How Fast Can You Pound a Nail?

Japanese thatch roofs are often shingled in bark (hiwada) from Japanese cypress trees (hinoki). They sometimes comprise thousands of thin layers, overlapped intricately, so you may wonder how, in a tradition of craftsmanship that relies solely on the use of hand tools, carpenters could possibly get efficient at installing them. Well, they don’t reach into a pouch each time they need a nail or keep a bunch in their hands. Instead, they stuff their mouths with nails and practically spit them out one by one as they move along – which you’ll see illustrated in the video below. Be sure to watch the end of the video where you’ll see how a specialized rope is used to peel the tree bark.