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Has any one used the new Porter Cable 16ga FN250A Finish nailer how do you like it.
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Mack,
You'd probably get more answers to you question if you'd move it to the tools folder.
You may also want to check the archives. Should be alot of info there on this topic.
I personally haven't used the model you describe; however, I have purchased both the BN200A brad nailer and the NS 150A narrow crown stapler and am very pleased with their design and operating qualities, not to mention the price.
I just finished up building 9 interior plantation shutters with operational louvers and with the aid of a jig and the NS 150A I could precisely shoot the staples into the middle of each louver and interlock it with staples on the operating rod keeping each staple standing 1/4" proud each and every time.
*I think Mack is the type of person who'd rather use other peoples time than do a simple search of the archives, as I suggested on his previous (recient) post that was also regarding finish nailers.Or to quote a famous Breaktimer "search the archives, ya lazy slut!"
*Hey Mack, ignore Matt, he's got gas tonite. Many of they guys, inclucing myself have the Senco for the outside edges of casing, and an 18ga for the casing near the frame. I have asked your question several times, and I have never received an answer, nor have I read of one - even in the archives. JLC or some mag. did a review of these nailers, and the PC came out on top in the 16Ga as well as being the cheapest.If I were making my living with these things, and if I were only installing pre-hung hollow core doors the way mentioned in the JLC trim forum, I think I would go with a 16GA as the nailes are cheaper by far, and you might be able to use only one nailer skipping the 18ga. You might drop over to JLC, and ask an expert and then drop back and query Mike to see if he has a clue. Dennis
*Yo Frank: I want to know more about how you kept that staple out a quarter. lone"restored a lot of shutters"cat
*Lonecat, What I did was make a three sided jig that slips over the edge of the louver. It fits over the louver snugly but not tight. I cut a notch out in the top of the jig just wide enough for the nose of my stapler to rest on but wide enough for the staple to clear. The thickness of the top of the jig is 3/8", which happened to be the louver thickness also. What you do is center the notch where you want to shoot a staple, then position the stapler so it's centered on the notch and pull the trigger. I did have to adjust the air pressure to about 80PSI on my compressor.As for the operating rod, I made a similar jig that fits over and slides over the rod with the rod laying upside down on the workbench.The rod jig has no notch and what you do is align the stapler nose on the outside edge of the jig, while you position a louver with staple in place then shoot into the rod so that the rod staple straddles the louver staple, locking them in place. This probably sounds very confusing, but it is actually alot simpler than it sounds. Like I said before, each staple 1/4" proud every time. Hope I made this understandable.Oh, I almost forgot. I found it worked best to shoot 1" long staples into the louver, and 5/8" staples into the operating rod.
*Dennis:I have the 16 Ga Porter cable, have shot a few hundred K nails through it, and never had a jamb or other problem. I also have other assorted pneumatic guns including a PC pin nailer, narrow crown stapler, and full round head nailer. All have been fine except the framing nailer which developed an air leak about 3 weeks after I got it. I returned it to place of purchase and got a new one without another incident. Still these guns are not made as durably as Sencos. Also, I believe that all PC pneumatic nail guns are made in Taiwan. Again, if you look through the tools folder, and search the archives, I believe that you will find only good reports about PC guns, with the exception of the Bammer.I don't think that Mack asked specifically about hanging prehung doors, but personally, for that task, I prefer the beefier 15 gauge nails. I have pulled trim off the wall by hand (no tools) that was nailed up with 16 Ga nails only. Typically, with the 2.5" 16 GA nails, the heads pull right through pine trim, which may be OK for purely cosmetic stuff, but not for doorjambs. The good thing about the 16 GA nails is that they split the work less than the 15 ga.
*Hey, thanks for the heads up on the 16Ga. Now I have an excuse to buy one to go with my 15ga senco and 18ga PC. I have been looking at those things for better than a year.dennis
*Yes I do understand, and I like it. I hope there aren't many more ancient shutters in my future, but a couple winters they paid the bills. In that old soft wood I usually got by with just pushing the staples in with my Kleins. Ilooked at one of those PC staplers today and might get one next week.
*LC:Be i sureand get the narrow crown stapler that has the depth of drive adjustment. I didn't and regret it. It's about $30 more. Same goes for the PC pin nailer. I think the big boxes often sell the low end models to make you feel like your getting a good deal... I got sucked in. Or, you can buy mine for a discount - almost like new - only had about 2000 staples through it!Also, for paint grade trim, the narrow crown stapler is great for attaching thin molding like the narrow side of the casing. Makes a bit of a bigger "painter check point" but they hold like hell!
*Hell, now I've got a good excuse to buy a 15g nailer! Sam
*Matt, That is good advice which I shall heed.
*LC:I just got a advertisement from Tool Crib. They had the PC NC Stapler for $80 which is an *excellent* price. It was listed as "inventory reduction".
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Has any one used the new Porter Cable 16ga FN250A Finish nailer how do you like it.