Question about pneumatic nailer?

[stumpfield]

I'm planning to get a pneumatic framing nailer. I will be using mainly 8d & 16d nails for framing and sheeting. What brand/type is the most commonly used by pros? I got an bostich from 20 years ago and found that I couldn't find nail for it. What's the difference between full-round head, clip head and various degrees of nail types? I want to be able to use the most commonly used cheap nails sold at home depot or lowes. I don't want to stuck with a specific brand/type of nail only available by the nailer manufacturer. Is there such thing? Thanks for you help.

 

[OakHillFarmer]

Although I own the Hitachi framing nailer, I actually prefer the Bostich. The Hitachi nails are help together with little plastic clips that fly all over the place when nailing. It makes a mess and can be dangerous when the ricochet behind the safety glasses. They sting a bit too when they hit me just right. I don't do a lot of framing any more so it's not cost effective to replace them. However, if I were to replace them, I'd use the Bostich. The nail strips are held together with a thin tape or adhesive and they don't make a mess or shoot things in your eyes. Nails are readily available at Home Cheapo and anywhere else.

Good Luck,
Mark

 

[inveresk]

I have a Bostich framing nailer that takes 1 3/4" to 4" coils. These are about the most common type around here. I did consider a stick nailer because they're lighter and easier to wield but the problem is the magazine capacity is usually 60 nails and it becomes tiresome feeding it. The Bostich magazine capacity is 300 nails.

The Bostich was reasonably priced but seems built well enough to take a fair bit of abuse on the job. I built the barn with it and am half way through the roughing work on the house remodel and it's been trouble free. In addition it seems to work well enough on fairly low pressure, important when your driving sheathing nails. To comply with code here, these can't penetrate the ply by more than 1/16" and it's necessary to back off on the pressure quite a way to achieve this.

 

[shvl73]

Some of the older clipped head nails didn't meet the newer building codes so the full round head nailers gained popularity. Some brands made a type of round head nail where the head was offset, thus gaining nail magazine capacity that the round head nailers gave up with the spacing of the nails. If I were in the market for a nailer, I'd buy what was most commonly available in my area and had the availability of nails locally. Bostitch is popular in the northeast, with Senco, Hitachi, Paslode, Porter Cable, Max, Dewalt and Makita trailing.

 

[shvl73]

To comply with code here, these can't penetrate the ply by more than 1/16" and it's necessary to back off on the pressure quite a way to achieve this.

A lot of the newer guns have a depth-of drive adjustment, which will allow you to keep the pressure up and get consistent drive depth, regardless of the variation in wood density.

 

[MrJimi]

I agree with inveresk , I have a Bostich coil nailer and I love it and I also purchased for the same reasons, 300 nail capacity and ease of loading and a good name, I have had mine for 15 plus years
Jim

 

[inveresk]

A lot of the newer guns have a depth-of drive adjustment, which will allow you to keep the pressure up and get consistent drive depth, regardless of the variation in wood density.

Sounds the way to go. It can be a nuisance when I move from framing to sheathing having to trot to the workshop 80 feet away to back off the compressor.

 

[RayH]

Ive got a Porter Cable that has worked flawlessly for over seven years. I chose round head sticks because I like round head better than flat and the drums are just so dang heavy and bulky. At times I regret that decision but usually not.

 

[wrangler6831]

When I started building my house I bought a PASLODE brand that use the butane cylinder. No hose to fool with and will run atleast a full day on one cylinder. They are more expensive and need more maintenance but the portability more than offset both. I still have air nailers but 90% of the time I grab the PASLODE. It gets more use than any other tool I own.

 

[inveresk]

The Paslode is a good tool but I find it a bit too wicked for sheathing, sinks the nails more than code permits. I grabbed it today for work in the crawl space where I had some blocking to do and couldn't be bothered running an air line. It's certainly convenient for those types of jobs and despite carrying a battery and gas cylinder feels lighter than the Bostich.