Carpentry Of Homes,,, Nail Diameter,, and Codes?

[CADplans]

I am not a carpenter, but, I nail stuff occasionally,,

I have a 21 degree pneumatic nail gun,, and I was shopping for nails this morning,,
it turns out that collated nails for a nail gun are way cheaper than loose nails,

That makes no sense to me,,

1,000 galvanized, ring shank nails for a nail gun costs about $25
222 framing nails loose in a box, (5 pounds) $14
Buying loose nails,, 5 pounds at a time, 1,000 nails would cost $63, over double the cost of the nail gun framing nails
(I think I could buy 50 pounds of nails for less,, but, I do not foresee EVER needing that many nails, so, If I do not use the nails, there is no savings)

Yes, the loose nails are 0.162" diameter, the nail gun nails are 0.120" diameter

BUT,, BOTH are called framing nails, and they are about the same length.

IMHO, the ring shank nails would be harder to pull out,, the nail gun nails also look to be glue coated,,

SO, is a framing nail a framing nail, or does a code stop me from using a "framing nail gun" because the nails are too small of a diameter?

 

[Diggin It]

It's not so much about pulling out as it is about sheer/breakage strength in my view. A 1/2 bolt is stronger than a 1/4 bolt, right? You want a nail diameter strong enough to resist sheer forces, but not so big as to split the boards.

"Under 渡ail size, the 菟enny size refers to a standard nail unit. Nails are measured in pennies, believed to be from older times when nails were sold by the penny. At the time, the abbreviation for pennies was d, so nail sizes are described as 2D nails, 3D nails, etc. The shank diameter and length refer to the shaft part of the nail, called the shaft, which is driven into the surface."

6D 11 0.12 2"
16D 8 0.165 3.5"

Explaining Screw and Nail Sizes

To me, a 6D 11g nail is too small. I've been using the 16D by 3 -3.5" which penetrates 2 2x boards.

 

[Ford850]

16D coated sinkers, 5lb box, are $8.99 at Menards. $29.99 for 30 lb bucket, and $47.99 for 50 lbs.

 

[Diggin It]

I use the smaller ring shank nails for attaching 1 x trim boards in some cases, or when using steel framing brackets.

 

[Diggin It]

I'm not sure why HF reduced the diameter of the ring shank nails. The coated nails are showing as .131 diameter which would be better. The coating acts as a lubricant going in, but an adhesive for holding. They can be tough to get out, but not as bad as ring shanks.

21deg 3-1/4 in. Bright Coated Framing Nails, 1, Pc.

 

[clemsonfor]

I have also been told some of those Harbor Freight nails for their guns are clip head nails, where part of the head is like cut off. I have heard some codes do not allow those .

I would think code would specify a nail diameter, I know usually they specify a length.

 

[EddieWalker]

Local dock builder uses ring shank nails on all his boat docks. I've done about a dozen jobs on those docks in about as many years and found that ring shank nails work great on treated wood for about 3 years, then they come out as easy as any other nail ounce the wood dries out.

Framing nails are fasteners, which means that they are designed to hold lumber in place. NOT SUPPORT IT. Nails are not structural, which means that are never to be used to hold or support anything. Bolts are structural, hangers and brackets are structural with the approved fasteners, which are never framing nails.

Nails word by bending the fibers of the wood as they go through the wood, which locks them in place. The tip of the nail is worthless at holding the nail in place, so in some places a home inspector will want to see the top of the nail coming through two boards to know that they are long enough to get the full amount of strength out of the nail. This is also why clipped head nails are not allowed per code in a lot of areas. You loose to much strength without the full head of the nail holding the boards together.

As for cost, bigger is better, but there is a point where you are just wasting money. Kind of like using 2x12's for headers over doorways when 2x6 headers are more then strong enough for a 3 foot span.

Pretty much, the only time that I use nails is when framing studs for a house and installing shingles. 100% of everything that I use for exterior work, like a deck, is done with screws.

 

[CADplans]

So, pretty much everybody does not like the small diameter Hitachi - Metabo nails,,
but, that is what they sell as a framing nailer nail,,

Does no one use a pneumatic framing nailer? is everything hand nailed?

 

[clemsonfor]

Well said from an expert, Eddie.

I didn't nt use nails on much of anything esp outside. Like you said over the years they just back out and are worthless, even ring nails.

 

[RNeumann]

Much like the size of a 2x4 has shrunk with time and engineering so too have nails. Most framing and construction is done with gun nails. They are fine and meet code. The only exception is that some inspectors don’t like the clipped head nails. If you don’t know what that is, you don’t have any- it was an oddball. Some guns take an offset head which is fine.

Btw- comparing the cost of galvanized nails to framing nails isn’t a fair comparison. The gun nails have gained in popularity to the point the cost has come down. Where as the standard (sinkers) nails are more of a special item- palm nailer tight spots or attaching hardware.