Driving myself mad over nail guns.

[rst]

I've been using a 1010 since they first came out.  Mine lives in a sys V, I take the front two feet off and drop it in.  I replaced the lid with the storage lid to keep my accessories, wind up my Flexell hose in on top of the compressor.  I remove it and reinstall the feet for use.

 

[mrboult]

Had my 1010 for a couple years now maybe. Manage to squeeze it into a sys IV with two hoses, an 18g gun, a blower nozzle and a few brads. It's a joy! And with the lid closed it's nearly silent and (with a few bits of foam to stop rattles).

Not had a load of use as I have a bigger one in the workshop. But it's been reliably brilliant every time I need it.

 

[jeh]

I'm mainly doing inside finish/trim work, kitchens, flooring, built-in wardrobes.
I had a 18 gauge gas nailer before and it was a total PITA - gas that would off really quickly, not warm enough blah blah. I got rid.
I am now in the market for another.
I have two questions that keep me going round:
-Should I stick to the 18 gauge or is 23 gauge ok for what I do? Will it hold skirting while liquid nail takes hold? Will it hold 18mm painted mdf trim on the side of a wardrobe? I know you can get both but...
-Should I go back to compressor air guns or try the new 18v all electric nailers? I see Makita have a new one Makita DPT353Z. Also Dewalt. Anyone using them?

I can't really afford 2 x electric nailers this month. I could buy the compressor and a couple of nailers though. Still if I could get by with a 23 gauge and it was reliable, that would be the dream.

Am I dreaming?

A pinner could never substitute for an 18 gauge. I moved to 21 gauge and rarely ever use my pinner. I also carry a 15, 16, and 18. Selection depends on the needs. I've tried gas powered units, but have stuff with my compressor.

 

[bluestreak]

Just to add to this, the cordless pinners (Makita) SUCK!  I had the Makita for a week and returned it.  It was almost impossible to figure out how to use it and not leave a dimple from the recoil.

I currently use the Dewalt 18ga 20vmax for most of my work.  It's heavy but the fast setup time is great for smaller jobs, repairs, and such.  As mentioned above with the recoil, it's difficult to find the sweet spot, especially on softer woods, but it is there.

 

[mickmick]

I use Makita 10.8v drill and driver, so not currently hooked onto an 18v platform.
Picking up the PC1010 today.  [big grin]

 

[Job and Knock]

Just to go against the flow I'm UK based and I hardly ever see finish nailguns other than 16 gauge.
I assume you are also UK based cos you used the word "skirting" instead of baseboard.

16 gauge is almost a standard over here, Dewalt do a nice all electric machine which fires angled nails and I have a Hitachi that fires straight nails that more building sites provide so I never have to supply nails onto the sites I work on.
If Dewalt did a straight nails version I would have bought that instead.
I'm not putting nails onto labour only jobs.

UK-based as well - on fit-out we do use 18 gauge on some hardwood tasks (e.g. glazing beads, or where a 16 gauh=[ge would be too noticeable). Softwood and MDF, painted are generally done in 16 gauge. I agree, though, that for construction work 16 gauge is far more useful. Beware the DW angled 16 gauge (DCN660) - they won't always sink pins longer than 50mm and they aren't wonderful on close-grained timbers like sapele, for which a gas gun is superior. Unlike you I don't have any issues getting angled nails out of my main contractor. I do interior fit-out and listeds, though, so maybe that's the difference. I have a DCN660 and a Rawl (Senco) 16 gauge as well as a Paslode 18 gauge, but I despise gas, so I'm hoping that the new Hitachi cordless nailers (which have a mini compressor built-in) will be better

Problem of using compressors on any regulated site is that you need to have your compressor receiver tested regularly and hoses inspected/tested every 3 months - an expensive pain

 

[Farming_Sawyer]

Had a chance to us both an 16 and 18ga Milwaukee cordless this past week to trim some windows. Poplar trim. I'm not impressed. The are heavy, awkward, slow to fire, much larger than pneumatic counterparts and I couldn't get a constant set. So glad they aren't mine. I'll stick to compressor noise and the hassle of hoses.

[attachimg=1]

 

[demographic]

UK-based as well

With a username of Job and Knock I just assumed you were Cumbrian as its a well used phrase round these parts.

 

[Michael Kellough]

What are those dots? Nails into dowels or filler?

 

[RKA]

Had a chance to us both an 16 and 18ga Milwaukee cordless this past week to trim some windows. Poplar trim. I'm not impressed. The are heavy, awkward, slow to fire, much larger than pneumatic counterparts and I couldn't get a constant set. So glad they aren't mine. I'll stick to compressor noise and the hassle of hoses.

Your first 4 observations are common trade offs with cordless.  Your last is a unique feature of the Milwaukee nailers. 

 

[mickmick]

Got the PC1010 in a sys4 with hose. Senco 18g and Makita 23g pinner. Did some flooring yesterday - get in and out was a dream (sys4 + sys2) and job went smooth. Glad I baulked at the new. Tried and true wins again.

 

[demographic]

Got the PC1010 in a sys4 with hose. Senco 18g and Makita 23g pinner. Did some flooring yesterday - get in and out was a dream (sys4 + sys2) and job went smooth. Glad I baulked at the new. Tried and true wins again.

You say you were doing flooring, have you tried just using a portanailer and secret nailing through the tongues?
Thats what Ive used on every hardwood floor Ive nailed apart from the two I've glued onto concrete.

 

[mickmick]

Got the PC1010 in a sys4 with hose. Senco 18g and Makita 23g pinner. Did some flooring yesterday - get in and out was a dream (sys4 + sys2) and job went smooth. Glad I baulked at the new. Tried and true wins again.

You say you were doing flooring, have you tried just using a portanailer and secret nailing through the tongues?
Thats what Ive used on every hardwood floor Ive nailed apart from the two I've glued onto concrete.

Thanks I'll check one out.
The flooring was engineered click together. I used the nail guns for the skirting and scotia.

 

[Farming_Sawyer]

What are those dots? Nails into dowels or filler?

if your referring to the floor the nailers are sitting on, they are hand drive cut boat nails countersunk into wide cherry flooring. Customer is super happy, but it drove me nuts. Good thing the checks and splits fit into their rustic aesthetic.....

 

[Michael Kellough]

Thanks for nail info. Did you try a palm nailer?

 

[JimmyFord]

I'm mainly doing inside finish/trim work, kitchens, flooring, built-in wardrobes.
I had a 18 gauge gas nailer before and it was a total PITA - gas that would off really quickly, not warm enough blah blah. I got rid.
I am now in the market for another.
I have two questions that keep me going round:
-Should I stick to the 18 gauge or is 23 gauge ok for what I do? Will it hold skirting while liquid nail takes hold? Will it hold 18mm painted mdf trim on the side of a wardrobe? I know you can get both but...
-Should I go back to compressor air guns or try the new 18v all electric nailers? I see Makita have a new one Makita DPT353Z. Also Dewalt. Anyone using them?

I can't really afford 2 x electric nailers this month. I could buy the compressor and a couple of nailers though. Still if I could get by with a 23 gauge and it was reliable, that would be the dream.

Am I dreaming?

The hitachi cordless nailers are incredible, I have the 18, 16, and 15. I had the set of m18 Milwaukee nailers, but the brad nailer left gigantic holes in the workpiece which to me defeats the purpose of a brad nailer. And all the Milwaukee nailers have a bit too much recoil imo, especially if you are shooting nails all day.  I was on a search for a long time for a decent cordless nailer, and hitachi is SOLID! I had a ton of m18 tools and zero hitachi- the nailers were impressive enough to me that it was worth having the new battery platform just for the nailers. I still have the m18 15ga (outside the return window was the only reason) and it’s got power, but the recoil gets old. The only downside to the hitachi’s is the brad nailer pretty much can’t drive a 2” brad into solid oak, smaller brads are fine, but the 2” is always at least 1/16th proud, sometimes an inch proud. Oak to pine is fine. I never found pin nailers all that useful for trim, CA glue plus and activator gets it done quickly. 

 

[Martin Johnson]

I settled on the Bostitch (7yr warranty) oiless for most:

15 GA DA angled finish nailer for tight spots and a little extra holding power for heavy trim like shiplap
16 GA straight finish nailer for all other heavy trim
18 GA brad nailer when trying to minimize nail hole appearance
23 GA Grex pin nailer (would probably go with Bostitch to keep it easy, but love my Grex)
18 GA crown staple gun for heavy stapling
18 GA narrow crown stapler for finish work

 

[jeh]

Everyone has their favorites. Mine are Senco (never had a problem) and Porter Cable (older stuff from the 90's). I have had a few Bostitch and my experience has not been great:
15 GA DA angled finish nailer - failed
16 GA straight finish nailer for all other heavy trim - no problems
18 GA brad nailer  - failed
18 GA narrow crown stapler - failed twice (once under warranty and then immediately after the warranty expired)
All were the 1 year warranty models which I guess are junk of the price was cheap so what should one expect? Oiless may have played into it or I just was incredibly unlucky. The 15 and two 18's made it just past the warranty period.

I have the full PC lineup from the 90's including the palm nailer and roofing coil nailer and only one that has failed me. The framing gun failed after 20+ years of heavy usage. Dewalt refurbed it for $75 if I remember correctly. Good as new. My PC's all require oil.

 

[Martin Johnson]

Funny,

Both my PC failed in the middle of a job.  Bought at Lowes, and repair kits were almost as much as the price of new...never had an issue with my Bostitch yet, but they are not used heavily in harsh environments...do love the smart point tips for placing the nails.  Will be 3D printing some depth guides for my Grex, as it is a great gun, but sometimes hard to figure out where it is going to place the pin.  Saw I could by one for $25, but I can make it for less than $1, and it keeps my solidworks skills fresh [eek]

 

[semenza]

On the PC nailers the older design was better than the newer. Seems like they were redesigned to sell in package deals at Big Boxes.

Probably hard to say good, bad, fails, without the models in any brand being known. IOW not all PC, or Bostitch or DeWalt ,etc, are the same.

    I had older PCs, still have some. But have swapped out to the Bostitch Smart Point for primary use in 15ga and 18ga. I don't know about the durability but so far no problems. The features are great!

Seth