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Cordless Drill Nail Puller Review

Bob Jackson
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by Bob Jackson

The Cordless Drill Nail Puller (Editor’s Note: no longer available, please see a modern version here.) was invented and patented by Craig Laun for a better way to extract nails. The features of the Cordless Drill Nail Puller are:

  • Lightweight tool that attaches to any cordless drill/driver.
  • Simple and easy to use.
  • Doesn’t require upper body and arm strength to pull nails as compared to a hammer and claw bar.
  • Smoothly pulls even stubborn nails without jarring the workpiece.
  • Pulls nails from tight spaces where it may be difficult to operate a hammer and claw bar.

The Counter Bore Drill Bit removes the wood around the nail head to extract it with the Nail Puller.

Cordless Drill Nail Puller and Counter Bore Drill Bit
Cordless Drill Nail Puller and Counter Bore Drill Bit

The Cordless Drill Nail Puller operates by placing the claw around the nail and turning the threaded spindle with the cordless drill to extract the nail:

Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Threaded Spindle and Claw Assembly
Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Threaded Spindle and Claw Assembly

The claw slot is 3/16 inch wide which will pull nails with a nail head wide enough to be grasped by the claw. Compatible nail sizes range from 16D (16 penny) to as small as 6D (6 penny nails). Short nails having wide nail heads such as roofing and drywall nails also work well.

The Cordless Drill Nail Puller works with any cordless drill/driver having a forward and reverse switch:

Cordless Drill Nail Puller
Cordless Drill Nail Puller

Cordless Drill Nail Puller Demonstration

I drove four 16D (16 penny) coated sinker nails into a pressure treated 2×4. Sinker nails are widely used in home construction wood framing. The vinyl coated nail shank melts from friction when driven in the wood for additional holding power. From left to right in the following photo:

  • Nail #1 has been driven flush then hammered over like a fishhook at 90 degrees to make it especially difficult to extract.
  • Nail #2 has the shank hammered over – this sometimes happens due to an off-center hammer strike or if something hard like concrete is behind the lumber.
  • Nails #3 and #4 are driven straight and flush.
Cordless Drill Nail Puller: 16 Penny Nails in Pressure Treated 2x4
Cordless Drill Nail Puller: 16 Penny Nails in Pressure Treated 2×4

Counter Bore Drill Bit

The embedded nail head must be exposed to extract it with the Cordless Drill Nail Puller. Assuming it’s not possible to partially tap the nail out with a hammer to expose the nail head, the Counter Bore Drill Bit removes the wood around the nail to grab it with the Nail Puller claw assembly:

Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Counter Bore Drill Bit
Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Counter Bore Drill Bit

Nail #4 in the demo video will be extracted the traditional way with the claw bar and hammer. The claw is vigorously hammered into the wood to get under the nail head:

Nail Extraction with Claw Bar and Hammer
Nail Extraction with Claw Bar and Hammer

The nails are ready for pulling with the the Cordless Drill Nail Puller and claw bar to compare the two methods:

Cordless Drill Nail Puller Demo: Nails Ready for Pulling
Cordless Drill Nail Puller Demo: Nails Ready for Pulling

Video demonstration: Cordless Drill Nail Puller versus a Claw Bar

The Cordless Drill Nail Puller pulled even the most difficult nails straight out with ease. By contrast, the nail pulled with the claw bar is bowed which works against you.

Cordless Drill Nail Puller Test Results
Cordless Drill Nail Puller Test Results

Cordless Drill Nail Puller: 2×4 Drywall

The floor plan of my home was extended and what was formerly the exterior 2×4 wall with OSB sheathing is now an interior wall of the finished basement. The lazy carpenters couldn’t be bothered to pull the sheathing nails when the OSB was removed and they left dozens and dozens of nails sticking out of the wall. The nails are a problem because they catch and tear my clothes and are an obstruction.

I could pull the old nails with a hammer and claw bar, but many of the nails are the ring shank type with ridges that make them especially difficult to pull with lots of yanking. The risk of pulling with the nails with the hammer is jarring and flexing the 2×4 studs which could cause the finish to pop out on the drywall nail heads or cracks in the finished drywall seams on opposite side. The Cordless Drill Nail Puller puts no strain on the 2×4’s and smoothly extracts the nail to prevent problems.

Old Exterior Sheathing Nails on Finished Basement 2x4 Wall
Old Exterior Sheathing Nails on Finished Basement 2×4 Wall

Video demonstration: Pulling a Rink Shank Nail

Closeup of the ring shank nail:

Ring Shank Nail extracted with the Cordless Drill Nail Puller
Ring Shank Nail extracted with the Cordless Drill Nail Puller

That’s three nails and many more to be pulled from this 2×4 wall:

Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Pulls Nails without Damaging Drywall
Cordless Drill Nail Puller: Pulls Nails without Damaging Drywall

Cordless Drill Nail Puller Summary

The Cordless Drill Nail Puller is a great tool for pulling nails that requires minimal muscle strength, reduces fatigue on large jobs and won’t shake apart the workpiece. It’s easy to use, pulls even the most stubborn nails and is the perfect tool for many situations. Wish I’d had this tool on my previous framing jobs.

Editor’s Note: The Cordless Drill Nail Puller discussed above is no longer available. Please see a modern version here.

Take care,

Bob Jackson

Cordless Drill Nail Puller Product ReviewCounter Bore Drill Bit
Bob Jackson
Bob Jackson
Technology product manager by day and a prolific handyman in the evenings and over the weekends. Bob was the founder of the original Handyman How To website and that tradition continues on this site with excellent new handyman content into the future.
2 Comments
  1. Hello, I came across this product and was curious if it has ever been used to remove nails on roof steel or wall steel sheeting? These nails typically have a rubber gasket under the nail head and this tool can grab that nail head without the auger bit accessory. Also, is this tool still made or available? Any info would be great. Thank you!

    1. Hi Jeremy, thank you for reading. Unfortunately, this product is currently unavailable to the best of my knowledge. I’m currently looking for a new source for this item or maybe even see if I can manufacture it myself. I’ll update as soon as I have some information.

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