Closed nailing with intramedullary reaming for fractures of the femur is a safe method for treating most femoral-shaft fractures and for obtaining early functional recovery. A method of making the procedure available to more orthopaedic surgeons is presented. Regardless of the severity of injury in our patients, 20 per cent were fully weight-bearing in one week and 73 per cent within two months. There were no infections or non-unions. The procedure is recommended as the treatment of choice for femoral-shaft fractures in skeletally mature patients, except those with severe comminution where bone-to-bone contact is insufficient to maintain length.