I am going to purchase a finish nailer for doing trim work. I have looked at the Dewalt 18v electric, the Paslode angled, and a Senco pneumatic. which should I buy?
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Not the electric one ... you will be disappointed.
I have a Bostich 15 ga angled, and it is nice. Very light weight. I also have a Porter Cable 16 ga ... works well, but sometimes the straight magazine gets in the way.
I'm sorry, I thought you wanted it done the right way.
Ed,
What was disappointing with the electric nailer?
works better in bump mode...
won't set nails about 40% of the time....
not good for the woodwork or careful placement...
use those Bostich T nails... more not good...
those nails are most unkind...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
go Senco
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Thanks.
I live in the township where Senco is based so it is the politically correct thing to do. I was trying to avoid the compressor and hoses is why I have been looking at the other two options.
tom,
I have the 18 volt angled nailer and could not be happier with it.
I dont mind at all not having to lug around a compressor and hoses. Especially in occupied homes. I am told that
Dewalt is coming out with a pin nailer to compliment the 18 ga. brad nailer. Altough a little on the heavy side< I have not a single problem with it driving a nail through everything from white oak to maple. The funny thing is that it has a bounce feature. Why you would need to nail trim as fast as a roofer is beyond me but the gun can keep up with this demand. You really can't beat it. The 2 batteries and charger are worth a couplke hundred bucks. I have tried Senco's 12 volt pin nailer and as far as I'm concerned it is a piece of crap.
No power, a 1 second delay before firing after pulling the trigger and it only shoots a nail about 3 out of 10 tries. A real disapointment! I recommend the Dewalt 18 volt. And before anyone jumps my #### and acusses me of being a Dewalt rep, like I said I use this tool every day and it saves me time and back aches!
P.S. Another nice thing about this gun is that you don't need gas cartridges! Besides being exspensive, they are very dangerous. The last house I worked on has a hole through the drywall in the garage where a grunt on the clean-up crew, without thinking , threw some empties on the burn pile ( yeah we still do that around here). Could have been tragic. The Paslode trimmers and the Porter Cable Bammers are gonna be dinasaurs when people try these babies.
Edited 12/18/2004 4:05 pm ET by splinter
Edited 12/18/2004 4:07 pm ET by splinter
Is there any delay with the dewalt from the time you pull the trigger until it drives the nail?
tom,
There is absolutley no delay with the Dewalt. I can understand hometown loyalty but not when it comes to trying to make a living. These are my personal opinions and I was merely trying to point out the advantages to a tool that uses the same batteries that I use in virtually all my other cordless tools. Senco makes a fine line of pneumatic tools but again I say that after purchasing a Senco cordless nailer I returned it due to many instances where it would not fire consistantly if at all. It also would not set nails when it did fire. Might be okay for a do it yourselfer or an arts and craft person but not sure why they would justify trhe expense.
Senco oilless, or Hitachi if you are willing to have a compressor.
Have you personally used the Paslode Impulse nailers?
Shoeman,
I own two of the old black Paslode framers and have used the Trimpulse guns often but have found them to be finicky. As I mentioned, the gas cartridges add considerably to the operating cost and as was mentioned earlier, the gas is a problem when cold.
I forgot to mention another feature the Dewalt has. It has a headlight that lights the area to be nailed and also has patterns similar to the battery charger. It stays on steady unless there is a problem. Only time it has flashed a warning to me was when I hit a drywall screw that was finished and painted and below the surface of a wall I was installing base on. It curled the nail up inside the tip but was easy to clear out. I should also say that I have a Bostich angled finish nailer and both a Porter Cable and Bostich pin nailer that are very reliable and will continue to use them in my shop for production work but I can say with confidence that they will stay in the truck for jobsite work from now on.
Edited 12/22/2004 2:22 am ET by splinter
Thanks for the response - was curious if your high opinion of the DeWalt was in direct comparison to the Paslode Impulse
I think I have all the Impulse guns - Framer, Angled 16 guage, Straight 16 guage, 18 guage, and Stapler - I have been quite happy with all of them. Would have to say my favorite is the Angled 16 guage. Most ergonomically pleasing gun I have ever used.
Would like to try the DeWalts sometime, but if I recall they are heavy and bulky - I like my Paslodes
Shoeman,
I would have to say my high opinion is based on both a direct comparison to the Paslode nailer and also side by side use of the Senco pin nailer and the Dewalt brad nailer, the differance is striking. Most of my work consists of sub-contract trim carpentry work. Many times the homes have only a limited number of outlets hooked up so besides a constant battle with the other trades for electrical supply, the load a compressor puts on an outlet that is already overloaded is considerable. With the cordless I am also spared the possibility of pulling off the drywall corners with my hose as I snake through the house ( before the baseboard is installed.)
Edited 12/22/2004 6:19 pm ET by splinter
I have both the Senco pneumatic and the Paslode angled 16ga. Both are great tools, though the Paslode can be finicky. For production work, go Senco and get a nice compressor. For punch list/occasional work, go Paslode.
tom
I have all the Paslodes, but I wouldnt want to be with out a air compressor. I also have several air nailers.
There is to much that the compressor can do besides run a nailer.
Doug
I've had the senco oilfree pnuematic for 5 or 6 years now, and never had any problems. One of the better guns I've used... Also, you could get one of those really small compressors senco makes now (must weigh less than 20 lbs.) for small jobs. Still takes two hands to carry the gun and compressor, but it's pretty easy.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000AQK78//ref=pd_ts_c_th_1/102-7907860-2832112?v=glance&s=hi&n=552660
i have a bunch of senco nailers, frame to finish. great stuff.
paslodes are ok, but annoying with batteries and gas.
i like the idea of the cordless nailers with just batteries but have never tried one. i would rather wait a year or two until a reputable toolmaker comes out with a good one that everyone raves about.
Dryden Construction Services, Inc
"He who xxxxs nuns will later join the church." -The Clash
Thanks for the responses. I am still up in the air but leaning towards the Senco angled or the Pasload
I have both pasloads -- they are right, it is an impulse kind of a thing -- you get the impulse pull just the gun out and forget the compressor -- on my old one -- when it goes dead not sure it is the gas or the battery -- wish I would know which one to chagnes without trial and error -- maybe the new ones have 2 lights so you know which to replace --
I vote for the Paslode. I've had it for about 5 or 6 years and love it. The battery lasts forever before needing charging. One warning! In cold weather, with the tool stored on my truck, the gas cartridge gets cold and the gas compresses. I quickly learned to run it under warm water for a minute or two before using it. The heat expands the gas back to normal and all is ok. I also bought the Paslode framer and it works well also. I like the larger fuel cells in the framer. The IM250 (angled finish nailer) uses the shorter cartridges.
My son-in-law has the Senco. I don't like it. You have to wait a second for the engine to wind up for each shot.
Here's another vote for the Paslode Impulse. I bought the finish nailer when it first came out years ago, and it is still going strong. When I am doing trim, I often use it along with a pneumatic nailer -- 2 1/2" nails in the Paslode, 1 1/4" 18 Ga nails in the pneumatic. On my model there is an indicator light that tells you if the battery is working; if there are still nails in the magzine, and it stops firing (and the green light is still blinking), you need a new gas cartridge. A guy I work with a lot has the Paslode framing nailer, and it is also great. However, it uses a different gas cartridge, and the gas is apparently more potent, since the gun has to be cleaned more frequently than the finish nailer.The gas discharge does have a smell to it, but I personally don't find it offensive. For me, it is a small price to pay for being able to work without a hose/compressor.Overall, my experience has been that the Paslode cordless guns are well designed, rugged, and dependable.
I've found the Senco cordless nailer a good gun to use...I've not tried the DeWalt but I find the Senco preferable to the Paslode in ergonomics along with not needing the gas and being more reliable. I found I got in a rhythm once I adjusted to the delay and was able to deal with it with it without a productivity loss.
-Ray
I was disappointed in the size of the hole the cordless Senco makes when it sets the nail. I brought it back and got the Paslode.
Dan
Did you know how to adjust the depth of set? If it was set too deep, the piston will drive too far and put a big rectangular hole. Paslode will do the same thing.
Tom,
I have the 18v DeWalt and I couldn't be happier with it. Although it's a bit on the heavy side, the battery lasts for a very long time and it drives nails without hesitation, no matter what the material is. The depth setting is top notch and easy to adjust, and the angled magazine keeps it out of the way. bump or single fire mode are both great and I find needs for both of them. Overall a truly nice tool, plus you don't get any of that stench from fuel cartridge or noise and hassle from a compressor - plus you can still shoot Senco nails in the DeWalt...so it's not really betraying the town is it?
Justin Fink
FHB Editorial
thanks for the info. I think that the Senco nails are probably made in Taiwan. :)
I ordered a Senco 15 gauge angled and an 18 gauge from Amazon (made in Taiwan - so much for the Senco being based where I live). I realized that I needed the ability to do some smaller nails and they had a package deal. To buy the Dewault and a Pasload would have cost me over $600 even without the Dewault batteries (which I already have a collection of).
With a portable compressor and both top end Senco guns I am spending less than $400. I will probably some days be upset about hauling around the compressor but I will avoid having to spend money on fuel cells and batteries.
Go with the Senco.
"I will never surrender or retreat. " Col. Wm. B. Travis, The Alamo, Feb. 1835