I do pins/nails a little differently. I use this procedure with black iron, brass, and silver pins/nails. . I treat them like little rivets. I drill a hole .002" under the size of the wire I am using through the inlay and 1/2" or so into the wood. Next, I countersink the hole slightly with a hand countersink. I then cut off about 3/4" of the wire and tap it into the hole until it stops hard. Then I trim the wire right up against the inlay with diagonal cutters. I use a small ball pien hammer and pien the end of the pin until the metal fills the countersink. Lastly, file off all the pins/nails flush with the inlay. This has worked well for me.
Sometimes, I file a little burr on then end of the wire before I tap it in.
