I have a small basement work shop and many projects I do are small in nature and would best be done with a brad nailer that can handle up to 1 1/4″ brads. I’m definitely not interested on a compressor driven nailer due to the noise levels. I know that “Arrow” makes an electric nailer e as well as a few other mfgs. Has anyone had any experience with the electric nailers and if so which one is the best and why.
Thanks
Replies
If you are shying away from air nailers because of the noise, especially for light duty use as you describe, you're laboring under false pretenses. You can get some pretty small compressors that are remarkable quiet. My experience with electric nailers has been unsatisfactory, at best.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
I agree. I had bought an Arrow electric brad nailer about and year ago and promptly returned it. It was unable to drive 1-1/4" brads in softwood. It also jammed frequently, right out of the box. I now have a Ridgid pneumatic brad nailer and I am more than satisfied. The CH compressor I have is loud, but a lot of the better (and more expensive) small compressors are quite a bit quieter. I guess you could also build a box around them like people have suggested for shop vacs. I also got by initially with a portable air tank and a bicycle pump. Not much noise, but boy it was it a work out.
James
Thanks James, That doesn't sound very hopeful. Is the problem with just the "Arrow" nailer or are the all dogs?
I can only speak to my experience with the Arrow nailer that I used. It just didn't have the necessary power. In the meantime, I remembered seeing an advertisement by Dewalt for a cordless 18 gauge nailer. I have never seen one in person, and they look bigger than a corresponding pneumatic brad nailer, but they do have the advantage of not requiring a compressor. Then there's the issue of cost and flexibility to use the compressor for other tools. Might be an option though.
James
Everything I have read and heard to date seems to center around the Arrow Nailer, so that one is definitely out of the picture, but I have read some positive reviews with the Northern Tools Nailer that I will investigate further. If that doesn't work out, I guess I'll just have to go the air nailer route using the co2 cartridges. Thanks all for your comments.
I have a Porter Cable pancake compressor and yes is it LOUD!!! But a contractor who works at the stables where I ride has a stacked compressor that is much, much quieter. It might be worth doing some research to see if you can find a quiet, effective compressor.
If you are looking for an air compressor you might check http://www.eatoncompressor.com/ . I have had good luck with the contractor portable unit(stacked hotdog type) and they are not as loud as some that I have used.
Pat
Buy a compressor,Quincy,Thompson and some others make fairly quiet ones.Get a compressor with a 20 gallon or larger tank. With this size tank relative to the work you do,the compressor probably would never come on except for initial fill each working day.
Electric nail guns are waste of money unles you work only in balsa wood.
mike
Cwcarrosr
Have to agree with you that NOISE drives me a bit crazy and I love a quiet shop; HOWEVER, it is hard to do without some of the tools that do produce a lot of noise.
Have a three horse 60 gallon air compressor in my garage with the air piped into my basement workshop. You can hardly hear that big boy running in the shop. Have electrical controls in the shop that allow me to turn it on and off at will from the basement.
Have the cyclone dust collector in a separate room in the basement for the same reason.. it all helps
Moksha
CW. as an alternative, you can drive a brad nailer with a CO2 cylinder. A 10 lb tank will drive THOUSANDS of brads. A local welding supplier can refill it for not much money. my area it costs about $12.
Dick
Thanks,This may be the best alternative.
If you go the CO2 route, be aware that the gas is dangerous. 2% in air will lead you to panting and a headache. More will choke you.I would normally not have any problems with it but you did say you have a basement shop.
I have an Arrow electric staple gun that barely drives 3/8 staples into hard wood. I have yet to see an electric device that claims to drive 1 1/4 nails or staples into anything, especially with any sort of proven reliability.
That being said, I also own the Ridgid 18 gauge brad nailer, and it has been fantastic for two years under heavy use.
As for quiet compressors, if you want to stay with something small, I would go with a Makita Mac700. It's remarkably quiet and it gets to full capacity very quickly. The motor is oiled, and covered by a plastic shroud. Its a little on the heavy side, and a little top heavy (likes to tip over in my truck bed sometimes) But it runs at about 65 db, right about the same as a talking voice. We can talk over it without raising our voices. Brad nailing at a consistent pace, the compressor turns on about every eight minutes, but only runs for about 45 seconds to recharge. With a finish nailer, a little more often. Mine does not leak air. If I leave it over night, I come in the next day, plug it in, the motor does not even turn on, because its still up to pressure.
Hi, I had a Senco battery powered nailer that I intially loved. It had enough power and was ultra protable, no hose, no compressor, it was great. The problem is that it's not something I use alot and the batteries deteriorate. I have since purchased the Porter Cable kit and yes the compressor is loud but runs very infrequently. One of the solutions for the load compressor is to build an insulated box (with intake holes) that really cuts down the noise.
Check out the DeWalt Emglo. It's the 1 gallon, small,lightweight and very quiet.
I use it with both my brad nailer and 23 ga. pinner. It makes the jobs in and out of various rooms nice and easy and no hassels with long hoses.
I also have a twin stack Thomas that is very dependable but the Emglo is just so much easier for small jobs.
...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
electric nailer/staplers will drive you nuts
air is the only way to go, sure compressors are loud especially the little pancakes
but driving a few brads, it wont run much, maybe a couple of minutes every 50 brads( in guessing here)
and once you get air, you'll find hundreds of uses for it, if i could id have it run through the house like water
Great idea on running compressed air through out the house, could you imagine explaining it to the building inspector:) (or the wife)Thanks
i always thought it would be a great idea, at least a line across the basement to the back yard with maybe a couple of drops in the middle, then the compressor and its associated noise would be in the garage
building code requirements? who knows!!
probably want to make sure it is not hooked up to the natural gas line as well:)Troy
hey a brad nailer on 100 psi natural gas, hehe, no problem with countersink!!
LOL probably light your cegar really well to.Troy
I'm curious as to how adaptable is the Emglo to other applications, i.e. spraying, vacumn bag, etc. This would be for occasional light usage.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Good general question. I do not, as yet, have either the vacuum clamp or a spray outfit. I was planning on trying spray finishes this spring for my first time.
Maybe some fellow craftspeople out here will chime in or possibly a DeWalt rep that might be monitoring the site.
I usually lurk about in these parts more than participate but I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you and all the other fine folks here a Merry Christmas and great holiday season. I have learned many new ways to appreciate woodworking through all of your fine input.
Jim
...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Edited 12/23/2008 12:59 pm by oldbeachbum
Dewalt bought Emglo a while back and they were an excellent product. Their target market was the construction industry running nailers and the like on the jobsite. They make gasoline and electrical driven portable compressors. I don't know if Dewalt is running them into the ground like they are with Porter-Cable, but I doubt it because it is not a competing line of tools. If you are looking for a small portable compressor they were the best in that niche market.
terry,
I'm kinda on the fence at this point. The garage is just downstairs from the woodshop and so I might get a big one for the garage and plumb a line up to the woodshop.
Got a small one in the garage now but it makes so much racket the neighbors wear earplugs when I run it! Thought the Emglo might be a less expensive alternative if its flexible/multi tool capable.
Just tire kicking at this point I guess.
Thanks,
Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Edited 12/23/2008 10:08 pm ET by KiddervilleAcres
Bob,
Like always, your instincts are right on the money. I have my compressor at another location and plumbed it into my shop. It works like a charm and I have air in my garage and my shop. Very handy for cars and tools. If you have a Tractor Supply Co. by you they carry Ingersol upright compressors and they are not that loud. They are cast iron, made in the USA and have a 2 year warranty. You can pick up a 3HP 60gal for about $500 on sale. You might have close to that in a good portable. Just something to confuse you with even more.
Terry
Terry,
Oh you would have to tell me that about Tractor Supply; just kidding of course. There's one not all that far from me.
One thing I like to do whenever possible is to dual purpose tools and this sounds like another sitcheeation fir it. That's kinda the direction I was leaning towards anyway.
Do ye think it's too late to tell Santa?
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
There are CO2 high pressure bottles with a regulator that will run up to a framing gun will handle a brad nailer or which nailer you care to use.Its an alternative for some time use.
Regards From Melbourne Australia
You can make it fool proof but not idiot proof
If you have a Lowes near you, they sell a 'portable' unit... an air tank, hose and regulator. The air tanks are the type the paintball guys use and, to my understanding, refillable. It's totally portable and absolutely quiet. You could run hundreds, if not thousands of brads before you need to refill the tank. Come to think of it, a paintball shop may have a similar unit for less$$$. The important part is the regulator, as you may have to adjust the pressure for those shorter brads and thinner wood pieces.
SawdustSteve
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