Replies

1. 
   Dave45 | Aug 27, 2005 04:46pm | #1

   Are they brads of finish nails?

   I have an 18ga brad nailer and those rascals are almost impossible to pull out of a hard wood.  That "sorta coming out" thing may actually be a case of the brads not being fully driven in. 

   This can happen if;

   •  the air pressure is too low
   • if the work pieces are allowed to move slightly when the trigger is pulled, or
   • if the brad nailer isn't held firmly against the work when you pull the trigger.

   Try the nailer out on some scrap making sure that your pieces are solidly backed.  Keep firm pressure on the nailer so it doesn't "bounce" when it's fired.  Play with your air pressure to find the right setting for the wood you're using, it's thickness, and the length of your brads.

   Brad length is important.  You want just enough length to hold the pieces together.  Brads will sometimes turn and exit the wood where you don't expect them to.  If you have a finger in the wrong place, it can really smart.  Been there, done that, and got the scars to prove it - lol.

1. 
   Yogi | Aug 27, 2005 07:10pm | #2

   Dave-  Thank you-  I'll talk to him again with your thoughts in mind and try to see what's the deal-  Thanks again- 

2. 
   mudman | Aug 28, 2005 06:49am | #3

   In my experience pnumaticly driven nails always stick a lot better than hammered nails. I think that your neighbor is ...... mistaken. Unless he is compairing them to mosnter casing nails?

   Mike

1. 
   Yogi | Aug 28, 2005 09:30am | #4

   Well, that's what I'd always heard-  What d'ya think:  2 " nails from an 18 ga sufficient to affix 4" wide slats of bead board to my porch ceiling?

1. 
   scaly | Aug 28, 2005 04:07pm | #5

   Yes, but shoot into the tongues at slight (15*-20*) angle, every 6"-8". That way, the nail is less likely to pull out, and they no be visible. 

1. 
   Yogi | Aug 28, 2005 10:40pm | #7

   Nails every 6-8"?  I hadn't intended to sheet under the bead board, rather, to nail at the rafters, 16 o/c-  Not so good? 

1. 
   Stuart | Aug 28, 2005 11:26pm | #9

   I nailed the beadboard for my porch ceiling right to the rafters like you suggest without any problems - they've been up there for nearly 20 years now and they haven't fallen off yet.  I did do it by hand, so it took a LONG time.

2. 
   Yogi | Aug 28, 2005 11:35pm | #10

   Stuart-  Is your neck still just a little crooked?  I'm not even gunna think about doing it by hand-  I'm gunna get MODRUN and do it with a gun-  Just hafta figure out which one-  Sounds like a 16 ga would be the most helpful to me overall as well as serving to put up the bead board-  Friend bought one at Harbor Freight for cheap

3. 
   Yogi | Aug 28, 2005 11:37pm | #11

   (oops hit the wrong button) and says it has worked well for him-  He doesn't make his living with it (I don't know how often I would use it, either) so he makes no great demands upon it-

2. 
   Dave45 | Aug 28, 2005 04:26pm | #6

   Your brad length should be based on the thickness of the wood you're nailing on.  I generally go for a brad length around 2x the board thickness.  For 3/4" thick boards, I would use 1-1/2" or 1-3/4" brads.  For thinner stock, use shorter brads.  Be careful with really thin stock.  I've had problems "overdriving" 1/4" material - the brad goes almost completely thru it and it doesn't hold.

1. 
   Yogi | Aug 28, 2005 10:44pm | #8

   "...For 3/4" thick boards, I would use 1-1/2" or 1-3/4" brads.  For thinner stock, use shorter brads..." 

   I know my ignorance is showing, but are nails different from brads when they're 1 3/4" to 2" long, or is it a finish nail by any name? 

1. 
   Dave45 | Aug 29, 2005 07:44am | #12

   Yogi -

   Yes, there are differences. 

   Finish nails have a round cross section and brads are square

   Finish nails are usually heavier gauge (thicker) than brads.  My finish nailer uses 15 gauge nails and my brad "nailer" uses 18 gauge. (I also have a micropinner that uses 23 gauge - about like a very fine wire.)

   Go to the tool section at your local Home Depot and look at the packages of finish nails and brads.  The differences should be obvious.

2. 
   Yogi | Aug 29, 2005 09:26am | #13

   "...Go to the tool section at your local Home Depot..."

   There you have it, I'll have to go to town-  No way around it-  It's CROWDED in there-Thanks for your and everyone else's thoughts-  Been a bit of an education-  As always- 

3. 
   mudman | Aug 29, 2005 06:12pm | #16

   I've never seen a "round" finish (16 ga) nail. They are square or rectangle as well.

4. 
   Dave45 | Aug 29, 2005 10:28pm | #17

   Mudman -

   I won't dispute your information about the shape of 16 ga finish nails, but my 15 ga nails are all definitely round. - lol

5. 
   mudman | Aug 30, 2005 05:50am | #18

   LOL. Funny I was thinking "I wonder about 15 ga. nails?". I don't have a 15 ga. gun so am not familular with the nails. None the less, I would never have though that they were round. Are they blunt pointed like normal, or pointed like a framing nail?

   Mike

3. 
   mudman | Aug 29, 2005 06:08pm | #15

   Personally I would not use 18 ga. I have seen it a few times and it seemed to hold well enough untill the wood starts to rot. I would use 16 ga finish nails. If the boards are tongue and groove Shoot the nail at an angle into the "shoulder" of the tongue. If no tongue then shoot into the face at as much of an angle as possible.

   MIke

3. 
   frenchy | Aug 29, 2005 11:22am | #14

   Hi Yogi,

     Well what isn't said here is about the slight coating of plastic that most nail manufactures use.  They do it to hold nails in a "stick" but a fringe benefit of it is the plastic melts under the friction of going in that fast  and then soldifies a moment later  another words it's "Glued" in. 

     Try this!   Put identical sized brads into wood and measure the force it takes to remove them,  I'll bet that a nail gun "holds" better than hand nailing..

     I do know that it is so easy and fast to use a nail gun that often too many nails/brads are used or they are used improperly.

     It's kinda the old story about the hammer.. If the only tool you have is  hammer then everything attempts to get solved with a hammer!  Tune your carberator?  Hit it with a hammer! Fix a leak? hit it with a hammer!  etc...