I am in the market to get ab 18 ga. air nailer. What do you all out there use> Electric or battery? What brand? Is it worth the money to rebuild an old one? Any thoughts greatly appreciated.
(12-06-2019, 05:23 PM)weelis Wrote: I am in the market to get ab 18 ga. air nailer. What do you all out there use> Electric or battery? What brand? Is it worth the money to rebuild an old one? Any thoughts greatly appreciated.
Pneumatic, Harbor Freight has them for cheap. They work as well as the PC , Bostich that I own.
mike
either pnuematic or battery depending on need useage. I have the htitachi/ metabo hpt battery and its awesome to be able to use without a hose but is bigger and heavier than a pnuematic. Cordless nailers give you that same feeling of freedom you got the first time you used a cordless drill. There are different methods for accomplishing cordless nailing if you go this way do some research all have some variations
I also have an older hitchi pnuematic which has been good too. Fits slme places the cordless wont.
check out big sky tool for refurbished hitachi/metabo htp deals. they run regular specials.
Kinda depends on the amount of use and the places used. Now and then, cordless probably is better. Long term use(installing lots of trim), an air model is better.
Years ago(probably 20), I bought pneumatic Porter Cable models. Framing nailer, 16 and 18 gauge nailers. Liberal oil use(twice a day or more during construction) and all three are functioning fine. I bought a Stanley Bostich narrow crown stapler which has been less reliable.
I have a Harbor Freight 23 gauge pinner---it works, but pins get stuck all the time. It gets minimal occasional use. One small box of two sizes will probably outlast me. For the $20 or so I spent, it has paid for itself.
I’m still pneumatic and like the Grex brand nailers. Used to have the Senco’s (older ones) but started running into issues with having to replace the various gaskets more frequently than seemed reasonable. Still a fan of the older Senco staplers and Bostich for the framing nailer. And none of them (other than the Grex) are close to new.
(12-06-2019, 05:23 PM)weelis Wrote: I am in the market to get ab 18 ga. air nailer. What do you all out there use> Electric or battery? What brand? Is it worth the money to rebuild an old one? Any thoughts greatly appreciated.
It all depends. Are you a hobbiest or professional? I am a trim carpenter, I have both. My DeWalt 18 gauge air nailer is great. It was money well spent. I have a Ryobi 18 gauge too. Also an excellent tool. If you already have a compressor and hoses, go with the air powered. If you don"t, get the cordless so you dont have to buy all of that stuff.
I"ve had Porter Cable and wasn't sorry when they broke. I also had a Bostich that was nice but someone else liked it too and it disappeared. I was never too impressed with Pasload cordless nailers. They're too noisy and require frequent cleaning. The cleaner used to be solvent based so it had a strong odor. Air powered Pasload were great tools but I"m not sure they make them anymore. This all just my opinion. However, everyone in my company has the same combo of tools so either they"re top notch or we"re all copycats.
As far as rebuilding, that depends too. you have to weigh the price of repair against the price of a new one. You can purchase a rebuild kit for many guns but unless your comfortable handing tiny parts that all look alike even though they are slightly different then I wouldn't bother. And sending to a repair shop has the cost of the parts added to paying someone else to do it for you. plus two way shipping.
If you"re a hobbiest/weekend woodworker, what's wrong with a good old hammer and brads? If i ever get to retire, and I plan to continue woodworking as a hobby or pastime, then the nail guns will retire too.
I have a pneumatic 18 gauge Firestorm (by Black & Decker) brad nailer that was a hand-me-down when my father passed away. I have used it for a good while now and it works well. A piece of the plastic at the tip has broken over time but it hasn't affected it's performance. I still use it for final assembly tasks in my finish room (located in the basement of my home).
When I decided to add a nail gun to my detached workshop last February I did a lot of research on a wide range of options including various brands, price points, pneumatic vs battery, etc. I had originally looked at getting a single nailer but in the process and after looking at the many possibilities, I began to focus on a package of several nailers to provide not only a wider range of capabilities, but to do so at a somewhat reasonable overall cost. In the end, I chose to go with a kit of pneumatic nailers from Freeman and have been well satisfied with the service they have been providing. The package I chose (P4FNCB) has a 16 gauge finish nailer, 18 gauge brad nailer, 18 gauge narrow crown stapler, 23 gauge pin nailer, carry bag and a few other tidbits thrown in for $200 (about $50 / tool).
I have an air compressor in my workshop and a small portable unit for use in my finish area and wasn't really interested in a battery powered unit and thus I went with pneumatic. There are many brands and build quality levels of nailers to choose from and in the end I chose something somewhere in the middle and I have been more than satisfied with it's performance with no negative issues experienced.
As far as rebuilding a nailer, I would lean more toward purchasing a new unit (particularly considering the cost of labor) and to have something with all new parts throughout. If rebuilding a nailer yourself though, purchasing the needed parts could be an option to consider. I haven't tinkered around in any with rebuilding a nailer.
A lot can depend on how and how much you intend to use the nailer and the budget you have to work with. While it can be nice to have an array of tools to choose from - which can fit into each person's individual wants & needs - it can also be overwhelming, particularly when you want to get something that both fits your personal needs without breaking the bank in the process.
Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.
