Replies

1. 
   Gary_Weisenburger | Nov 02, 1999 08:45pm | #1

   *
   Trunnels, or "treenails," are wooden nails. Unlike a straight shanked peg, they have a slightly tapered shank and a head, which is sometimes square. They're used in post and beam construction, but I'm most familiar with their use in boatbuilding. Trunnel fastened boats, usually fairly large ones with at least 1-in-thick planking on 2-in-square frames (or ribs), don't have the problems of metal fastened boats, because the fastenings don't corrode and deteriorate the surrounding wood. Boat trunnels are of fairly hard, durable wood, like locust. You won't see many boats fastened like this any more, at least not in developed countries where metal fasteners like silicon bronze and monel are used. These metals last "forever," at least as long as the rest of the boat.

   You can read about treenails in books about boatbuilding, such as Howard I. Chapelle's BOATBUILDING. Try searching Mystic Seaport Museum's web site at http://www.mysticseaport.org. The boat in the photograph on their home page is the MORGAN, and I know she's fastened with trunnels.

1. 
   Charles_H_Thompson | Feb 03, 2001 05:20am | #2

   *Check Wooden Boat magazine too. (www.woodenboat.com)Though predominatly a boatbuilding mag, it's also an interesting read for woodworkers.