Mid 1970's era 60 penny nail

Depending on what type (box or common), I believe that the manufactured head and shank size of nails has diminished somewhat over the years. If the nail was in good enough shape to mic (measure), possibly some manufacturer's specs might help.

WHERE that info is at, who know's?

I found 60d nails in the 1970s that had been in ground for 16yrs. They had a rust buildup on the underground end about the size of a softball.

I remember the heads of nails back then were almost perfectly round and did not bear a stamped line across them nor did they have an offset on the edges of the head.

OMG! Do we sound like a bunch of technogeeks or what?

Yeah. I 'member back in '68, no it was '69, when 60d nails came with little peace symbols stamped into the heads. Make surveys, not wars.

I also have some oceanfront property in Oklahoma for sale.......cheap.

Years ago we had the Schoenstadt singing on an extension of our property line eock row through the road centerline. The adjacent residential lot deed called for an iron pin. We hand chiselled out 6" of asphalt and found the head of a 12 or 14 penny nail with shards of red fabric ribbon hanging on to the nub of the shank. Some carefull chiselling then revealed the shank of said nail. We held that like it was gold.

That is the reason I now have a battery powered drill with 12 and 14" long masonry bits. I have since gone to 12" depth to expose a pipe, 4-6" and mainly RR spikes being normal.

Paul in PA

Remember that the manufacturing date is the earliest date it could have been placed, but it could also have been placed last year if somebody found a stash of them in the back shed.

I've been using 60d spikes for traverse stations since 1971. Don't think I could tell the difference from then to today unless I had the box infront of me. Most are now made in China - back in the day made in USA. Probably some slight alloy differences, but I'd be hard pressed to prove it. I don't think there would be a significant difference in size, because the term "60d" defines the size.

You might try googling "nail size" to see if you can turn up any actual specs.

And I really don't ever remember any "makers marks" on them either.

kent mcmillan might have a catalog of nails or photos of nails. he has a history of old rebar, and old barbed wire, why not nails as well? i have not heard from him lately. is he busy on a project, dodging fires, or on his occasional 'fed up with you beerleggers'?

In addition to the nail, think about the nailer -- you might be able to find someone in the highway department who's been around since back then and who could tell you what type of monumentation they used.

Most old spikes I find are boat spikes.