No Hammer, No Fatigue | Revealing Types of Nail Guns

The nail and hammer pair is broken down by nail guns. Driving nails into wood or something else is quite the sole purpose of nail guns. These guns, inducing more power and speed into the work, appear into the competition replacing manually powered hammers.

Though almost all the nail guns have the same ultimate objective, there are various specialized ones. So it’s not something unusual to get confused about which one to purchase. Here we present how one kind of nail gun is different from the other one. Let’s go for different types of nail guns.

1. Siding Nailer

Sidings like slices of wood or some synthetic stuff are installed using siding nail guns. If you need to join more than one piece especially to join the larger planks this nailer has great importance.

Even aluminum siding is possible using the siding nailers since they are capable of using aluminum nails. They specifically make the use of nails of shorter length and wider head. 1.25 to 2.5 inches of nails are used in them.

2. Finish Nailer

Finish nail guns are highly specific in both function and nail size. In carpentry, they provide the finished work. Most users of such nailers are observed in baseboards and crown moldings.

Brad nailers deal with larger planks in comparison to pin nailers. Finish nailers are on the step above brad nail guns. Being compatible with 15 and 16 gauge nails, they find their applications in more cumbersome wood pieces. The nails are definitely larger than brad nails. Obviously, their holding power is higher too.

3. Brad Nailer

In trimming and molding works brad nailers have specific uses. In that case, 15 to 16 gauge nails are used. In general, such nailer uses 18 gauge nails. Thus they are not the perfect choice for extreme delicate jobs or finishing though are often used to.

Brad’s nails have greater holding power than pin nails. This fact differentiates between pi and brad nail guns. Otherwise, the application is quite similar. For contractors finishing touches are well provided by this nailer.

4. Framing Nailer

As the name reveals, these nail guns are experts of wood framing. For heavy duty projects, they are the perfect choice because they are the best in it. Most of their models come up with alterable contact trip and sequential depth and drive adjustment. Some provide the adjusting feature in tool-free mode too.

Receiving up to 3.5 inches of driving nails it can be used in wood siding and sheathing. You can join 2x4s with ease to construct almost anything from room, deck, home to fences.

You will find both clipped head and round head framing nailers. The round head is capable to hold a fewer number of nails in comparison to that of clipped head ones. Clipped head nail guns are the best choice if larger projects are at hand.

5. Pin Nailer

Larger nails cannot be used to make intricate designs on wood. For that delicate touch without splitting the planks headless pin nails are needed. Here comes the use of pin nailers which are used mostly in carpentry jobs.

Pin nails of 23 gauge size are used along with some other adhesive due to their low stickiness. Pin nailers with such nails and gue are thus used in trimming pieces and small furniture, thin veneers, and crown molding. They may also be used in finishing works.

6. Flooring Nailer

Flooring nailers are used to laying tongue and groove in floorboards. As they are different in function compared to others so is their construction design. They are quite specific in their application that is laying floorboards.

Laying nails into floorboard can be done by applying pressure manually or by some external source. There are pneumatic flooring nailers that use air pressure to drive nails. Manual type nailers are also available.

In it, some nylon mallet hits the plunger. To make sure that both nailing depth and angle are just as desired, the nailer is triggered keeping the nail at the board’s edge.

7. Roofing Nailer

You may call roofing nailers as framing nailer plus. Like framing nail guns, they are also heavy duty. They have a higher speed in nailing. So they are mostly used in professional stuff.

Roofing materials may be treated with different kinds of roofing nailers. The pneumatic roofing nail gun uses air compressor while the solenoid one harnesses electromagnetic polarization. The simplest one is spring loaded nailer which uses spring pressure to throw nails out.

8. Palm Nailer

For comfort and greater maneuverability, the palm nailers are invented. They are nothing more than a mini nailer. Often it consists of a strap that is used to wrap the hand around just to ensure greater stability and control.

The cordless version of palm nailers is handier. There are also electric and pneumatic palm nail guns having a bit less portability by the cost of more power.

As palm nailers are especially useful while working in tight places, hangers for joist and smaller projects. For lesser fatigue, you’ll get greater time for working with them.

9. Concrete nail gun

Concrete nailers are a specific tool for using in concrete or steel. Such a fastening tool may not be required for most DIYs. But for building structures and basements they are often used.

One must not choose a concrete nail gun to use in softer materials like wood or even cement. This will eventually create cracks and ultimately spoil the whole project. Besides the size of the concrete or t-nails is also crucial. Otherwise, brad or finish nailers should be used.

Conclusion

Each and every nail gun or nailer is meant for specific usage. Framing and palm nailers are quite versatile enough though. But using specific nailer for that particular task is always the recommendation.

Pin, brad and finish nailers are the ones with a gradual increase in nail strength or holding power. So identifying both the type and degree of intensity of the work at your hand you should finally decide the type of nail gun you should go for.