Quick question about nailers

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Hi all -- I'm building a shed, using 2x3s for the frame, with OSB sheathing, then membrane, then battens, then 21mm thick weatherboard cladding.

Nailing all the cladding on by hand will be a bit of a job, so I'm thinking about buying a nail gun, but can't seem to work out what gauge would be best. I'm also not sure whether I could use the same gun for nailing the frame and attaching the cladding (I assume not). Is it the case that I'd need a second fix nailer for the cladding but first fix for the frame?

Any advice about what to go for would be very much appreciated -- I'd prefer to buy a Dewalt model if possible as I got a good deal on some of their expensive batteries, so I can save money and get bare units. But I could do another brand if necessary of course.
 
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The framing nailer in the pack linked earlier is the DCN692. On an older version of this nailer I was told to stay well clear.
As the firing mechanism fell to bits after sustained use.
Electric flywheel driving mechanism afaik?
You might think sustained use is an error in use. However I have a Senco framing gas nailer and provided it is well cleaned, sustained use is not a problem.
More info here....
https://www.workshopaddict.com/foru...567-dewalt-dcn692-nailer-review-problems.html
 
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If I was going down the route of a cordless-gasless framing nailer two choices come to mind..
1 - Hikoki NR1890DC
2 - Milwaukee - M18 Fuel 30 degree framing nailer.

Both have sequential and contact actuation firing modes.
Driving system in the hikoki is air spring. Milwaukee talk about "nitrogen spring mechanism" in their machine.
Both say they deliver "pneumatic performance". Which is quite a statement.
As for weight, I've held the hikoki and it feels heavier than my old Senco.
Not sure if the milwaukee has hit the uk's shores yet.
I use my Senco to nail cladding. Just adjust the firing depth down and fit the anti-marring rubber face cap.
In the OP's case I would use a hammer.
 
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The framing nailer in the pack linked earlier is the DCN692. On an older version of this nailer I was told to stay well clear.
As the firing mechanism fell to bits after sustained use.
You may have been told that, but it isn't first hand experience, and when DW brought their cordless first fix nailers out I suspect that Paslode possibly ran a negative campaign against them judging from the amount of "knowledgeable" negative comments on the 'net at the time after a very short period of use. Despite which I wrote a user review over on UHM giving the what I considered to be a truer picture. The DW guns also have quite a few advantages over Paslode's offerings, with jams being particularly easy to clear

The real answer is that, yes, DW are now on the DCN692 Type 3, which is stronger than the original, but that Type 1 guns are capable of quite long life (mine is about 4 years old and still in regular trade use - total spares to date have been two drive pins) but unlike Paslodes (or other gas guns - I also have a Senco GT90CH and a Rawl WW90CH) the DW takes a heck of a lot less maintenance (no gas or igniters or mucky oil, for example, and the battery contacts don't go black from arcing, either). What I will say is that they aren't the right gun to take onto a flooring job, you know, the type of job where you need to pound 150 to 200 75mm ring nails into sheets of plywood for hour after hour - but then neither is a Paslode gas nailer, because the IM350 isn't the most dependable of tools, judging from the five we have on the current job where there are always at least two out of commission or being repaired - and they all have a tendency to overheat and seize (based on no less than 4 jobs over the last 3 years where we've had new guns supplied by the contractor). Give me the old (defunct) IM90 any day! Oh, and in any case, the HAVS (hand arm vibration) rating on IM350s means that you'll do yourself physical damage if you repeatedly use them for more than about 2-1/2 hours a day. If you are talking about sustained use, the only safe and reliable option is pneumatic, and the best guns for that are probably Makita, Hitachi/Hikoki, Max and Senco. But for DIY use, we aren't talking that level of use, surely?

From my own experience for what the OP is looking to do by way of framing the DCN692 is more than man enough, if perhaps a tad heavy. If I were looking for lighter gun and was willing to go gas, I'd not considerthe Paslode - instead I'd look at either the Rawl WW90CH gas nailer (or the Senco GT90CH - they are the same gun in effect) or the Hitachi/Hikoki gas nailer (which was designed by the guy who originally designed the Paslode nailers).

If I was going down the route of a cordless-gasless framing nailer two choices come to mind..
1 - Hikoki NR1890DC
Maybe the OP would like to take look at this mini review from Roger Bizby in which he compares the DW and Hitachi (Hikoki) offerings side by side?

As to the Milwaukee, it isn't yet available in the UK (although it is just out in the USA), but the nitrogen spring mechanism may well be an issue. Senco tried this idea with their 2nd fix Fusion nailers a few years back and they got a bit of a flakey reputation, with some having problems of low life of the nitrogen cylinder (they lose pressure over time and all need replacing periodically - which is expensive - some of the early ones had a very short life). The fact is, though, that Milwaukee isn't a company with any reputation in the nailer field and their first generation 2nd fix nailers were riven with problems. That means I'd probably trust their 2nd gen 2nd fix guns which will be here next year (after all, they've ironed out all the bugs, haven't they?), but I think I'll let others potentially burn their fingers on the 1st fix gun

For anyone else reading this who is unfamiliar with 1st fix nailers, all these guns use 30 to 34 degree paper collated clipped head or offset full head nails which are interchangeable between different brands of gun, so if you buy a Hitachi/Hikoki or whatever there's no need to buy their nails - I'd just avoid Champion nails because every time I've had them they gunked up the gun with oil
 
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What I will say is that they aren't the right gun to take onto a flooring job, you know, the type of job where you need to pound 150 to 200 75mm ring nails into sheets of plywood for hour after hour

About 2500 to 2800, 50mm ring shanks non stop is what we would be firing.
The senco's we have handle that OK. Though they do get rather hot.
I like to get two firing but sometimes its just one. On occasion I will be locked, loaded and firing in both hands and walking a roof at the same time.
 
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Maybe the OP would like to take look at this mini review from Roger Bizby in which he compares the DW and Hitachi (Hikoki) offerings side by side?

Do you know what firing mechanism the dewalt is fitted with?
Edit.
Just watched the video. Flywheel.
Sounds too mechanical and troublesome in comparison to a piston.
 
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but I think I'll let others potentially burn their fingers on the 1st fix gun

I would buy either the hikoki or the milwaukee but don't want to be the guinea pig.
My colleague has already been the guinea pig for the dewalt.:D
 
Yes it was. A work colleague who is fanatical about DeWalt had one and it lasted only a short while.
Odd, that. DW have a 3 year guarantee on their kit and I know from experience that they stand by it and either replace or rebuild tools which are defective, pretty much without question. Unless, of course, the tool is a grey import from China or the USA - in which case you are on your own. TBH whilst not a big fan of DW I have to admit that they appear to be somewhat better than either Makita or Bosch when it comes to warranty repairs, both in speed and their lack of quibbling.

Do you know what firing mechanism the dewalt is fitted with?....
Just watched the video. Flywheel.
Sounds too mechanical and troublesome in comparison to a piston.
It isn't, though. It's a flywheel and a solenoid, so electronically far less complex than a gas gun with no igniter circuit to fail. Also, unlike a gas gun, the DW guns don't have spark gaps to maintain, don't require at least annual stripping down and cleaning to ensure that they continue to run, won't oxidise the battery terminals and cease running (a constant source of problems on Paslode guns), won't run out of gas on a Sunday afternoon when the shops aren't open, won't refuse to fire because the gas is out of date and useless (or has leaked out of the cannister, or won't work because the clip-on plastic adaptor is faulty), won't foul-up with oil (requiring an on-site strip-down and clean-out) and stop firing if you happen to use the wrong gas (e.g. Champion, my pet hate) and will be a lot easier to clear jams on (the DW 1st fix has a swing away magazine - Paslode magazines are often a PIA to clear feed jams on). Oh, and nails plus gas cost a LOT more than nails without gas, like the DW uses

This isn't bluff and bluster; I've owned Paslodes in the past, I've used work Hitachis (mk.1 and mk.2 versions) and I still own one Senco and one Rawl (effectively the same gun) - so I am aware of all that can go wrong with gas guns and just how unsuitable they are for a sporadic user.

About the only items that will ever need replacing on a DW are the firing pin and maybe the return springs - a 10 minute job, as opposed to a full strip-down on a Paslode (been there, done that). OK, so I had to replace the plastic firing button on my 8 year old mk.1 deWalt 2nd fix gun a few years back (about £6), but so what? To my mind there are just two things wrong with the DW - it is heavy, too heavy for continual use above my head, and it you do have to get into the rythym of the gun to work quickly in bump fire mode.

I would buy either the hikoki or the milwaukee but don't want to be the guinea pig.
My colleague has already been the guinea pig for the dewalt.:D
Really? The DCN692 pre-dates both of those guns by quite a few years, and the number I see around tell me that if anyone buys one they aren't going to be a guinea pig. On site we currently have three guys, plus myself, using DW DCN692s. Nobody seems to be bitching about theirs. Hitachi have a lot experience with compressed air tools (their pneumatic nailers are one of the best selling guns in the USA) and aren't noted for lemons in their cordless kit, so probably also a good bet. Milwaukee, on the other hand.....

Maybe you'd like me to publish a photo of my obviously well-used DCN692 to prove that they are reliable
 
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It isn't, though.

It is a piece of junk.
Tried and tested that way.
While your faffing around with a few hundred nails and think thats a challenge, we will have a few thousand fired and then some.;)
 

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