Recomendations for Cordless Finish Nailers

[Vi_k]

See that DeWalt 18V hunk of crap that is up in the top right corner of the picture? I remember thinking right out of the gate at how cruddy the keyless chuck was on that drill, I actually could never get it to tighten/lock properly onto bits. Toward the end of its life I would tighten it, the bit would slip, ( I would always give it a chance to let me down ) then I would grab a Plumbers Wrench and reef the lips off the thing so the bit would stay in the chuck. I probably lost a half a dozen ⅞' spade bits inside of doors when pre-drilling for a ball catch before I started using serious leverage to tighten. This proved terrible for the overall round shape of the chuck, but I really didn't care at all. Then over the course of a week both batteries pooped the bed and would not accept a proper charge, so into the dumpster it went, after I noodled around a bit and took it completely apart to see the insides.  [huh] [unsure] [wink]

Then what do I do? Decide that I ought to give old DeWalt another chance, after all, the boat anchor of a mitre saw that I have of theirs wasn't that bad, some of my collegues are avid DeWalt users, and man o man was the price tempting. I went ahead and grabbed  the little 12v Impact/Driver combo kit.... you can see the 12V Impact gun on it's first day of service. It stood up well to a flat falling on it:  [blink]

Anyways, the flippin' charger stopped working within a week causing me to have to pick up another 'Universal' charger for 50 $coots... just about enough to make a fella want to puke...  [tongue] Once that was all sorted I was again back in business, the little 12v impact is a great assembly gun, except I have begun to strip the gears or something, so it has to work harder than it once did, eating the battery faster. The little 12v drill is good for sitting in the tool drawer in your kitchen at home ready to save the day when need be. It has a small flashlight on it!  [big grin]  ;D

Too bad about your Senco gun Eco-Options! That blows and judging by your reply it doesn't sound like you have been left feeling very satisfied by them? What broke on the gun and how did it happen? I am very interested to hear back if you have the time. This is a cordless finish nailer I am seriously looking at and would appreciate the inside scoop on what has went down.[smile]

Have a good one,

Vi_k

 

[joiner1970]

I too hate most of Dewalts stuff, I've never owned a dewalt drill as they just feel so poorly made. I've used there jigsaws and they were complete rubbish, et etc etc.

I have got the big 626 router and that is good but I went through two 625's to get there.

I've used the cordless finish nailers ever since they came out and they are very good.

Now as you may have seen I've had the new framing nailer on test for a couple of months now and its great. It's a really good bit of kit and I would recommend anyone thinking of buying a new gun to try the dewalt.

 

[Brice Burrell]

That's what I'm afraid of, buying now and a new one coming out within months!

You have a big problem then. With the speed and frequency that new products come out in our society, buyer's remorse is always going to be there. It's unavoidable. Unless one is stinking rich and can buy what they want, when they want and replace whenever they want, you're always going to be afraid.

You mean JMB. [tongue] [big grin]

 

[Brice Burrell]

I was building a dock this summer and did not like the idea of using my zawsaw and circular saw while standing in 3 weeks of water [eek].  I got great a deal on a Dewalt combo of them and they actually worked pretty good.  It turns out the ones made in Mexico are much better quality than those made in China.  But, I still prefer my power cord tools.

Generally speaking I do too.  Tool companies love cordless tools because they know you'll be buying a new set every few years as the batteries die....

 

[Brice Burrell]

See that DeWalt 18V hunk of crap that is up in the top right corner of the picture? I remember thinking right out of the gate at how cruddy the keyless chuck was on that drill, I actually could never get it to tighten/lock properly onto bits. Toward the end of its life I would tighten it, the bit would slip, ( I would always give it a chance to let me down ) then I would grab a Plumbers Wrench and reef the lips off the thing so the bit would stay in the chuck. I probably lost a half a dozen ⅞' spade bits inside of doors when pre-drilling for a ball catch before I started using serious leverage to tighten. This proved terrible for the overall round shape of the chuck, but I really didn't care at all. Then over the course of a week both batteries pooped the bed and would not accept a proper charge, so into the dumpster it went, after I noodled around a bit and took it completely apart to see the insides.  [huh] [unsure] [wink]

Then what do I do? Decide that I ought to give old DeWalt another chance, after all, the boat anchor of a mitre saw that I have of theirs wasn't that bad, some of my collegues are avid DeWalt users, and man o man was the price tempting. I went ahead and grabbed  the little 12v Impact/Driver combo kit.... you can see the 12V Impact gun on it's first day of service. It stood up well to a flat falling on it:  [blink]

Anyways, the flippin' charger stopped working within a week causing me to have to pick up another 'Universal' charger for 50 $coots... just about enough to make a fella want to puke...  [tongue] Once that was all sorted I was again back in business, the little 12v impact is a great assembly gun, except I have begun to strip the gears or something, so it has to work harder than it once did, eating the battery faster. The little 12v drill is good for sitting in the tool drawer in your kitchen at home ready to save the day when need be. It has a small flashlight on it!  [big grin]  ;D

Too bad about your Senco gun Eco-Options! That blows and judging by your reply it doesn't sound like you have been left feeling very satisfied by them? What broke on the gun and how did it happen? I am very interested to hear back if you have the time. This is a cordless finish nailer I am seriously looking at and would appreciate the inside scoop on what has went down.[smile]

Have a good one,

Vi_k

My overall experience with DeWalt drills has been positive.  It's been a few years since since I've own one so they have likely gone down hill to some degree now.  I hear you on the price being attractive.  The batteries on my Makita impact are on the way out.  I'm not likely to spring for the Festool impact since I just don't use an impact enough to justify the price.  I may pick up a yellow or blue impact when I see one at a great price.

I remember Ken Nagrod did a mini review of the Fusion nailer, he wasn't impressed.

 

[Bikeboy80]

That's what I'm afraid of, buying now and a new one coming out within months!

You have a big problem then. With the speed and frequency that new products come out in our society, buyer's remorse is always going to be there. It's unavoidable. Unless one is stinking rich and can buy what they want, when they want and replace whenever they want, you're always going to be afraid.

I guess what I was getting at is I hate spending the money on a nailer that is still coming with Nicads. Wish they would have started sending the li-ion ones with it just like they have updated many of the other kits or make the nailer available bare. It's a shame there is just not many options out there.

 

[Bikeboy80]

Has anyone tried the Bosch 18v gun?

 

[Jalvis]

[/quote]I guess what I was getting at is I hate spending the money on a nailer that is still coming with Nicads. Wish they would have started sending the li-ion ones with it just like they have updated many of the other kits or make the nailer available bare. It's a shame there is just not many options out there.
[/quote]

Am I missing something? 

What is wrong with NiCad?  From my research and experience Nicads hold charges longer and battery life over the long term is significantly better.  In fact when It came time for me to buy the C12 I chose the Nicad over the Lithium.  Maybe its just me but I'm not put off by changing the battery after a BOX of nails especially since a cordless nailer isn't intended for production work.

 

[Bikeboy80]

I guess what I was getting at is I hate spending the money on a nailer that is still coming with Nicads. Wish they would have started sending the li-ion ones with it just like they have updated many of the other kits or make the nailer available bare. It's a shame there is just not many options out there.
[/quote]

Am I missing something? 

What is wrong with NiCad?  From my research and experience Nicads hold charges longer and battery life over the long term is significantly better.  In fact when It came time for me to buy the C12 I chose the Nicad over the Lithium.  Maybe its just me but I'm not put off by changing the battery after a BOX of nails especially since a cordless nailer isn't intended for production work.
[/quote]

My main beef with them is the weight.

 

[upscale]

I guess what I was getting at is I hate spending the money on a nailer that is still coming with Nicads. Wish they would have started sending the li-ion ones with it just like they have updated many of the other kits or make the nailer available bare. It's a shame there is just not many options out there.

Sure, I understand your angst. I feel it too and would love it if I could convert all my older DeWalt batteries to the new technology without having to replace the tools themselves.

I owned a DeWalt DC628K cordless nailer that used Nicads. IIRC, it weighed in the area of nine pounds and was a big beast. The reason I bought it was because I live in an apartment and the noise of a compressor was a bit overwhelming. Then I bought a Senco PC1010 Compressor which was quiet enough to use in the apartment and I switched to a couple of four pound air guns. Sold the DC628K right after that.

Yup, I wasted some money going through that rigamoral, but I was satisfied in the end with what I've now got and that's what counts.

 

[Jalvis]

Oh....Weight.

In the case of my C12 its so balanced the difference in weight isnt noticeable.

Last year I bought a Cordless Paslode Framing nailer for a sweet deal since they were switching from NiCad to Lithium.  The Lithium battery is nearly half the size and shoots twice as many nails with a singe charge.  But lets think about it for a minute.....Lithium Nailer is $400 and shoots 2000 nails or Nicad for $150 and shoots 1000 nails.  Both are the same nailer other than the battery.  Weight is important for some users....the ones shooting a 1000-2000 nails a day.  If thats the case then cordless will probably not be the tool used.

Lithium is certainly the future but for most workers NiCads work great.  I'm taking advantage of the switch and getting the same tool.  Consider your options and remember you can always return the tool after some use if your disappointed.

 

[ANILE8]

With dewalts new framing nailer out i cant see a new finish nailer being far behind

Ditto !!!!

Looks like you are both incorrect.

You realise you posted that over 18mths ago!

Even if they came out with something today the customer who was waiting for this release would have gone broke already if they needed a new finish nailer from DeWalt.

DeWalt is just too late to market with an update on this one, some of us need something to use now.

They make great tools but are not consistent with their innovation across their range.

 

[Mark]

Any new advice for cordless finish nailers? I'm debating whether to get a Rolair JC10 both for portability and for quietness and stick with my Hitachi 18 and 16g for now. But for quick and dirty shoot a few nails pulling the tank and hose and gun to tack something is still a pain.

IF I can afford only one cordless finish nailer what are people liking?
- Bosch
- Senco Fusion
- Dewalt
- ?

Thanks!

 

[joiner1970]

The new Dewalt nailer is supposed to be o it's way. I spotted someone on another forum who's testing one out.

 

[pettyconstruction]

I have a senco fusion 18g nailer and love it.
I know they had some battery problems,but it seems I got a good one.
I want to get the 15g nailer also and 2 more batterers to go with it.

If you get one,I suggest getting another battery so you won't be left waiting .

 

[Thebesciak]

Senco Fusion F18 is a nice gun but
in the state of CT nobody is able to fix Fusion guns at all. If you send it to Senco be patient to wait at least 3 months for the gun.
There is some bad stories about Senco warranties like they are trying to even charge for repair even under the warranty.
Senco service customer service @ucks, I called 3x without any positive results, right now my F18 sits on the shelf - month after the warranty.

 

[Ed Bray]

I have both Ryobi One+ Airstrike Nailers, the 18g P320 and 16g P325, I don't use them every day. but when I have used them, they have never let me down. They are better with the 4.0Ah Li'on batteries, they last longer and drive deeper than with the smaller 1.5Ah batteries.

 

[WelshWood]

I have an 18g and 16g bostitch nailer, had for around 3 years now and never let me down.

I find the paslode guns very expensive for what they are, and they misfire a hell of a lot more than my bostitch ones

~WW

 

[demographic]

Think I've had a Paslode IM250 since about 2005 and its a bit rough around the edges (and now obsolete as far as some replacement parts go) but I was using it with no issues last Thursday.
The new Paslodes are a nicer size but a lot of money and the lad I sometimes work with has a Hitachi gas powered brad nailer. He's had it for over a year and its doing fine so far. Nice little gun and a lot less money than the Paslodes.

Both of those are the straight ones, we are both subbies and no sites we go on buy the angled nails so no subbie in their right mind would buy a gun that they have to buy the nails for instead of the ones the site supplies.

Going by what I've seen I'd buy the Hitachi if I had to buy another.

Some people seem to have a lot of bad luck with finish nailers but I manage fine, I do service my own though and I'm used to doing a bit of motorbike spannering so maybe that helps?

I've tried a De-Walt and it fired the brads in just fine but its a bit of a lump to cart about isn't it?

 

[DB10]

I have both Ryobi One+ Airstrike Nailers, the 18g P320 and 16g P325, I don't use them every day. but when I have used them, they have never let me down. They are better with the 4.0Ah Li'on batteries, they last longer and drive deeper than with the smaller 1.5Ah batteries.

I wanted an 18g cordless nailer to go with my cordless Dewalt framing gun and was getting frustrated with the lack of choice down here.
So I took a punt on the Ryobi 18g Airstrike. My first time to buy Ryobi and for the money it's been great value and once you get used to setting it up, it's been faultless.