Although Specialty's history begins in the late 80's, its heritage dates long before then. Specialty Nail Company (aka Specialty Fasteners) traces its roots back to the 1950's, when two men, Herb Leistner (principal shareholder of Sigma Tool) and Al Hertz (principal shareholder of Alpha Industries) decided to form a working relationship in 1956. In 1957, they moved to 96 Crockford Blvd. in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. Herb and Al began manufacturing and distributing t-nuts, leg brackets, headboard brackets, and various other items to the furniture industry. Then in 1959, Al began selling bulk nails manufactured by the Ergon Nail Company. Al showed Herb Ergon's machine for making bulk nails and another new idea resulted: The manufacture of T-Nails glued together in strips in one continuous operation, to be fired from a gun, ...a modest beginning. Herb and Al became partners and founded Falcon Fasteners Reg'd in 1960.
Equipped with an ancient nail making machine that produced only standard bulk nails, Walter Leistner (Herb's younger brother) was given the challenge to successfully modify this machine to make and collate T-Nails. Finding a gun that could drive the finished product was the next problem. Al wrote a friend in Chicago for help and was sent the yellow pages from the Chicago phone directory that dealt with nails and staples. Falcon immediately sent out letters in search of the gun that was needed. Paslode responded; they had a staple gun which could be modified for Falcon's purposes. Falcon and Paslode agreed that Falcon would manufacture and distribute its own T-Nails, as well as Paslode's T-Nailer in Canada. The Paslode Company would purchase its T-Nails from Falcon.
This was a turning point in Falcon's history; in 1988, Falcon recognized the necessity to offer a full line of products. Consequently, Specialty Fastening Systems Inc. of Fayetteville, Arkansas was founded with Tom Willcutt as General Manager and shareholder to manufacture and collate all nails with plastic collation. Together, Falcon and Specialty are able to supply the industry with every type of collated nail and brad required today, resulting in a wide selection that is second to none.
When founded, Tom selected "Industrial Building 324" as the original site for Specialty's nail manufacturing. Five years later the need for expansion had already risen, and Tom added an additional 20,000 square feet, doubling it in size. The facility suited Specialty until the late 90s, when the search began for another building that could meet the needs of the company's growth. In April of 1999, Specialty purchased an 80,000 square foot industrial facility in Prairie Grove, Arkansas. The new location was about 15 miles west of the Fayetteville plant, giving the company the ability to transfer a large amount of its workforce while developing a local base as well.
Since early 1999, Specialty has added a number of products to its current line of fasteners, including a new hot dipped nail and other advances in the collated nail industry. The new facility has ushered in a new millennium and a brand and logo update, now known as Specialty Nail Company. Specialty's new black box and distinctive red nail logo clearly defines the company's clean, upfront, to the point attitude. During the same time as the rebranding in 2008, Specialty went back to the basics, hand-drive nails manufactured at the same quality as gun nails in HDG, copper, aluminum, and stainless steel 304/316.
As time goes on, look for more, new and exciting, changes to occur. Good, honest business has kept Specialty running for many years, and we are not planning to change this important tradition. Our goal in 1956 was to supply our customer's needs with superior quality products, service, and reliability. That standard for excellence still exists today, due to the rich heritage and tradition that Specialty and Falcon have built. We look forward to serving the construction and industrial industries with the finest collated and bulk nails available for the next half-century.
