What Brand Framing Gun?

vwovw

well i repair pretty much all of my own tools. Bosch, Milwaukee, Skill worm drives, Makita, Porter cable, Senco, Paslode. and they have the same replacement parts. i have multiples of these tools some bought at local tool crib type places or small tools suppliers or I buy them at the department box stores like HD Lowes Menards.. tools that i will not buy unless i'm in a jam. ryobi rigid dewalt air tools or bostich air tools.

TonK

Paslode and Paslode Impulse

In_Mexifornia

I agree.

This guy who worked only on one job before he was sent packing had a Dewalt framing nailer. It's only fires a single shot. Every time you fire one nail, you had to release the trigger otherwise it wouldn't fire again. Nailing sheer panel or sheething would suck.

Hobroom

Prove it.

KentWhitten

Yeah, I gotta agree, that doesn't sound right. If it has a model number on the side that matches one from somewhere else, it's the same gun. Check closely though, there might be just a slight variance in the model number to prove what he says.

Always ran Hitachi NR83A. IMO best gun period. People here in NE love the Bostich, and I try to convert them. No takers yet, but more Hitachi's are showing up.

Most nailers I own are Hitachi. My best value gun is an old Bostich brad nailer I bought just to do some cabinet or something. It's been in production mode for a long time. Has never broke. I never oil it. Actually, I never oil any of my guns, LOL. I'm so bad to my tools.

Worst gun is a senco stapler that has never nailed correctly. overshoots the crown and leaves it proud. I have replaced everything. I bought a Hitachi stapler and never looked back. Give that sucker some air volume and I guarantee the Hitachi stapler shoots 20 staples a second.

widco

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IBUILD

Hobroom, I got the skinny from a paslode rep that the Home Cheapo brand paslode or any other name brand is a knock off!! He wont even work on the paslode from Cheapo's. I bought one from there once, I tear them down all the time to clean them, different parts, cheaper of course, It's the only gun in my arsenal that breaks down. The o rings wear out fast and the firing mechanism is junk. As for the other brand names, check the model #'s, they are'nt the same as a lumber yards equiptment, they are specially designed for homeowner use and are priced cheaper to entice sales!!
Paslode all the way, aint no other way been using them for many years, I have 2 guns that have framed 50 houses, clean em regularly, learn how to work on them, hook em on and go!!

Hobroom

Okay, if the model number is different, fair enough, they could be different inside.

But in the power tools I've bought from Home "Cheapo" (LOL) have the exact same model numbers as the manufacturer's official website as the tool manufacturer. same internal parts, same same. Never experienced this mysterious line of special "contractor grade" versions of the tools sold at special locations.

I've heard this rumour before, but never seen an actual example to verify that it's true.

IBUILD

Im going to Cheapo tomorrow, gonna settle this once and for all!!
The rep I spoke of has been a friend for 25 years, he showed me the difference in parts from gun to gun, so Im convinced, Ill check the models for bostich framers, and read the warrantee info in the box.

2ndGen

Was looking into a Bostitch Framer, but after having borrowed a Hitachi, that's where I'm heading to.

Not that there's anything wrong with Bostitch (I'd only use Bostitch for Roofing Guns and nothing else, they are unbeatable), but a Hitachi is like a Skil WormDrive...classic, proven and hardcore.

I was thinking about buying one of the older 83 models and having it completely rebuilt.

Questions:

1. For sheating and framing, what's better, stick or coil?

I'd assume that coil guns are better because of less loading and more compact size and I believe that their lighter.

Sticks must be good for something because they seem to be the norm for framing crews. I just want to know why.




2. Older Hitachi (NR83A2(S)) vs New Hitachis (those ugly green monsters that look like they belong in a "My First Tool Kit" toy sets)?

As you can see, I'm more partial to the industrial look and feel of the older model.




3. Round Head nails vs Clipped Head nails?

Personally, I don't see the benefit in clipped head nails and seem them having a big disadvantage being that there's less area of coverage to hold down the stock.



4. What features are most important?

Example: depth adjustment, jam clearability, rafter hooks, etc...



5. Pneumatic gun oil bad for guns?

A buddy of mine never lubed his guns before we used them. When I brought in my own lube and lubed his guns he told me to not do it, that his tool repair guy told him that the oil was bad for them.

I told him he had to be absurd. The guy was in the business of repairing tools, I wouldn't trust him with maintenance...where's the profit in him not seeing me again. Then my buddy suggested that it's probably a saw dust contamination issue that it get's into the gun somehow and clogs up the insides with the oil.

I told him that roofing shingles (my area of expertise) gunk up the nose and we still plow through...we just clean the noses with WD-40 at the end of everyday and that tar is way more problematic than sawdust.

I ignored him, lubed the guns anyway and the guns performed flawlessly (instead of jamming up alot like they did before I cleaned them out).

Do you guys lube them daily (3 drops in the morning) or do you "not" lube them regularly?



Lastly, I want a gun that I just load, lube and bang away with. If it jams, I want to be able to clear it quick. I want to be able to load it quickly and conveniently. I want it to be bulletproof.

So far, Hitachi seems to be the one with Bostitch next in line.
Thanks.

Tmrrptr

Nr83a best for framing.
Newer model probably better, but no need to shoot longer nails...
Stick nails best for framing, coil loaded something might be better for sheathing.
Qualities to look for? lightweight, durable, and toenail = hitachi
nail jams... senco clears a jam easiest, but I rarely get them and use old nails frequently.
Clip or full head? we must use full head.
a pneumatic gun should be dripped every day, and through the course of a day if you can think of it.
Almost cheaper to by new as make a big repair or complete rebuild, here.
Yes, if you're putting down lots of asphalt gotta wd-40 the mech during the day and soak w diesel and scrub at end of day.
r

RockRanger

I have a ridgid. I got it cause it shoots the widest range of nail sizes of the guns I found. I don't frame everyday and usually I am using what ever nails I find laying on the jobsite. In two years I have maybe shot 5 boxes of nails with it so its not used much. It works OK. It is big and heavy, I would get a Hitachi if I had it to do over again.

TempestV

that was always my impression as well, but recently I've been using one on the job I'm on, and I really like it. the only bad thing I can say about it is that the depth of drive is rather inconvenienly placed and harder to work than most others out there.




It's very possable that code in your area requires full round head nails.

depth of drive is pretty usefull at times, but it has to be easy to use, or it never will get used. the nr83 is pretty easy to work, as is bostich and dewalt. haven't really played around with many of the others. Jam clearablity is nice, although IMO, a good gun shouldn't jamb enough to make it a necessity. I worked with a MAX gun that had the flap door to clear jambs- which was easy, and I see why the engineers put so much time into designing that particular feature- you are going to be using it a lot. Rafter hooks are nice, and are definitly a necessity on any gun, or saw for that matter, but it's easy enough to add a hook to any of the guns that it wouldn't make much of a difference. if the manufacturer includes a hook, they should make it big enough to fit over 2 1/4 stock in order to hang on engineered floor joists and roughcut. I suppose that there are times that having the safety switch on the side to switch between bounce nail and single nail would be nice for when there is an increased chance of a bounce nail situation. no way I'd be willing to switch out a trigger, but I might be willing to flip the little switch. The blower button on Hitachi's finish gun is pretty nice, and I'd like to see more guns with that feature.
I've been able to tell when a gun hasn't been lubed because it isn't shooting right. put oil in and it works great.


I'm pretty happy wit the green monster Hitachi, it would be probably my top pick for a framer of the guns I've used, including the the nr83. The bostich I've used was nice except for the trigger- it had a bar that locked the trigger until the tip was fully depressed (which required considerably more pressure than any other gun that I know of). it was the bounce nail trigger, but you couldn't just pull the trigger and bounce nail. You had to place the tip up to the work, pull the trigger, keep it depressed, then bounce nail. On the other hand, I've played with a bostich in the store that the trigger didn't do that. other than that and the larger recoil than most guns, the bostich seems like a really good gun, and even if I didn't use it for framing, if i had the money, I'd buy the gun as a postive placement gun, mainly because of it's abuility to fire full 16 commons in hanger applications.

2ndGen

Thanks for the responses guys. Appreciate it. Very helpful.

Shamrock

Had this problem with the slides also. Two clips and the back one would ride up on the front clip causing it to jam. Noticed that the collar on top of the slide to keep the clips from falling out was more than a 1/8 inch away from the top of the nails. Tapped it down to under an 1/8 and no more jam ups. You want the collar low enough to keep the back clip from riding up over the front. After 15 years or so, this is really the only complaint I've had with Hitachi's.

Shamrock

Ooops...senile old man brain fart...the back clip rides underneath the the front clip.

B.D.R.

loved my old Doufast it was well balanced and toenailed really well.Sold it.(stupid) and bought a bostich coil nailer, hate it. It is a pain to load. and doesn't toenail worth a

canuck88

Paslode nailers are the best I've ever used, mind you most have been finishing nailers...

landcons

My oldest Hitachi framer is 12 years old , I have always loved it even when the Bostich fans around here complained about the plastic pieces flying and the hissing from the trigger if you didn't hold it down all the way. The only problems I ever had were after about 5 years of very little oiling the driver broke, I replaced it and its been great, the other problem was caused by one of my guys dropping it and breaking a portion of the magazine. Since then I have bought another nr83a and a green monster when they first came out , which the oldest guy on the crew always takes because its a lot lighter. The green monster doesn't seem to nail through multiple lvl's as well as the nr83a but that may have been 16s 3 1/2 vs 12s 3 1/4 also.
I have also noticed with my Hitachi roofer that in the winter when its cold up here on the canadian border in NH, the hitachi rarely freezes up, where all the bostich guns seem to have problems, there were no hitachi guns up here when I moved here , and now they are starting to change to Hitachi as the nails are being caried at lumberyards. I let a roofing company that was subbing for me use my Hitachi one winter when their guns were freezing up , next thing you know they had 2 or 3 of them.

Ntxnaildriver

I have used Duofast for about 10 years now. Never had a problem other than regular maintenance. They have really taken the abuse. Now that Pasolode has bought out Duofast you get the best of both worlds.

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