NuMax Pneumatic 21 Degree Nail Gun

Update: 03-05-2015 After sitting on the shelf for 6 months I got the nailer out while making a Form for a concrete driveway. I used the nailer to lengthen a 2x4x12'. I did this by butting two 2x4's and then overlapping the joint with another 2x4. I shot the nails at a 30 degree angle and set the depth adjuster so the nail head stuck out (simulating a Duplex Nail) for easy dis-assembly after the pour. Worked great but I'm glad I didn't spend $300 on a nailer that I only use once in a while. Update: 07-2014 My nailer has been sitting on the shelf gathering dust as I completed most of my projects for now so I'm glad I didn't spend $200+. This is the reality for a non-professional like me. Safety: Woodgrain, knots, a broken nail or screw can deflect the nail towards the hand holding the board unexpected and in random ways. Approximately, 45,000 people per year go to the hospital with nail injuries and 65% come from using a nailer in bump fire mode. Take your time and work carefully. Home owners get hurt about 5x more often than pros. Don't let your guard down and when it is getting too dark to see clearly it's time to quit. I had a close-call so put safety first. The 'Perfect Nailer?' Be careful not to expect perfection from this or any nail gun. On a larger repetitive production project like nailing 2x4's to build a frame you are likely to get very consistent results. But with different types of wood including old dry red wood, or shooting small / short ring shank nails results will vary and after reading a glowing review of this or a much more expensive brand name nail gun it is easy to feel let down by the tool. In some cases I was working on a small table where the parts move as I shoot the nail which reduces the impact and might require finishing the nail with a hammer. In other cases, with the rink shank nail the nail was counter sunk over 1/4" which is hard to remove if you make a mistake. Moral of the story? Air nailing is part science and part art. While it is wonderful at doing the "heavy lifting" / production nailing you will still need your traditional hammer. Update: 04-02-2014 I have shot about 1000 3-1/2 0.131 framing nails and 100 2" galvanized ring shank nails. The adjustable depth had to be set to shallowest depth and I turned the air pressure down to ~ 75psi for the small ring shank nails because they were being deeply counter sunk by ~ 1/8". Very reliable and works even better as it gets broken in. I am very satisfied. I've been using air tools for 20 years as a non-pro. Impact wrenches, nailers, air sprayers pivot and revolve off the same basic patents and designs and work great and are durable, reliable, and have a very long life with no electric motor to burnout. PROS: - Saves your arm. You will tire quickly even with the 22oz milled face framing hammer that I own and many tight spaces are impossible to swing either at all or with the speed and power to drive the nail with one hit. Great for the solo DIY warrior - hold with one hand and fire with the other. - Price - Adjustable depth (without needing a special tool and it's a screw for fine control and it has a lock nut if needed). This helps when switching from 3-1/4" nails to 2" nails - the 2" will be deeply counter sunk. Just turn the depth to drive them flush. Duplex - duplex nails have two heads which lets you nail head #1 all the way in and have head #2 sticking up to make it easy to remove the nails later on things like temporary structures like concrete forms or a temporary jig or wood to hold / tack a diagonal wall in place. Using the depth you can shoot two nails at opposite angles both with the head sticking up a little to make it easy to pull the nails out after. - Shoots standard affordable PLASTIC collated nails - some brands like Porter Cable require Paper collated nails (better for the environment - no plastic chips) but less common. - Dry fire lockout - will not fire when there are only 3 nails left (by the way same as the HFT nailer) you can add another full or partial strip behind the 3 last nails and keep going with no waste. Sometimes you will loose the 3rd most forward nail (it fall out because it is separated from the plastic clip that holds it to the other two remaining nails. You don't want a dry fire because the piston / firing pin is designed to hit the nail not bottom out because there is no nail to hit. - Jam removal hole - there is a round hole near the front of the magazine that makes it easier to move a nail into position (usually one of the remaining three. - Quality / reliability. CONS: - No bump fire switch the trigger must be changed (a bump fire trigger is included). Not a big deal unless you are going to do production nailing - basically someone lines up all the 2x4's and you are just going to shoot nails. I don't see non-pros, non-production work from benefiting from this. I place the nailer, aim and pull the trigger. Bounce firing makes sense with a roof coil nailer where you are just aiming for a general spot and going down the line from shingle to shingle. *HOWEVER*, if you plan to shoot 2-1/2" ringshank nails to install OSB or plywood sheathing then it is nice to have but still using the trigger (slower) for the non-pro is a minor drawback and you get the bumpfire trigger included (I've never used my trigger) - The depth adjuster is not as easy to turn as the brands names - solution = lift slightly on the nose piece (end the nails come out of) and then it turns easily. UPDATE: 04/2014 with use and some oil it turns much easier now. However, it is confusing as to which way is shallow and which is counter sunk. My solution: if you look at the claws at the bottom the more they stick out when depressed (position to shoot a nail) then that = shallow. The more the claw is retracted allowing the "barrel" of the nail gun to get closer to the wood then that results in a deeper drive (counter sunk). A sticker would be helpful that shows the depth wheel all the way up (towards the trigger) = countersunk. Down = shallow. - No tool less jam removal that all the big name brands include. In my 700 framing nail experience I found that jams don't occur very often and when they did rarely was it necessary to dissemble anything. Tool less jam probably allows the professional to go faster, be more careless and do things that might result in a jam knowing that the gun can be opened without tools and um-jammed. For most DIY'ers this is a non-issue and there is little or no benefit. - No belt hook or ladder hook - included on almost all the name brand nailers - you could always rig up something. - Generally, the depth is mostly consistent but If you don't hold the tool flat or the hardness of the wood varies nails might stick up a little or be counter sunk. If nails stick up I finish them off with the hammer. - The gauge / diameter limit is 0.131" (some name brands like Bostitch go up to 0.148" but the nails are rather expensive.) * This is the same unit as Husky at Home depot and another generic brand that sells for much more. My History: I own and have used a palm nailer, brad nailer and air stapler. Palm Nailer: I own a Ridgid brand palm nailer which cost about $75 at HD. Once I started using a framing nailer I barely use the Palm nailer. Palm nailers are good for tight space and can shoot almost any size nail but framing nailers are SOOOOOO much faster and easier (as long as you have enough wrist strength). There is nothing like getting the 2x4 exactly in the right place and pull the trigger. This spring, I borrowed and used a neighbors Framing Nailer from Harbor freight Tools that he bought new in 2005 to build a 120 Sq ft shed. My neighbor left it in the back of his truck so it was dirty, and a little rusted. The nails were rusty too. At first it jammed and buried the head of the 3 1/4" framing nails. Then I took the nose apart, wired brushed it and lubed it. Then added oil drops to lube the piston. Once I got on a roll I shot around 700 nails without a single jam. Nail strips make it fairly easy to keep track of how many nails you have used. Why does any of this matter because this is the same basic nailer except this one has adjustable depth so you don't need an Allen wrench to loosen the adjuster. The slide works better and is updated. On his unit the roll pin that keeps pressure on the nails fell out and I had to take it apart to put it back in. I need to do another project and I decided it was time to buy my own. I looked at the name brands at HD and saw two nice features. Tool-less jam removal and adjustable depth. I already know I can live without both but adjustable depth is really nice to have. Even in the generics this feature typically raises the price to $140+ Size: I wondered why anyone would use such a big bulky tool to nail. The answer:time and physical effort. How long can the average person hit 3 1/4" framing nails? And nailing is just one part of the project. You still need to cut, measure, handle materials, etc. Jams: any brand nailer can jam or bend a nail when you shoot a nail and hit another nail or screw in the wood that you didn't see or a super hard knot. But once you handle the tool right, keep it clean, and lubed you will shoot hundreds if not thousands of nails without a jam. If you are careless loading the new nail strip behind the three remaining nails this could cause a jam. I let the nails slide down smoothly and check with my eye for a good alignment. Double Taps are another source of Jams: then nailer fires twice rapidly and the second nail hits the first - pop-pop like a machine gun on the last two rounds. Jams with the NuMax so far in 50 nails: zero. Bottom line: don't hesitate to buy this nailer. TIP: Don't throw your hammer away. Consider getting a full framing hammer 20 oz with a milled face and wood handle). You can toss in a full 16d Coated Sinker 3-1/4" nail for extra strength like when putting a wood ladder together. The traditional 16d nail is a much thicker gauge and take about 50% more force to pull them out. 16d common = 3-1/2" x 0.162" diameter 16d sinker = 3-1/4" x 0.148" diameter 16d short = 3=1/4" x 0.131" diameter