The Hurriquake's cutting edge design makes a stronger nail that can stand up to Mother Nature.

When Bostitch engineer Ed Sutt set out to develop the world's most advanced sheathing nail, he focused on enhancing the head and the shaft. What he came up with won Popular Science's 2006 Innovation of the Year honor. Welcome to the next generation of nails.

The Head
The Hurriquake's head is 25% larger than traditional sheathing nails. Why? Hurricane force winds create a powerful vacuum-like phenomenon called uplift that often rips standard nail heads through roof sheathing. The typical result after a big storm is an insurance and construction disaster: hundreds of houses without roofs, and many without walls, too. Thanks to the enlarged head, Hurriquake nails can withstand uplift forces of a whopping 271 pounds per square foot, substantially more than other nails. The head also has two other features worth mentioning. First, every head is marked for identification during code inspection (HQ1 or HQ2, depending on which thickness you're using). This should save contractors a lot of hassle. Second, the patented design prevents you from driving nails in too deep. The benefit of this is significantly less counter-sinking and pulling through in bad conditions.

Shank Design
Discussions of nail shaft design don't normally excite, but the Hurriquake's shank is such a departure from the norm that it deserves a serious look. Typical nails are smooth near the bottom, and consequently they pull out when under stress. Hurriquake nails, on the other hand, feature a special ring geometry that grabs hold of the wood when pulled. Hurriquake nails are rated to hold in gusts up to 170 mph. and are strong enough to outperform Miami-Dade County's code. Regular nails also have a series of parallel rings on the upper part of the shank. Unfortunately, these rings create voids (or spaces) in the sheathing they're meant to hold in place, making the nails prone to losing their hold or breaking in hairy conditions. By contrast, the Hurriquake's shaft actually fills voids in sheathing, thereby increasing hold strength.

Earthquakes
Hurricanes have gotten the lion's share of media attention recently, but it shouldn't be overlooked that the Hurriquake is also designed to minimize structural damage wrought by earthquakes. After a major earthquake, it's common for structures to lean or droop. That's because earthquakes put a huge amount of stress at an angle perpendicular to the nail, a phenomenon known as shear load. When the load becomes too much for the nails to bear, they bend or snap and the structure fails. With Hurriquake nails, the chances of this happening are minimal. Hurriquake's "ring shank" stops halfway up to leave the middle of the nail, which takes the biggest beating during an earthquake, at its maximum thickness. This additional strength offers up to 50% more resistance to earthquakes forces.

What's in the Box
5,000 2-inch-by-2-1/2-inch-by-.113-inch plastic collated stick framing nails

Hurriquake's shank technology provides a tight hold in gusts up to 170 mph.

The exceptional shear force capacity enables structures to better withstand earthquakes.