I use a 6# finish nail punch (which is hollow ground on the tip) to get them started out and drive home. They are hard, but I do not mar the pins up using it and I have not broken one either. When driving them out I finish driving them with an appropriate sized nail that the point has been ground down on because the nail punch is tapered and will not go all the way through. If I bend the nail, I just get another one. I use soft pine blocks to make a bridge (gap) to get the frame off the bench and have room to drive the pins through and it softens the blows so the frame does not bounce up and down as I pound. I have never had a nail punch slip off to mar the surface, but I keep a good grip on it so it does not slip off when I am pounding it. Tim's set up sounds sweet and if I did a lot of them like he does, I would make a set up similar to his.