About 4 yrs ago I bought a framing nailer. At the time I was on a Porter Cable kick, and nothing would do but the FR350 round head nailer. It has worked pretty well, but it has also been frustrating. A bit heavy (it’s not the Mag version), depthe adjustment with an allen wrench, and when it jams it’s a bear to clear.
This week I’m doing a large storage shed sided with hardie planks. Trying to get the nails set right with the old PC has been tough. Finally it jammed, so I threw it into the trash pile and headed to the store. Yeah, i could have spent 5-6 minutes clrearing the jam, and saved a bunch of money, but I had had enough.
Lowes was the closest store, and since the job was shut down and my helper was getting paid by the hour, time was critical. Lowes had two choices in round head nailers: the same PC, and a Hitachi. Got to looking at the Hitachi, even read the manual … the model they sell is the “-S” and there is no depth adjustment. None. The regular model, same number without the -S, uses an allen wrench.
Drove to HD. They had the same PC and Hitachi, and a Ridgid. Bought the Ridgid. Boy it’s a big improvement. Rafter hook, dial for depth adjustment, rear load nail chute, nice carry bag, and a swivel hose fitting. Got back to the job and started nailing. Took a few shots to get the depth right, but now it’s right on. I like it.
“When asked if you can do something, tell’em “Why certainly I can”, then get busy and find a way to do it.” T. Roosevelt
Replies
HD and Lowes here also carry the Hitachi only in the "-S model". Has selective trigger, no depth adjustment. Methinks it is a "special" model that Hitachi makes for both of them.
Went to the local nail / airtool / repair supplier (where I should have gone in the first place). He carries the NR83A2 which has both selective trigger and tool-less depth adjustment. Bought it to replace my older model Hitachi. This was about 18 months ago - model numbers may have changed - just reading the plate.
Good luck with the Rigid - let us know how it works out.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Eddie, I recently bought a Ridgid framer after buying their roofing gun and liking it.
Other than being bulky, the Ridgid nailer has done well what little I have used it.
I think you'll be happy...I have the same PC350 you have and it's a little too rough round the edges for me.Jason Pharez Construction
Framing & Exterior Remodeling
The Hitachi framers without the adjustable depth of drive are sold in places other than the big boxes. My pro tool supplier has them. Come to think of it, I wonder why they even offer one without depth of drive adjustment. There's not even a big difference in price. Hmmmm.
I used the older NR83A for about 5 years, it had neither a selective trigger or depth of drive adjustment.
You could "adjust" depth of drive via air pressure to the tool; worked fine if there was only your gun running off of a comperessor, multiple guns would get sticky as everyone wanted a different pressure.
They counted on the operators to know how to "select" their mode of operation as follows:
Bump fire: If you pulled the trigger and then bumped the nose it would fire a nail for every bump.
Single fire: If you depressed the nose and then pulled the trigger it would fire one nail, however, if you kept the trigger pulled after firing, it would shift into bump fire mode. This was a little shakey sometimes if you let the gun recoil off of the work a bit, it would double.
My guess is some folks that are used to, and still like, the old operation method and just want to replace their existing tool maybe for a few dollars less. The NR83A definitly qualified as a reliable, no-frills, workhorse - give it some oil and don't ladder the nails - misfires were very rare.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Been using NR-83A nailers exclusively for about ten years. Still have the first one I ever bought. None of mine have the depth of drive adjustment, but I can't see why I wouldn't get one that does given the tiny difference in price. That was my point.... that they should just keep it simple and just offer the one with the adjustment. While I've never really wished I had it, I'm sure the time will come sooner or later with the growing popularity of shearwalls and what-not.
don't ladder the nails
I'll be sure not to do that.
Uh, what is it?
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
"Laddering" is the term Hitachi uses in their instruction booklets for a loading error in strip nailers.
All of the strip nailers I have ever used will accept 2 strips of nails at a time. The nail heads on the second strip of nails loaded needs to sit on top of the end nail head of the first strip loaded. If it does not, they refer to the condition as "laddered". This seems obvious, but it is relatively easy to do when loading especially if you are in a hurry.
I don't know if this is a term Hitachi invented, I do know the nailer will only feed a nail or two before it starts misfiring causing #*$*%#@ on your part.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
I bought one of the Ridgid framers back in October, and right out of the box, it was leaking air at the joint between the main body casting and the head peice. I tried tightening the screws with no luck, pulled it apart and checked the gasket, it looked fine, then took back to HD where they exchanged it. The new one has worked great so far. Went back the other day to pick up another one, took it out and hooked up to air and had the same leak as the first one. I'm not sure if they just put the old one back on the shelf or this is a persistent problem. I'm taking this one back this weekend to exchange and see what happens with the next. I like everything else about the gun and so do my guys. By the way, we use both stick and coil guns, and I'm converting over to the new Makita coil framers now. They are SWEET.