Kev
Member
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2011
- Messages
- 7,698
I hate yellow tools .. that's just a personal gripe and long time bias. You can probably ignore this.
The black plastic Dewalt tool cases are rubbish .. that's a fact, I'm extremely spoilt when it comes to Festool (I also hate the case my Senco Fusion came in, but it's a far better quality case than the Dewalt).
Fit and finish wise, both guns feel mostly plastic. I actually doubt that Dewalt would make a tool in this class that would be extremely fragile, so let's just park that as an observation.
OK, now for the details. The tools are the Dewalt DCN692 two speed framing nailer and the DCN660 16 gauge finish nailer. Mine are the non US "18 volt" slide battery versions. In the US the exact same tools are called 20 volt MAX. The 18 volt slide battery tools and the 20 volt MAX tools are EXACTLY IDENTICAL APART FROM THE BADGES. I purchased these in a bundle with two 5Ah batteries, a charger, the "correct case" for the DCN692, but the DCN660 was in a cardboard box with just another junky case with a top tray that the DCN660 does quite fit in. A really strange bundle decision .. another regular case for the DCN660 would have been much smarter.
Speed, power and operation. Really, really, really good. I've wanted a cordless framing nailer for a while and was prepared to compromise a little as long as it drove the nails in properly. This nailer has heaps of power and the two speed option means that if you're just banging 50mm nails into pine, you drop a gear and extend your battery life. I believe an experienced framer that is very polished in their trade would probably find this nailer a bit slow compared to a serious pneumatic gun, but for me it'll never be too slow.
Depth adjustment on the framer is pretty good too, very tune-able. I didn't experience any jams in my short trial thus far, but it seems easy to clear .. and very easy to operate.
As it stands I'll give the framer a solid 4+ out of 5. I'll have a better idea though when I try a 90mm x 3.3mm spear into some cranky old hardwood!!
The little finish nailer is SWEET. Yes, it has the same plastic finish .. again, cosmetic and it's not what I'd take to a classy night club. The DCN692 is very light, I'm even tempted to get a couple of 2Ah batteries to pimp it a bit further. When it comes to speed I doubt if anyone could complain. If you tried to nail faster that this gun could recover I'd say you probably weren't in control of your work!
It's range is great too, good control of depth for 32mm to 63mm nails and no trouble driving them home.
I'd honestly give this finish nailer a 5 out of 5 if it wasn't yellow !! [wink]
Obviously this is an out of the box impression and it way stand, fade or improve (though my impression of the finish nailer has no latitude to improve really) as I use them more over time.
I honestly couldn't say if the DCN692 framing nailer could stand as a 100% replace tool for a professional framer, but I believe the finish nailer could for a trim guy.
Thus far Dewalt has surprised and impressed me on a gamble (it was an impulse buy based on a really good promotion). I wonder what other good Dewalt tools I've missed due to my bias against things that are yellow [embarassed]
The black plastic Dewalt tool cases are rubbish .. that's a fact, I'm extremely spoilt when it comes to Festool (I also hate the case my Senco Fusion came in, but it's a far better quality case than the Dewalt).
Fit and finish wise, both guns feel mostly plastic. I actually doubt that Dewalt would make a tool in this class that would be extremely fragile, so let's just park that as an observation.
OK, now for the details. The tools are the Dewalt DCN692 two speed framing nailer and the DCN660 16 gauge finish nailer. Mine are the non US "18 volt" slide battery versions. In the US the exact same tools are called 20 volt MAX. The 18 volt slide battery tools and the 20 volt MAX tools are EXACTLY IDENTICAL APART FROM THE BADGES. I purchased these in a bundle with two 5Ah batteries, a charger, the "correct case" for the DCN692, but the DCN660 was in a cardboard box with just another junky case with a top tray that the DCN660 does quite fit in. A really strange bundle decision .. another regular case for the DCN660 would have been much smarter.
Speed, power and operation. Really, really, really good. I've wanted a cordless framing nailer for a while and was prepared to compromise a little as long as it drove the nails in properly. This nailer has heaps of power and the two speed option means that if you're just banging 50mm nails into pine, you drop a gear and extend your battery life. I believe an experienced framer that is very polished in their trade would probably find this nailer a bit slow compared to a serious pneumatic gun, but for me it'll never be too slow.
Depth adjustment on the framer is pretty good too, very tune-able. I didn't experience any jams in my short trial thus far, but it seems easy to clear .. and very easy to operate.
As it stands I'll give the framer a solid 4+ out of 5. I'll have a better idea though when I try a 90mm x 3.3mm spear into some cranky old hardwood!!
The little finish nailer is SWEET. Yes, it has the same plastic finish .. again, cosmetic and it's not what I'd take to a classy night club. The DCN692 is very light, I'm even tempted to get a couple of 2Ah batteries to pimp it a bit further. When it comes to speed I doubt if anyone could complain. If you tried to nail faster that this gun could recover I'd say you probably weren't in control of your work!
It's range is great too, good control of depth for 32mm to 63mm nails and no trouble driving them home.
I'd honestly give this finish nailer a 5 out of 5 if it wasn't yellow !! [wink]
Obviously this is an out of the box impression and it way stand, fade or improve (though my impression of the finish nailer has no latitude to improve really) as I use them more over time.
I honestly couldn't say if the DCN692 framing nailer could stand as a 100% replace tool for a professional framer, but I believe the finish nailer could for a trim guy.
Thus far Dewalt has surprised and impressed me on a gamble (it was an impulse buy based on a really good promotion). I wonder what other good Dewalt tools I've missed due to my bias against things that are yellow [embarassed]
