Hand Nailing Shingles

            Yesterday I was hand nailing the shingle of the triangle, but to be clear, even if I were shingling vertically, I would have been hand nailing. The reason is simple. I do not want to allow my nails to penetrate the wood used on the overhangs. I feel the job and the workmanship is much better aesthetically. That is the reason behind it. I cannot get gun nail for my roofing gun short enough to not penetrate so I opted to hit my first two fingers for year every time I shingle by hand. The roofing hammer’s square head is large enough so that it doesn’t hurt much and I believe that the final result is worth it. Yesterday I didn’t have to hit those fingers any longer because there are new roofing hammers available which have a magnetic head and the gauge used for the depth of the shingle. This is the distance of the step un. I took a prominent black marker and marked where eight inches is from the bottom of the handle because that is the setback or the distance in from one row to the next.

I like to do all my hand work before starting the gun nailing. The gun nailing go much faster and people are more likely to notice the hand work when you take more consecutive time doing time the process. Yesterday a few of the people who came to visit the owners or were delivery personal came closer to speak stating thing like I didn’t think anyone used hammers anymore. Someone asked why I did it that way. Two of the neighboring houses owners came and offered the use of their guns. Not that big of a deal one stated, but it is those little extra things you do that set you craftsmanship apart from the crowd. That taking pride in your work gets you projects and the demand for your services justifies your pricing. Supply and demand sets the markets pricing. I have been told in the past that so and so will do it cheaper than I will. I simply ask with they do it the same way as I do. Then advise the person making the comment to look at the quality of workmanship and make an informed decision. Not everyone can afford to drive the car they want. Some people are forced to compromise because of their budgetary restraints.

But I hand nail the edges of my roofs to ensure I have not nails penetrating my ship-lap. It takes a little longer. It is a little harder to accomplish so it cost a little more. If you don’t wish to pay for that service then I would advise you to hire a roofer who is not a craftsman. But when you have to repaint your eves or overhangs because you need to help the nail ends blend and the wood grains caused by the nails chipping of the wood you may come to accept the hand nailing method would have been more cost effective. Craftsmen look at the entire picture and know the effect the tasks have on the other parts of the process and they see the end project throughout preforming each task.

Note: Images on this blog site are from a free source or taken by the author. No image or group of photos is intended to represent the people the author serves. The author does not care about Race (that is a politically correct term that he does not like because we are all of the same Race, the Human Race. He prefers the term ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender, marital status, disability, genetic information, national origin, source of income, Veteran or military status, ancestry, citizenship, primary language or immigration status.) He is a service provider for all people. We will all rise together when we band together and help one another. Joseph Erwin is a Real Estate Broker, DRE # O2131799, and a CA general contractor # B 696662. He’s a member of the CRMLS and The East Valley Association of Realtors located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California.