Which air compressor and nailer?

[Mark A]

I'm thinking about buying an air compressor and brad nailer some time in the future but know nothing about them. I won't be using the compressor for anything but nailing so don't need anything fancy or expensive. I'm not looking to spend a lot, but would consider paying a little bit more for better quality and longevity. Any suggestions of which size and brand of compressor and nailer I could get for my meagre budget?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[goldeneyedmonkey]

Hi Mark,

I've got a Senco compressor and Axminster brad nailer and headless pinner. They all work fine for me, I don't use them all day, but when I do need them then they do the job admirably. I'm going to be upgrading to a Bostitch 23 gauge headless pinner @ some point, just because you can get longer nails fired in with it. The axminster headless pinner only goes up to 20mm long nails (I think, don't quote me on that)

All in it was under £200.

Hope that helps you out. Cheers _Dan.

 

[MickCheese]

I got one ages ago from B&Q for about £60. It included the compressor, nail gun and three boxes of nails. Never missed a beat.

Quite noisy though when filling.

Mick

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

I would go for a 50l compressor min, so if you fancy some more air tools later, you will not be waiting for it to fill all the time.

 

[Mark A]

I would go for a 50l compressor min, so if you fancy some more air tools later, you will not be waiting for it to fill all the time.

I haven't got the room for a big compressor, plus I already have a lot of the air tools in electrical form anyway. I'd only be using it for nailing and stapling so I'm after the smallest compressor I could get away with.

What about this? http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ax ... rod564887/

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

Thats only 6L mark. Although it will fire a nail, in after say 10 it will be refilling and you will be reaching for the nail punch. They don't stay at pressure. The more air you use the lower the pressure gets until it starts to refill but many of time even my 24L one can't keep up at the rate I was firing nails in, so I had to stop firing and wait, as the pressure was to low to drive the nail under the surface you then end up hitting them all with a nail punch anyway.

You want to look for 24L min for any nailer but seriously I replaced my 24L with a 50L last year and it sits in the same place under a bench, its barely used any more space up and I haven't yet had to wait for it to fill while I have been nailing.

The size of that 6L is 510 x 240 x 415mm the size of my 24L is 570x260x580mm, which is im sure you agree is nearly the same with just the added bonus of 18 more litres. My 50L is 800x300x720mm ish which is a difference but barely any more foot print. HTH

EDIT: when I first brought my first brad nailer and compressor. I was happy with it by all means but always regretted not having a 50L straight away due to the filling issue.

 

[marcros]

watch out for non standard fittings if you buy the compressor and nailer separately. The cheap compressors are particularly guilty of only fitting their own accessories on, often a tyre inflator, crap spray gun and blower only.

You could do worse than have a look at machine mart.

 

[Mark A]

Thats only 6L mark. Although it will fire a nail, in after say 10 it will be refilling and you will be reaching for the nail punch. They don't stay at pressure. The more air you use the lower the pressure gets until it starts to refill but many of time even my 24L one can't keep up at the rate I was firing nails in, so I had to stop firing and wait, as the pressure was to low to drive the nail under the surface you then end up hitting them all with a nail punch anyway.

You want to look for 24L min for any nailer but seriously I replaced my 24L with a 50L last year and it sits in the same place under a bench, its barely used any more space up and I haven't yet had to wait for it to fill while I have been nailing.

The size of that 6L is 510 x 240 x 415mm the size of my 24L is 570x260x580mm, which is im sure you agree is nearly the same with just the added bonus of 18 more litres. My 50L is 800x300x720mm ish which is a difference but barely any more foot print. HTH

EDIT: when I first brought my first brad nailer and compressor. I was happy with it by all means but always regretted not having a 50L straight away due to the filling issue.

24 litres it is then! The 50 litre compressors are too big - I struggle to squeeze into the shed sometimes so space is at a premium.


What's better........

4 CFM (113 litres/minute) Max. Free Air Delivery & 8 Bar Max. Pressure

--V.S--

3.5 CFM (99 litres/minute) Max. Free Air Delivery & 10 Bar Max. Pressure

:?:

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Oryxdesign]

I've got that 6l compressor, I use it with the Axi nail and staple guns. It does need to run more frequently than a bigger compressor but it does keep up even when using the big first fix nailer and 75mm nails.

I do use a larger unit in my workshop but I would buy another one of these for site work if I lost it because it is convenient to carry around. I haven't has issues with non standard fittings.

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

You will never need 10 Bar for a brad nailer. I have never needed anymore then 8bar for anything, when bradding the most I have used is 6Bar for 50mm brads. However the more the bar the more air pressure there is (Think power). CFM is how much air it can move in a minute (Think Punch). The higher the number the better and its this number thats more relevant to what tools you can use.

Out the two I would go with 4 CFM - 8Bar
With a higher CFM you can run more tools and 8bar is standard and very common as a max for compressors.

 

[Mark A]

Ok

Another question :lol:

Oil Lubricated or Oil Free

Thanks,
Mark

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

Makes little difference with your use. Oil Lubed tend to be cheaper. My 50l is oiled and my 24l is Oil Free

 

[Richard S]

I'd second what Simon said, I've a 24l version in the workshop and bought the 6l Axi version last year for jobs around the house, never failed fire a nail home yet. I've been very pleased with it and paid around £90 for mine and think it's a steal at the clearance price. I use it with a mix of Stanley 18g brad, 15g finish, Axi 23g pinner and a unkown brand stapler. HTH

Cheers

Richard

 

[Mark A]

I've got that 6l compressor, I use it with the Axi nail and staple guns. It does need to run more frequently than a bigger compressor but it does keep up even when using the big first fix nailer and 75mm nails.

I do use a larger unit in my workshop but I would buy another one of these for site work if I lost it because it is convenient to carry around. I haven't has issues with non standard fittings.

That's interesting because it's less than half the price of the SIP compressors I've been looking but as you say, can still keep up with a framing nailer firing 3" nails. I wouldn't be using it continuously and I can afford to take my time as I don't do this as a source of income (thankfully as I've just had to bin/burn all of my collected wood, jigs and shelving due to a massive mould attack over Christmas while we where away in Berlin and the shed was closed)

Do you have to wait long for it to refill or is it pretty quick?

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Oryxdesign]

At £55 I'd say it was a complete bargain.

When using a framing nailer which I do very rarely it does run often but not continuously, so it will keep up. I think if I was a framer I'd need a bigger compressor.

From empty because it has a small receiver it fills quickly, in some ways it's more convenient to use that my larger compressor because by the time you got the nail gun or whatever out and plugged in the hose it's ready to go. For the price if you only use it for a year that £1/week but I bet you'd make a profit if you put it on ebay next January.

 

[Ring]

My m8 is bringing me a compressor this weekend not sure of the size but i was wondering what are the random orbit sanders like that work of compressors are they any good does anyone know. :?:
Jim

 

[Ateallthepies]

I have a 6 litre 10 bar bostitch compressor and with it I use everything from a 18 gauge brad nailer to a 90mm framing nailer. My compressor is oil filled.

Its true I have never used the compressor at anything over 8 BAR with any of my tools but the extra couple of BAR stored in the tank equates to a number of extra shots over a standard 8 BAR fill depending on the tool.

I found a low consumption tool like a 18 gauge nailer would only need 4-5 BAR give or take with a small brad used to drive it home depending on wood being nailed even though the tool rating is 7 BAR max. It is always best to find the lowest air needed for a job as you get more shots before the compressor fires up and tool life is prolonged.

My framer is the same and I always use a lower setting than what the gun states as long as it drives well. With my six litres at 10 BAR I get about 5 -6 shots before the motor kicks in. This will obviously not be sufficient if you are framing for a living and a bigger tank will be needed but for me it is fine.

The smaller tools set on the minimum air needed gets around 25-30 shots out of one tank and the bigger stuff 5-6 shots. Also it may sound silly but the hose you use makes a difference to the shot number as it is really a secondary air tank. I bought the 30 metre Bostitch on a reel and with the small tools get several more shots over my other 5 metre hose that came with the compressor.

For the OP's work any compressor/tank will work the tools it's just a case of choosing the correct size unit, noise level and shot count before the motor kicks in.

 

[Mark A]

I decided to go for the small Axminster compressor in the end as I was able to buy the brad nailer, hose and pack of nails for around the same price as the 24l compressor I was looking at by itself. I appreciate that it'll empty quickly if I'm firing nails continuously, but I doubt I will so that isn't too much of a problem.

Thanks for the help and advice guys!

Mark - who'll be posting on Monday how to remove a nail from his kneecap :roll:

 

[tomatwark]

I would go for a 50l compressor min, so if you fancy some more air tools later, you will not be waiting for it to fill all the time.

I haven't got the room for a big compressor, plus I already have a lot of the air tools in electrical form anyway. I'd only be using it for nailing and stapling so I'm after the smallest compressor I could get away with.

What about this? http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ax ... rod564887/

Cheers,
Mark

I have one of these bought it just before they discounted them .

I use it on site with my 18g nailer and headless pin gun it works fine, so if you are only putting a few nails in at a time it will be ok.

I have a 24lt compressor in the workshop but got fed up of carrying it up stairs in customers houses so bought the small one.

Tom

 

[Mark A]

I have one of these bought it just before they discounted them .

How soon after you bought the compressor did they discount them, because I read on here recently that if it's within 2 weeks you can ask for the difference to be refunded? I don't know anything about it but if it's true then it would be worth it.

Marj