ideally one that’ll do skirtings and facings through gyp into metal stud.
don’t mind going compressor powered if i have to but at the same time don’t mind putting off getting a compressor for now.

i’ve got a little mains powered tacker that’s great but i reckon i’ll need thicker nails than the 18 ga ones it and it’s big brother shoot.

cordless paslode type would be ideal i guess but expensive?

Hitachi ones are cheaper very reliable and use the generic nails/carts. Also dewalt do a battery one I think.

Don’t touch the Dewalt one with a bargepole.

How much use will it get, and where are you based?

Who pays for the nails? The gasless dewalt guns are generally more expensive than Paslode and the like but if it only takes a few boxes of nails/gas to save that difference so they are cheaper in the longer run (and less cranky in cold weather). But thats only a saving if the cost of nails comes out of your pocket

i never liked deWalt : )

Paslode is good, but the gas canisters need to be kept warm in the colder months (i always usd to stuff one in my trouser pocket) and the cleaning procedure is a bit of a faff….

had one of the early Dewalt ones, which unfortunately broke after a few months of heavy use. some metal inside had sheared. don’t know if the new ones have been changed/improved.

advantage of the Dewalt over the Paslode was the lack of gas canisters and the reduced noise level. the Paslodes can get on your tits after a while unless you wear some kind of ear protection.

there are lots of decent compressor nailers (Prebeena), but i found that constantly having to drag a hose through the hose was a PITA (i’m assuming you want it for site work). they are however super if you’re working at a bench and can situate the compressor outside and insulate it to muffle the chugging.

anyone use dthe rawlplug ones? like this:

http://www.tool-net.co.uk/p-345939/rawlplug-a2064-f16-second-fix-cordless-angled-brad-nail-gun.html

?

chunk, i won’t use it all that much. just in intense bursts probably, not daily anyways. but i don’t mind a bi tof outlay for something i will use for a good while in all
based in ardeche in S of france ( sorry!)

Cant fault my hitachis work the same as my dads old paslodes – he has changed to hitachi as well – they are holding up well – his are 6 hard months old now , mines are only 2

The brad has been faultless , the framing nailer had a little hickup – it takes senco cartridges only if you take a genuine paslode/hitachi doser and fit it – otherwise it seems to be too long.

The brads unbeatable for finishings – it really isnt worth the grief of using a compressor unless its a single job – in which case hire it . We hired one to do my grandads floor before gas guns were the norm – it was better than hammering by far but gasguns are the same jump again. Done a bucket load of finishings round our house and built a shed from scratch with no hassles

Was 239 from powertoolworld.co.uk

Makita all the way!!! I lent one off a joiner at work for over the weekend. Li ion batteries (others still use nicad) paslode’s patent has now run out and all others have copied and bettered design by the once king, (used to service and repair paslode at a hire co) and they were prone to jamming especially the im350. Makita has good warranty and aftersales. Quick charges on batts and can use any manufacturer of nails/gas. Only paslode dont like other brand gas. Heard good things about hitachi but persinally never used one or sin one on site all makita or hilti for the steel fixers/dry liners

Paslode Im250 here 6years old and still going strong ….just keep it serviced ..and in winter keep a spare gas in trouser packet … 😉

alpin – Member

Paslode is good, but the gas canisters need to be kept warm in the colder months (i always usd to stuff one in my trouser pocket) and the cleaning procedure is a bit of a faff….

This is very true, although Paslode now do a cold weather fuel cell. Personally I’ve never used them and have relied on the ‘down your trousers’ solution.

PASLODE WINTER FUEL CELLS

For cordless Paslode

The winter fuel cells are for the first fix IM350 only,but if you swap the ‘head’ for an old IM65 one they will do the job.

Nicad batterys was a plus point for me… Not so sensitive to being left sitting for a while like liion is.

400 for a paslode was. Bit much for occasonal use ( esp when i needed a first fix too)

?? Li ion are the batts with no memory and can be left for months and can be half charged etc. Ni cad and ni mi do have a memory and need regular full discharge/charge and are affected by heat/cold.

Li ion are the batts with no memory and can be left for months and can be half charged etc

Some Li-ion battery packs have problems with extended non use – its not that the individual cells self discharge in the same way as Nicad / NiMh ones do – the packs have little electronic circuits in them that manage the charge. Some packs are wired so that these electronic circuits only run off one or two cells so when left unused some of the cells stay full and some are slowly run down by the circuit. When they’re next charged the cells are all at 6s and 7s and it goes fut.

Earlier makita batteries had this problem – later ones marked with a star should be better – and my neighbours 18v lion hitachi batteries have both died from non-use.

Its not a problem that trade users would encounter as they tend to actually use their kit. But now that DIY users are buying trade Li-ion kit thats where problems arise as they may leave kit unused for months or years at a time.

With something like a gas nailer I wouldn’t bother with li-ion as the nailer makes so little use of the battery, the amp hrs and charge time aren’t really a concern.

thanks for that info maccruiskeen. i was automatically tending towards having lith-ion

so what about the nailing through metal stud business.
i put bits of wood in in some places to nail into through the stud.

so what about the nailing through metal stud business.

No problem at all, the brads will go straight through the metal studs.

Although I wouldn’t bother with “wood in some places” for skirting. Just use Gripfill on the back of the skirting and fire a few nails here and there to hold it until the Gripfill goes off, that’s how it’s done on site.

Fire the nails at an angle rather than straight to reduce to possibility of the skirting pulling away from the wall before the Gripfill has gone off. Although the nails generally hold the skirting very well.

If you really want to fix to timber and you haven’t built your partition yet I would lay a timber plate down first and build your metal partition on top of it. Although I wouldn’t bother with timber – it isn’t necessary if you Gripfill the skirting.

thanks ernie.
that’s what i reckoned. i gave up with the wood fairly quickly.
i’d normally glue it anyway but wanting to minimise the amount so later removal is less messy as it’s in my own place

Have had a Dewalt dc618 for a couple of weeks now. I already had the 18v bats so it was a logical choice. Cost me £165 from the bay. I’m currently using it on t & g and cladding duties used in conjunction with framing silicone. I can’t imagine going back to hammering or screwing. It is quite bulky though but that’s the price of having a big NiCad battery on it. No Probs attaching 20mm Redwood T & G to C24 bearers on depth setting 2 ( it goes up to 6 ).