Pneumatic Nail Guns

[EddieWalker]

I have bought two Hitachi tools. One was a small air compressor that was a total piece of junk. The other is a SDS Max rotary hammer that is amazing. I'd give Hitachi a try for framing guns because of the recomendations and good reviews.

I have DeWalt right now and wont recomend it to anybody. It works great, except for the times when it doesn't. I'm kind of down on DeWalt anyway, and think that my framing gun is about average for the brand. Decent price, decent results, but nothing great about anything they make.

My favorite brands are Makita and Bosch. Both are highly rated and very pricey. A good tool will make you money regardless of what it cost to buy it. A junky tool will cost you money no matter how cheap you get it.

Good luck,
Eddie

 

[dieselscout80]

Is a set like this any good?

Shop Campbell Hausfeld 5 Nailer Kit at Lowes.com

We are starting a new house (http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/193082-starting-new-house.html) and I need a (some?) nail guns for customisations that I would like to make along the way. I also am going to help with the framing but mainly as a laborer. We are building with a SIP panel exterior and traditional framing for the interior walls.

I have a Paslode Cordless Finish Nailer and am considering buying the cordless framing nailer. I have a couple of compressors that are capable of driving framing nailers so an air nailer would be a less expensive and perhaps better option.

I appreciate your advice.

I bought the Red Campbell three nail gun set last fall and tried the finish nailer and the stapler and neither would drive the nail all the way in. I returned the kit and bought a Hitachi framing nailer and a Bostitch 16 guage finish nailer and both work great on the same compressor and settings.

I also used my Hitachi framing nailer with the Onboard Air (OBA) Compressor on my IHC Scout to nail fence rails for my pastures.

 

[smstonypoint]

I am not sure if that framing nailer shoots the round headed nails vs. the clipped head or not. The inspectors here will question gun nails that do not have the full round head.

I've heard/read about AHJ issues with 30 degree clipped head nails (paper collated). The Palsode literature indicates that their 30 degree RounDrive nails meet all building codes for a round head nail.

About Nails

Based on the input here, Hitachis seem to be favored. They have both round head (plastic collated) and clipped head (paper collated) nailers.

Steve

 

[vaskeet]

I have mainly have porter cable nailers (framing, finish, brad, roofing) dewalt crown stapler and bostich brad. I like the single fire per trigger per pull switch on the porter cable framing nailer. I dont make my living with them but I havent driven a nail with a hammer in along time. just always use oil Randy

 

[bearcreek paul]

I used a harbor freight framing nailer.It will shoot full and clipped head and 3 different angles 21 28 and 34.It has over 6,000 nails and only a hand full of jams.My roofing nailer has close to twice as many nails through it and works fine. I think I paid a little over 200.00 for both.They are not the best but a good deal for the price.

 

[bradm64]

I bought one of the CH 5 gun sets about a month ago to finish basement. I don't make a living with it, so I could not justify a commercial. Really wanted that Paslode....

So far, the framing gun has worked fine, but I could not use a small pancake compressor - it did not hold enough pressure to consistently sink the nails. It is an older one of my father in laws, so it might just be tired.

I started using my larger compressor, and it is doing fine with it. Been through about 2500 nails so far......

 

[skipmarcy]

I have one of the Porter Cable 350 framers - it's 21 degree full-head, plastic collated and I've got a little over 80K nails thru it and haven't had to replace any parts yet. Once in a great while a piece of that plastic can jam you and alot of guys don't like all that plastic litter from this type but it has really been a dependable gun. I always hit it with a few drops of oil every time I use it and clean the magazine and spray a little silicone spray on it every so often. The trigger is the dual type but I always use it on single fire and by design it can't be accidentally knocked to bump fire like some of the cheaper ones I've seen. I think I paid $179 for it 5 years ago. Got my money's worth if it quit tomorrow.

 

[ustmd]

I have one of the Porter Cable 350 framers - it's 21 degree full-head, plastic collated and I've got a little over 80K nails thru it and haven't had to replace any parts yet. Once in a great while a piece of that plastic can jam you and alot of guys don't like all that plastic litter from this type but it has really been a dependable gun. I always hit it with a few drops of oil every time I use it and clean the magazine and spray a little silicone spray on it every so often. The trigger is the dual type but I always use it on single fire and by design it can't be accidentally knocked to bump fire like some of the cheaper ones I've seen. I think I paid $179 for it 5 years ago. Got my money's worth if it quit tomorrow.

I have the same Poorter Cable and have used it for my workshop and a neighbor's shed. I have been very happy with it.

 

[vaskeet]

I have one of the Porter Cable 350 framers - it's 21 degree full-head, plastic collated and I've got a little over 80K nails thru it and haven't had to replace any parts yet. Once in a great while a piece of that plastic can jam you and alot of guys don't like all that plastic litter from this type but it has really been a dependable gun. I always hit it with a few drops of oil every time I use it and clean the magazine and spray a little silicone spray on it every so often. The trigger is the dual type but I always use it on single fire and by design it can't be accidentally knocked to bump fire like some of the cheaper ones I've seen. I think I paid $179 for it 5 years ago. Got my money's worth if it quit tomorrow.

same one I was talking about also like that it came with a hard case Randy

 

[PILOON]

I purchased my HITACHI used about 18 yrs ago.
By my estimate I have probably shot 40-50 cases of nails with it.
Not bad for a USED gun!
Other than frequant oiling, I have not spent one dime on maintainance yet.

BTW, INMHO, stick is better than coils as ever dropped coil is instant trash and you can carry enough sticks in your pouch to deck a roof
Try carrying coils.

 

[spanky8N]

Hello,
Two years ago I bought a similar campbell hausfeld set but it only had three guns- a framing nailer, an angled 2.5 inch finish gun, and a small 1.25 inch trim gun. I built my entire house using all three guns and experienced no issues. They worked flawlessly. I did all framing and finishing for the house. I contracted out for the shingling, plumbing, electric, and foundation. I only mention this to note how many nails passed through these guns during construction.... A lot!
I am building another house this spring and plan on using them again. Hopefully they perform as well.
Have fun- Dan

 

[dstig1]

I'm just wondering how many different spellings of "Porter Cable" can occur in one thread:laughing:

 

[robs660]

If you are only going to do a few "side" projects and plan on having your contractor do the majority of the work then I would say give the combo a try. Worst case - you can return them to Lowes. I have guns from Maxx, Stanley, (old) porter cable, Paslode, Omer, and many other brands. For working every day go with a pro grade gun. For weekend warrior stuff I would definitely try the imports.

Good luck on the new house.

 

[forgeblast]

Palsode, bought a used one on ebay for under 100 shipped, the tool is a beast. Uses either type of nails. I used it to build a chicken coop and wow did it make it fast to put up. I also have a dewalt brad nailer, love it have used it lot and one of my top three air tools.

 

[JJT]

I used a harbor freight framing nailer.It will shoot full and clipped head and 3 different angles 21 28 and 34.It has over 6,000 nails and only a hand full of jams.My roofing nailer has close to twice as many nails through it and works fine. I think I paid a little over 200.00 for both.They are not the best but a good deal for the price.

I'll second that. I bought a pair of 21 degree HF nailers, figuring I'd wear 1 out, or drop and break it. The primary nailer has driven more than 40,000 nails and it's still going strong, the backup nailer is rarely used. At $69each, you can afford to buy a backup. Same goes for their roofing nailers. Sometimes good is good enough and the HF nailers have been good enough for me.

 

[Bird]

Palsode, bought a used one on ebay for under 100 shipped, the tool is a beast. Uses either type of nails. I used it to build a chicken coop and wow did it make it fast to put up. I also have a dewalt brad nailer, love it have used it lot and one of my top three air tools.

I don't know how much they've changed, but in 1996, my brother bought a pneumatic Paslode framing gun to build his house. It worked flawlessly for the entire construction job and then he sold it to a neighber. He also bought a new Craftsman 18 gauge brad gun for the finish work. I bought a re-conditioned Campbell-Hausfeld 18 gauge brad gun and it looked exactly like his Craftsman. Both worked flawlessly until we sold them when we moved back to town. Since then, my brother gave me a Harbor Freight combination pneumatic brad/staple gun. It's been seldom used, but has worked fine so far when I've used it.

 

[jake98]

I lurk over at the JLC forums, a pros-only site.

I had to stop paying attention to their 'pros' when they featured the guy that hangs doors with no shims. Another front cover featured a guy trimming his rafter tails with a saws-all. It was all I could take. :laughing:

I've always gone with Bostitch nailers.

 

[RobertBrown]

I am not sure if that framing nailer shoots the round headed nails vs. the clipped head or not. The inspectors here will question gun nails that do not have the full round head.

Full round head, 21*

 

[gengine]

I have to say that I have rarely used Cambell Hausfield, my dad has a few in his hobby shop, but I would guess they have only had a few hundred nails shot in the last ten years. I built cabinets for about 5 years, a house full a week or better, and only had to replace one crown stapler. In the shop we used all Paslode, (the hose type), but in the field we used all Porter Cable. Porter Cable seems to have decent prices, especially if you pick up the combo kit. Lately I've been doing a lot more framing and less finish work, and the one that suprised me was a refurbished Ridgid framing nailer. It has had a few thousand nails through it with only 10 or 12 jams. I bought it from a truck load sale for maybe $100. Just like any nailer, oil fairly liberally, like 15 drops in big nailers, 2-3 drops in little nailers a couple times a day. You don't want to spray that oil from the exhaust onto your projects. The oil will prevent the stain from penetration on your trim and such. The oil on the framing won't hurt, as it all gets covered up. My older Dewalt is a pretty decent framer, but my Bostich is just about worthless. However, one of my foreman buddies swear by them. Hitachi and Senco have always been great tools, but you pay a little extra for them. As for nails, here in Wyoming, everything is moving towards the full head plastic collated nails. I believe building codes now do not allow clipped head framing nails, just something to research first. Good luck in whatever you choose, I don't hear much about Campbell, but I don't hear too much negative. All the other ones are tried and true, so just read what people say, and make up your own mind. You know better than anyone else how much use it's going to get and by that, what price you want to pay. Take care!

 

[leveled]

I vote for Hitachi, they are simple to fix plus built well. There are also variations in nail cost and Hitachi is pretty common, plus parts are well priced and common. I have a Bostich coil fence nailer that I just love its so light and powerful, I really don't like working on Bostich tools and the stick framer is horrible, I have one. Mostly everything else is Hitachi. I have 20 +guns.