My finish nailer does a good job of quickly affixing trim, but, with each pull of the trigger, the nailer leaves a 3/32-in. hole in the surface of the trim. Rather than patch the holes with putty, which might stand out once the color of the wood changes, I plug the holes with a matching wood. Here’s how.
First, I rip a 1/16-in. thick strip of wood off a piece of 1x stock. Then, I slide the strip over the hole and adjust its angle to make sure the grain is running in the right direction. Next, I use a punch, as shown in the drawing, to press a tiny plug of wood into the hole. The tip of the punch is 3/32 in. in diameter, and I use a belt sander to grind a flat spot on its tip.
I typically punch in a couple of plugs to fill each hole. The plugs should end up a little proud of the surface. Then, I apply a drop of Duco Cement, which is available at my local hobby shop, to the plugs, and I sand them immediately. The finished plugs are just about invisible.
Bob Johnston, Albuquerque, NM
