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Different finishes on nails

Hi, I am a student in high school and I am conducting an experiment on which nail treatment best resists corrosion. I have galvanized, zinc-plated, bright, and blued nails. I would like to know what each treatment is, how it is achieved, and what it does to the nails.

Thank you for your help.

Andrew H.
student - The Central Coast, New South Wales, Australia
2003

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The first two involve applying a zinc coating for corrosion resistance; the galvanized coating is done by hot dipping and is much thicker than the zinc electroplated coating. So it will be more corrosion resistant. I'm not sure what 'bright' means but I think it means plain cold finished steel; so it will rust very quickly. The blued tacks have a black oxide coating on them which doesn't do much, but is better than nothing.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2003

You are Down under, so things may not mean the same as they do here. Bright or brite nais are also zinc electroplated. They appear to be made from a wire stock that has a better surface finish than some others. A full brite bath is a little more costly to maintain than a matte or semi brite tank, so they will typically charge a little more for them. Actual corrosion resistance will vary from lot to lot and from manufacturer to manufacturer. Since they have a smoother surface, I think that they will do slightly better than the plain electroplated ones will. The average galvanized ones will do the best. You will find a few bad nails in any box of any kind of nails, as it only takes a tiny spot to begin the corrosion.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida
2003