Which Nail Gun?

[huskie69]

Hi all

I'm working on a "hobby" kind of project at the moment which requires me to hammer in a multitude of approx 35-40mm nails to a depth of about 10mm in MDF. This leaves the nails sticking out by about 25-35mm, so they don't need to be driven all the way.

It's fairly laborious and I was thinking a nail gun would help me achieve the results in much less time.

I don't want to spend a huge amount of money, not do I want an air driven device.

What kind of nail gun should I be looking at for my requirements? Any suggestions on specific models?

 

[ntb]

I doubt you will have much luck - nail guns are for driving nails all the way in.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

There are tricks you can do with a 1st fix nail gun to achieve this (useful for shuttering at times) but it still requires a first fix gun and they don't come cheap (£350 and up). The other issue might be nail length - 1st fix nails are 51 to 90mm long and nobody makes shorter ones

 

[huskie69]

Could I use something like this: http://www.screwfix.com/p/tacwise-duo-35-30mm-corded-nailer-stapler-230v/75336 with a piece of wood under the base to lift it up? Would it still fire into the wood if it was rasied?

 

[lostinthelight]

In order to fire the nail the safety mechanism has to be in contact with the wood your firing the nails into so this would have to be held back in the fire position?

litl
Edit: Just tried on mine,if the brads are thin then they bend slightly as the top bits are not suported while being driven.

 

[huskie69]

In order to fire the nail the safety mechanism has to be in contact with the wood your firing the nails into so this would have to be held back in the fire position?

litl
Edit: Just tried on mine,if the brads are thin then they bend slightly as the top bits are not suported while being driven.

Thanks. Judging by the photo, it looks like it could perhaps be feasible then. Unfortunately, I don't want to spend in excess of £75 on something that only *might* work. Tough one!

 

[Deleted member 174758]

The technique is to cut a 6in strip of hardboard or thicker plywood and jigsaw a notch in the end. This is placed on the surface of the workpiece and held with one hand whilst the nailer or pinner is used with the other hand. The nose piece of the nailer/pinner is tested on top of the hardboard before pulling the trigger. It works with 1st fix nailers and also with 2nd fix nailers (16 gauge) into softwoods but 18 ga us probably too thin and the pins will quite probably bend. DO NOT get into the habit of holding the nose back and firing any nsil.gun or staples as you really are inviting a very painful accident. Either way getting a 4mm nail 10mm into a surface is probably asking too much because the nail.needs to be supported by the timber at the point of entry. The thinner the nail, the more the support it needs

 

[huskie69]

I measured the nails I'll be using at the weekend and, suffice to say, I was way out with my initial guestimated measurements. The nails are actually 25mm in length, 2mm wide (12 gauge?) with a head measuring 5mm wide.

 

[lostinthelight]

Can you share what the project is and how the nails will be positioned in relation to the others or how near to edges or corners of the material you want to bang them into?
litl

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I measured the nails I'll be using at the weekend and, suffice to say, I was way out with my initial guestimated measurements. The nails are actually 25mm in length, 2mm wide (12 gauge?) with a head measuring 5mm wide.

25mm puts you in the 16gauge nail range - bigger diameter nails only come in longer sizes (I. E. 1st fix starts at 51mm). 5mm head diameter sounds like a hand nail - 15 and 16 gauge nails have rectangular heads which are a lot smaller. There are a few professional nailers in your size range (Paslode do a roofing nailer with a drum magazine for example) but they are well.outside the budget of most DIY projects at £600+