Using gusset plates such as metal or plywood, have the advantage that all members lie in one plane. In this study, the strength of timber to plywood joints made using nails as the connecting medium is studied. This work is of importance in order to study the strength of gusset plates made of plywood. A total of ninety nailed joints using mengkulang (Heritiera spp.) and plywood were fabricated, tested and analysed. Mengkulang was chosen to represent solid timber due to its wide applications. It is classified as of medium hardwood category, having specific gravities ranging from 0.49 to 0.52 based on 12% moisture content. The plywood were of weather boil proof (WBP) with thicknesses of 12mm, 15mm and 18mm. The ordinary wire nails used in this test were of 2.6mm diameter and 50mm long and 3.3mm diameter and 63mm long. The samples for the joint tests were fabricated and conditioned as required by the AS1649 and tested in single shear under a uniform rate of loading of 1.2mm per minute until failure. Subsidiary tests to obtain the moisture contents and densities of the timber and plywood used were also carried out. From the results, the basic working loads were calculated. Comparison of these values with those published in the Malaysian Forester Records (MFR) and the current MS544, were then made.
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