Over at our Facebook page, Howard messaged in, asking for some brad nailer recommendations.
What brand of brad nailer can you suggest?
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For my own use, I went with Hitachi (now Metabo HPT), since their nailers offer a good balance between features, performance, and affordability. I don’t use my Hitachi/Metabo HPT NT50AE2 daily, but I have used it enough to know I made the right choice.
I bought my Hitachi because I was using enough brad nails on projects that I needed an “owned” sample for personal use and to serve as a reference for comparison.
It has a stellar reputation, but doesn’t have as many frills as some other nailers on the market.
I would also go with the Dewalt Precision Point brad nailer, DWFP12233, part of a whole line of new Dewalt air nailers that came out in 2015.
Howard also then asked:
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What about the new Bostitch with the smart point feature?
A contributor reviewed the Bostitch Smart Point brad nailer for us here.
With Bostitch and Dewalt both under Stanley Black & Decker, it’s inevitable for Dewalt and Bostitch nailers to be similar. Bostitch makes good nailers. While I haven’t compared the two recently, I would trust either brand equally.
Thus, the Hitachi is what I bought for myself, and I can enthusiastically recommend it. But for someone looking for a little more, my instinct would be to recommend the Dewalt Precision Point or similar Bostitch Smart Point.
If you look for the Hitachi/Metabo HPT, they’re the same nailer with the same model number, and so it’s okay to shop by price.
I have used various brands of brad nailers over the years, some of them very briefly, others quite a bit more, such as the Ridgid I won in a giveaway a long time ago. Frankly, most of them work well enough, with differences coming down to user features and consistency.
What brad nailers would YOU recommend?
Up for a tougher question? Which brand of nails?
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Jared
I use a Porter Cable Cordless 20v max, but I’m not doing it professionally. There’s certainly trade-offs using a battery-powered nailer, but completely worth it in my opinion for the convenience. It’s absolutely fantastic to be able to fire in a few nails without waiting for my compressor to noisily spool up or having to drag it around with me.
Biggest drawback is the cost. I found mine on clearance, but they are normally pretty expensive.
Dean
I am a contractor and I have used Hitachi for years but I am tired of returning brad nailers because they don’t last. I have had 5 of them in the last 2 years. The last one wouldn’t even feed the nails right out of the box. All the other have been braking because of the “ plastic “ parts. Extremely disappointed with what Hitachi is producing. Not for the professional!
I have decided to try Makita since I use all there cordless tools. Great products that last with everyday day use!
Skye
I’m also a professional builder and that’s been my experience too with Hitachi’s Brad guns.
Grex is best (IMHO) but pretty expensive
Craig
16 ga and 18 ga nailers I like Senco. For 23 ga micro pinner I like my Grex
Allen
I recently bought the Hitachi, very happy with it.
I’ve never been around air nailers much, years ago did a lot with a palm nailer is all. One word of caution: when a brad jambs, and it will, relieve the spring pressure on the brad magazine before opening the tool free hinged cover to clear it. Maybe that is just common knowledge for most, but I must have missed it.
My mistake resulted in a nasty scratch on my glasses when the contents of the magazine came flying out. Point it away from you. Lesson learned.
John
Related to this, I need a small compressor for a project at a relative’s house. Anyone have a recommendation for a small 1 gallon or so compressor? Not interested in a cordless nailer since I already a Hitachi pneumatic unit and the price is out of line for my use.
Nathan
I don’t know how much you want to pay or how much space you have but I would recommend the Porter Cable/Craftsman/bostitch/other brands – 6 gallon pancake compressor handily. Yes it’s a bit more than you asked for but it doesn’t take up much room – easy to handle – but it won’t cycle as much. Also for 99 dollars price point they are decent kit.
salmon
I have a Bostitch CAP1512-OF and I really like it. It’s loud like a dump truck but it has an exceptionally high output of 2.8cfm@90psi and it will run its tank all they way to 150psi. It’s really small and portable and it can actually run large tools like 1/2″ impact guns (briefly).
Craig
If the project is small and using 16 ga or smaller nails the Senco PC1010 is great. It’s super quiet and only weighs bout 20 lbs I’d guess. If you don’t care about weight and noise then I’d look elsewhere due to versatility
Gordon
I highly suggest the California Air Tools quiet models. Your ears will thank you.
RCWARD
Can’t go wrong with a little “Rolair” . At 60db they are quite as can be. Check it out
Jim Felt
Love mine. 60 dB is so great and any household circuit will power it. Very easy to move around too.
Mo
My JC 10 lasted about a month out of warranty, and Rolair declined to help me with it.
Never again.
I currently have the Menards Masterforce Rolair clone, it is great.
The senco is a bit smaller.
The California air have good reviews, I’ve seen them on site a few times.
Blythe
If all you’re needing to do is finish work the 1 gal California is amazing. It’s a dream machine for punch out, and perfectly capable running a Brad nailer. I even ran my framing nailer in a pinch, although you get about 5 shots per cycle.
Greg
Bostitch smart point came out before there were even Dewalt branded nailers. SBD just copied the technology into the Dewalt branded versions. I own the Bostitch smart point 15, 16, and 18ga finish nailers. they are superb in every way and wouldn’t trade them for anything. even better, their 15ga nailer comes in both DA and FN style nailers. I got the DA style as it seems more brands use that style and nail availability should be better (at least where I am). Bostitch used to be carried by both Lowes and HD but HD clearanced out their Bostitch branded nailers and replaced them with the Dewalt branded ones so presumably SBD did this so there was less comparison shopping/create seperate branding for the two stores.
salmon
What exactly is the use case for a brad nailer?
A framing nailer is used for framing. A coil nailer is used for siding, roofing, and plywood work. A pin nailer is used for cabinetry and finish work. Brad nailers are used for what? Furniture assembly? Bigass crown moldings?
If you’re part of the narrow category of professionals that need one, you’ll probably end up with a Grex or maybe a Bostich brad nailer. If you’re not a professional I don’t see why you’d need one.
Nathan
I have a bostich smart point 15 angled and it’s fantastic – biggest reason I bought it was the review on here mentioning the narrowness of the point and easy positioning.
Secondary – the oil free motor system. Which yes the Dewalt also has and I know others do too. It does cost a bit But at the time I got it – the other brands were within 40 dollars of it and I figured that was money well spent.
I’m in the market for an 18 as the 15 is too big for some tasks. I guess I might consider a 23 pinner – I’d need to be convinced of why I need one
Otherwise yes I think the Hitachi is the cheapest that’s not a HF device and they are decent too.
Chance
Just FYI, the difference between an 18 and 23 gauge nailer is very significant. An 18 will actually hold projects together pretty decently and has a head on the nail, whereas you could put a couple 23 gauge nails into a corner and easily pull it apart. I only recommend a 23 for small intricate moldings or returns where it basically is just holding the material until the glue dries since the nail itself has almost no strength and no head.
fred
Exactly! A 23 ga. will have less propensity for splitting a molding – but not much holding power without glue. The pin is more an “alignment tool or clamp” to hold the trim in place while the glue dries. I like the 21ga. – because it has more holding power – but reduces the chance for splitting versus the 18ga.
Jared
I use mine for pinning while assembling plywood-based projects (e.g. garage shelving, work stands etc.). Used it to put some baseboards in my house. Generally to hold things in place before using screws (recently while putting up some boards in my hog corral, for example). I used it on my deck rail while gluing a board that had warped slightly, so I could then follow up with a screw from the bottom without needing an extra pair of hands.
I don’t know what you might use it for, but I find uses for my cordless nailer frequently simply because it’s always ready to go.
To be clear, my nailer is actually 16 gauge. I lump it in the brad nailer category because I don’t see much difference between those two sizes for my use. I also own a cheap Mastercraft pneumatic 18 gauge nailer but I can’t recommend those at all – I’m on my fourth replacement. Something behind the trigger assembly keeps blowing a seal – before I can even get through a box of nails. They’re complete junk.
fred
@ salmon
While we are on the topic of nail guns – by way of tutorial – you probably know that nail guns for trim work drive “nails” or pins that come in various lengths and gauges.
Most 23 ga. pins are headless. There are also 21ga., 18ga. , 16ga. and 15ga. going from smallest diameter to highest. Guns come in different configurations – some with angled nail magazines to provide easier access in tight spaces. They also may be powered by air (pneumatic) a fueled-piston (e.g. Paslode Impulse) or battery (several different designs – including ones like the Senco Fusion).
Framing nail guns – may work with full head or clipped lead nails – with different nail collating schemes.
Roofing and siding nail guns often use a coil of nails held in a round magazine. These nails typically are shorter than framing nails, and have larger heads. Some that we had, like the Makita AN611 are made more for siding while our Hitachi NV45AB2’s were designed more for roofing.
Pneumatic T-Nailers like the Porta-Nails 460 we had were designed as an alternative (in some applications) to using a PAT for fastening items to concrete.
We had some specialty nail guns as well that drove “scrails” – or threaded shank nails. Our Tiger Claw TC-Gun was used for hidden deck fasteners, while a Fasco F58AC RHN20-90B SCR was a more general purpose tool.
There are nail guns – like the Bostitch MCN150 that we used – for use with metal framing connectors.
Specialized flooring nail guns drive L and T cleats – rather than nails. Ther typically drive 20ga, 18ga. and 16ga. cleats. We used guns from Powernail for this application.
Aside from the plethora of powered (hand, cordless, corded electric, pneumatic and impulse) and different crown/gauge staple guns that are available – there are also guns that drive corrugated fasteners and things like Senclamps. In the cabinet shop and for stair building we used a Senco SC1XP and Fasco F45C CF 9-15 SS.
Finally there a specialized nail guns – like the UFFY TH-T-DEC01 that fires decorative upholstery tacks, and the WOODTEK 148-268 that fires picture frame corner “nails”
Randy Schultz THIS PHONE
I’m on here looking for something better than the Makita. I use all there other stuff too and it’s top drawer so I figured the gun would be too. Nope. It jams frequently but worst of all is nail setting. I’m having to use a nail set to finish up every 10th Brad. It’s making me nuts.
The last one I had was a Bostich and it lasted about a year before the jams became intolerable. They are especially painful on the Bostich because clearing the jams requires Allen keys. At least the Makita has a latch.
I had an Omer and while it worked well for a year, eventually it failed and wouldn’t ya know it, can’t get parts for it. Sheesh
Stuart
I like Dewalt’s higher-end brad nailer, and bought myself a Hitachi/Metabo HPT with good results, but I’m also not a daily or even weekly user.
John
While I am a huge Hitachi fan, I would not recommend their pneumatic brad nailer. 2 main issues. First of all, the gun will dry fire when there are approx 8-10 brads remaining in the magazine with no dry fire lock out. That sucks. I have endless short stacks of brads as a result. Second is that some of these guns suffer from the pressure plate that pushes the brads tight to the gun nozzle will slip under a stack of 2″ brads only and lock up the magazine. I took the magazine apart and added a 1/32″+ thick adhesive plastic to thicken the pressure plate. Now no issues for that problem. Shorter brads never had the problem because the heads would prevent the plate from slipping under the nail stack.
I do have the cordless Hitachi brad gun which is great, no issues, bought used from Big Sky tools at about half price, but that gun is huge and heavy and leaves a larger indentation than a pneumatic.
Chance
Why do you take the 8-10 nails out? Just add another strip of nails and keep going. No reason to start a collection of 10-nail strips. But I do agree, Hitachi’s small nailers leave a lot to be desired. . . . .
John
Strangely another full set of 100 brads doesn’t slide in with the 8-10 left in the magazine. That’s been my experience over and over.
eric
Combine the 8-10 strips together…
fred
I’ll put my oar in the water for an in-between size (21ga) . I do mostly furniture and cabinet/casework these days. I have an older Grex (P635)pinner that I like well enough for fine trim moldings. I tried an older Makita cordless (XTP01Z) that was nearly worthless as it would not consistently sink pins. I have a few 18ga. brad nailers (Porter Cable pneumatic BN200A, Paslode Impulse IM200-F18 901000, and Ryobi cordless P320) – of these I probably use the Ryobi the most.
But my go to tool is a Cadex 21ga. tool (CPB21.50). Here is a current model:
https://www.toolnut.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=V1%2F21.35+21-SYS+
Chance
In my experience, Hitachi nailers are good down to a 15 gauge nailer. Their framing nailers/staplers are all wonderful, but their finish carpentry tools not so much. I haven’t used that Hitachi pictured at the start of the article, but let me tell you this, it regularly is on sale for $50 and has a rebate on top of that, and I still can’t get myself to purchase it for a spare nailer. It looks cheap, it feels cheap, and the safety is terrible. I bought a Hitachi 16 gauge straight nailer a bit ago and had to take it back because it was so bad and wouldn’t sink nails in the exact same material that my new Senco 16 gauge nailer would sink nails into with no problems, again, side by side testing.
Usually I love Senco, but since Kyocera took them over, not so much. I pulled a new Senco 18 gauge nailer out of the box the other day and it was pure junk, much worse than the Hitachi, cheap, poorly fitted components, oils seeping out, clunky, cheap rubber on the handle, and boy did it have “that smell”. I’ve been waiting for Acme to get the new Senco 16XP 16 gauge straight nailer in stock because I want another spare straight nailer, but after seeing how bad that 18 gauge nailer was I’m having second thoughts.
I’ve had problems with Bostitch in the past. The only decent Hitachi I’ve owned is a 15 gauge angled nailer and I wouldn’t buy any other small Hitachi nailer. Senco used to be the go-to quality nailer, but I t looks like that may not be the case anymore after Kyocera bought them out. My newer DeWalt pneumatics are much better than the ones from 15 years ago, and I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another DeWalt, but I would stay away from the precision tip that will mar and dent your workpiece very easily. I hate to say it, but I have been impressed with my Ridgid tools. They have a certain feel to them that I like, and they seem to be pretty durable. I haven’t bought a new Ridgid gun in a few years, so hopefully they are the same today.
There are A LOT of pneumatics out there that are made by some unknown company and then multiple brands will slap their colors and stickers on it and call it there own, Ive seen that at a store actually, two guns next to each other on the wall, different colors but the same tool. So if you like a certain gun, look around, you can maybe find it in a different color for cheaper.
All that being said, I would probably suggest you look at a non precision point DeWalt or a Ridgid.
aerodawg
I bought a Ryobi airstrike cordless some time back and have been super happy with it. This is just around the house work but even a small battery pack lasts longer than I need and it seems to have a really consistent driving action.
John Lobert
Same here. Great tool for the casual woodworker, like me.
David
And I’ll throw in a “me too” as well. The battery powered nailer changed how likely I was to reach for it versus an air nailer during projects, and that alone made it worth every penny.
aerodawg
I went so far as to move my pneumatic nailer from the active “shop area” to the storage closet. You know, all the stuff you don’t want to ditch but rarely need. Since I got the cordless I haven’t found a need to bust out the compressor.
fred
Away from my shop – its the Ryobi P320 cordless that I grab. I probably should sell or scrap my Paslodes and their smelly fuel canisters. But in the shop – once I start the compressor (it resides in its own room) up and get the system pressurized – I can plug in the pneumatics at various spots around my benches. Overhead reels and coil hoses help – so hoses are not so much underfoot. My black iron air line extends up into my garage too.
That all said – if I were starting over – I might try to go completely cordless. Certainly – when I’m off to one of the kid’s houses or our summer vacation home – I seldom think about loading my portable compressor and air hoses in the truck.
Thom
I have the Ridgid cordless and it is very handy… I hate dragging an air hose around
ari
I use my Ryobi P320 and its pretty much the most amazing tool I have ever owned. Super versital. Put a box together? Check. Nail board to wall? Check. Firearm under my pillow? Check.
The reviewes were so good when I was deciding that it convinced me to invest in a new battery/tool line. That and getting the brushless driver and drill combo for 75 bucks last year.
1000% buy if you’re on the fence
A
Dcl
I like my smart point/precision point nailers. I have a mix of dewalt and bostitch but they are all the same guns, just a different body. The old dewalt nailers, before they were just rebadged bostitch models were pure junk. Wouldn’t last a year but the new models are more reliable. I’ve tried a lot of cordless models, but the hitatchi ones are the only ones I found to be useful for anything more than occasionally putting up some pine casing.
Cr8on
I have a Bostitch brad nailer and the Ryobi battery powered. I have used the Ryobi exclusively for over 2 years to trim out about 8 homes and countless other projects.
The What?
Brad nailers are better for cosmetic purposes when fastening certain mouldings and trim and you don’t want the nail head to be seen as easily. Thus requiring less wood filler to cover up the hole and typically doesn’t require the use of a nail set like 15ga and 16ga finish nails do. Although they don’t have quite as much holding power as finish nailers they certainly make for a cleaner look. If you don’t mind hauling a hose and compressor around then the Hitachi or older bostitch is a good choice. Personally I would go with a cordless from dewalt or the ryobi airstrike or the pc. I never heard of grex or used them, so I couldn’t tell you if they’re good or not.
Lance
I’ve had a Makita AF505 for light use over the past 10 years or so. It works great, originally purchased to nail down our “hardwood” floor (don’t ask…) and redo all the trim in our house.
I just bought the 18v cordless Hitachi 18ga and though I only have a handful of nails through it to test it out, it certainly seems like a great nailer. Plenty of power, though bulky compared to the Makita. No compressor and no hose though!!!
Also got the 18v Hitachi 16ga and framing nailers. Same idea, only tested them out so far but seem very capable.
AngryDrumGuy
Another vote for the Hitachi NT50AE2.
I spent a long time considering cordless nailers, but ultimately decided against them due to the weight. Doing a lot of trim overhead makes your arms tired enough without having a battery and mini compressor added to them.
All of my nailers are Hitachi, so I stick with their nails and have never had an issue.
George Gallo
I have the Dewalt 16, 18 & 23 gauge air nailers, they are light, well balanced & operate efficiently.
They work great and I am very pleased with the performance. I don’t get jams, double shoots or anything crocked. I love the control in depth and gauge of each of these devices.
The only drawback is the compressor, having the dependency, the long air hose and the noise.
Get past that, they are perfect for my weekend woodshop hobbies.
Jon
I’ve been using Ryobi’s P320 AirStrike 18 gauge brad nailer for the past few weeks, and it’s been excellent in my experience. It handles extremely well – good balance, comfortable overmold grip, extremely quick and easy loading / unloading, and it’s very easy to pop open in the event of jams – although I’ve yet to get a jam.
It’s a bigger decision if you’re not already invested in Ryobi’s One+ system – but I am. I’ve got many One+ tools and several batteries from 1.5ah to 9ah. I got both the 18 gauge brad nailer and the 16 gauge straight finish nailer as a combo when they were on sale for about $250 for the pair. Great price, and both have performed perfectly.
I’m not affiliated with Ryobi (or Home Depot), but urge folks to google the P320 and check out reviews. It does quite well, and outperforms many other more expensive tools. I can’t say how it would hold up in daily use over the long term, but so far it’s doing really well for me in everything from pine and shoe molding to red oak flooring. All brads sunk perfectly just below the surface — no misses, no jams, and no marring on the wood work.
Ed Lindler
I have been using the Ryobi cordless brad nailer for the past several years at home & as a volunteer on Habitat for Humanity new construction & repair jobs. It has really performed well … so well, in fact, that several other volunteers have purchased them, & the construction staff at the affiliate has also purchased a couple for daily use. We have a lot of different folks using these & they get a lot of use. As far as I know, no problems have come up with them.
Joe H
Does anyone make a good corded brad nailer? There are lots of cordless and pneumatic nailers but I rarely have a need and I don’t want to store a small air compressor in an apartment that I will rarely use.
Stuart
The only ones I’ve seen are combo staplers that can only handle smaller length nails.
fred
There are plenty of professional-level corded carpet and upholstery narrow crown staplers. But as Stuart remarks – corded nail guns are as scarce as hen’s teeth
Bill
I have a Makita AF505N. It replaced my Aire ATK-0241 (which still works). I was looking for new one and the Makita was voted the best value in a publication that I read. So I went for it and haven’t been disappointed.
Paramount
I’ve broken three of the Hitachi 18g. Someone mentioned above about the magazine sliding over the nails…that’s what did two of them in. I liked the gun, but eventually had enough.
I use the Dewalt 18g with the precision tip now. The biggest upside has been the belt hook. I like the single/bump switch and the fact that it has not yet had a single issue in a year of hard use.
In defense of Hitachi, the 15g DA angled gun is the best 15g I’ve ever used. I use a Paslode pneumatic 16g straight and I bought a small stock of the *cough* Harbor Freight older-model pinners, which were the best thing I ever bought at Harbor Freight. The first one is just now starting to lag in sinking the pins, after 3 years.
I use these every day.
East bay grease
I see Hitachi’s the most on jobsites.
Stephen g
Ridgid makes a good 18g nailer. They have lifetime service too although I’ve yet to use it. I’ve shot over 10000 brad nails through one that I have. I’ve had several Hitachi guns break in that amount of shots fired. I also have a ryobi cordless and it has surprised me at how well it does too. I use these guns regularly.
LG
I use nail guns everyday 6-7 days a week. I work building my boys house on the weekend. If anyone knows cordless nailers I went through 2x 2ah batteries today! That’s a lot considering they barely use and power lol I have the hitachi 18g & angled 15g, I personally dislike the 18g but like the 15g for what it is. Granted I got the 18g for $45 new. It doesn’t come with non-marring tip, wtf? I’m wrapping electrical tape around it once every 1-2 weeks to keep it from denting the wood. Porter cable 18/16g again nothing special. They have nice power, but a big nose making it difficult to get into tight areas. Husky guns eh. The common trend here is they all are cheap priced guns & will do the job well enough. A few paslodes angled 16/18/air framer/gas framer. Paslode makes some nice guns no major complaints except they are expensive & require upkeep. Maybe 3 grex pins like them all. If I was to buy another air nailer it would be the ridgid or dewalt that my coworkers have which Ive used extensively. They are nice guns, good build quality & not to hard on the pockets. My most recent purchase is 15g angled & 18g cordless Dewalt. They are great! Not one complaint yet & ive been running them a Couple months. If they broke tomm I would buy them again with no hesitation! Actually the 18g dewalts black color on the name has 1/2 rubbed off, & I noticed on my friends 18g also. So I Duno what that’s about but the 15g is good money. I guess I’ll find some usage for my inkzall lol. The porter cable & huskys had the most misfires. Any brand name guns will do a decent to good job it’s gunna come down to price imo bc with features like a dry fire lockout or being oil-less it seems to be rated “generally” by price point. The more expensive the more bells & wistles. A dry fire lock out def comes in handy! Oh One friend has a Milwaukee cordless 18g, a mid range price and but he complains about it not always firing well on an angle. Which for me can be an issue at times installing trim. Air… I would guide you to ridgid if price was the issue dewalt if not as big of an issue. Cordless… dewalt! Or Bostich bc They are twins. Paslode if you wanted the lightest/most skimmed down design. I personally don’t like the smell it’s gas nailers give off. But they are very light in comparison to straight cordless. Pin nailers… grex patented it so they are always gunna be near the best but it doesn’t matter if it’s corded or cordless they are super expensive! The Dewalt pinner I use is nice and decent prices! Easy counter sink adjustment compared to the grex. (The Grex I have are old though) I will be buying a Makita cordless pinner down the road unless dewalt releases one maybe. The cabinet guy I work with loves his makita & I trust his opinion. Only a few cordless pinners on the market? What’s taking companies so long?
fred
I’m guessing that getting it right is a tough thing for designing a cordless pinner. I jumped on a Makita (first model XTP01Z) in 2015 to supplement a Grex pneumatic.
That model Makita was nothing but frustration. Luckily 23ga. pins are easy enough to nip off or pull out when the gun leaves them standing proud. I hope the newer (XTP02Z) is better.
LG
Oh my boss has some harbor freight garbage bc he was desperate & forgot his nailer or something else. They suck… I’ve decided to only shop harbor freight for a select few things.
Mo
I have both the Hitachi and the Bostitch pneumatic guns.
They are both fine guns.
I usually reach for the Hitachi for some reason.
Avoid the chinesium, for which parts will be unavailable.
I generally use my Hitachi cordless 18 ga any more
I remodel Apartments for a living, so I am not trimming out huge homes.
generally small remodels-bathrooms, kitchens, new flooring etc so the cordless nailer works great for me
Ian
Has anyone got any experience with Freeman nailers?
I ve the 21 framing nailer and stapler and have not had any issues with either.
They also come with a 7 year warranty.
fred
We had a Freeman Pneumatic 10.5ga. fencing staple gun – used for 1 big project – it seemed to work OK – as I heard no griping about it. But I did hear what a pain it was hauling the compressor and hoses around. Of course the company “Freeman Tools of America” makes their tools in China.
If I were back in the business and we had to do a big country estate fence project again – I’ might be looking at a Fasco or Stockade (ITW-Paslode New Zealand) cordless fence staple gun – rather than having the guys carting around a engine-driven compressor.
ktash
Another vote for the Ryobi Airstrike brad nailer. I’ve had it for a few years and the only problem was when it needed cleaning. Easy to do, but if it stops, that’s most likely the problem. More recently I got the Ryobi Airstrike pin nailer, and use it a whole lot, right now even more than the brad nailer. Mainly to hold things together as I construct them with glue. Makes life so much easier. I also got the narrow crown stapler for cabinet backs and such. Haven’t used it enough to recommend, but it seems like the other two. I was already invested in the Ryobi line, but even if I hadn’t been, this would have been my top choice.
My pneumatic nailers just gather dust. Why deal with a compressor for nailing when the Ryobi is so much easier. They are bigger with the batteries, so if I needed to get into a tight spot, I’d probably use them.
Paul J. Koch jr.
I am a remodel contractor and use a 23 g pin nailer for trim work. By pinning two pins side by side on an angle to each other it is not easy to pull joints apart. Tiny holes! Porter Cable and Hitachi both work well, air driven models. A small compressor and 1\4″ line are not that big a deal!
DJA
I like my Hitachi 18G gun. It’s a light-duty tool in my use and the depth adjustment seems to work well. It’s never jammed or made me swear at it. I prefer the tip on top vs behind. Having said that, it took 3 tries to get a Hitachi 23G pinner that didn’t leak air out of the box. First bad experience with Hitachi.
Chance
Does anyone have any word on the new “Pro” brad and finish nailers from Hitachi? When I asked the rep about them he basically just said they were better and he didn’t have any with him to let me use. Obviously they should be better when they each cost almost four times what the standard shelf model costs. I would like to try them out but haven’t heard a lick of anything about them, even though they’ve been out for months now. I was hoping for COO to be Japan for that price, but the finish nailer is Taiwan and the Brad is listed as “OMN” on Acme’s site, not sure what that’s an abbreviation for.
KajunFramer
Paslode or Max. Nothing flashy. They just work, and are durable.
Jeff
I’m a trim carpenter by trade. I have gone through 2 dewalt precision point pinners in less then 3 years. I’m currently on my 3rd. I will not purchase a 4th when this one is shot