as their all-round solution. It’s affordable and performs well in almost any climate.

6. Size, Coil Count, and Nail Gun Matching

Every nail gun has its limits, so knowing your size and coil count helps avoid downtime.

We normally ship coils pre-calibrated to standard nail guns like CN55, CN70, and CN80. For full-container orders, we often include a few Meite nail guns so customers can test immediately. This ensures no mismatch between coil size and feeding angle.

7. Always Test Before Mass Production

Coil nails are consumables, and buying them in bulk (often a full 20-foot container) means the cost of error is high. That’s why we always tell customers to test a few coils first.

If your local wood is harder than expected, or your air pressure differs, the right solution may be as simple as changing the tip or shank. Once the samples work perfectly, we fix that spec and continue stable production for the long term.

8. Maintenance Tips from the Workshop

• Store coil nails in a dry place; moisture is the enemy.
• Clean your nail guns regularly—oil or dust can cause feeding jams.
• Never mix different diameters in the same gun.
• Use hot-dip galvanized ring shank nails for export pallets to prevent corrosion.

These small steps help avoid big problems and keep your line running smoothly.

9. Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, the best coil nails for pallets and crates are not the most expensive — they’re the ones that fit your wood, your tools, and your process. Every country’s wood behaves differently. That’s why we prefer to work closely with customers: test, adjust, and lock the right specification together.

If you’re planning to start or expand your pallet production line, we can provide ring shank galvanized coil nails tailored to your machines and wood type. Sometimes, a small detail like the right nail can make the whole business easier.