Synopsis: In this tool review, contributing editor Rick Arnold takes a look at the current crop of 16-ga. finish nailers. After narrowing the field to 14 nailers of more than 20 on the market, Arnold gives top marks—both best overall and best value—to a Bostitch nailer. Arnold lists his primary set of criteria (depth adjustment, nail placement, no-mar tip, and more) for assessing his own methodology for his ratings. Then he includes a list of secondary criteria (belt hook, trigger action, firing mode, and more) to encourage prospective consumers to make their own determination of what is the right set of features on the right nailer.

Magazine extra: One video wasn’t enough to describe the notable features of these tools, so we gave you three. Watch a video where Rick goes through the tools’ features gun by gun, then he explains what he considers their top four features, and finally, he rounds out the review by detailing features he considers secondary, but worth considering before buying.

Sometimes the difference in performance from one brand of tool to another is easy to detect and evaluate, and making a purchase is a painless decision. Other times, the field of tools is so broad and the differences so subtle that I need to fall back on a different guideline: Which tool will make me more money? Sixteen-ga. finish nailers fall squarely into the latter category.

A tool can help me make more money when it allows me to work faster without sacrificing the level of accuracy or quality that I demand. Often, it’s the little things that make the most difference. How fast can I change the nails? How easy is it to adjust the firing depth? How much time will I waste opening the nosepiece to remove jammed nails? Is it easy to see how many nails are left in the magazine? Will the nailer keep firing even after it’s out of nails?

While a broad selection of tools can make it harder to decide which one to buy, it also means I can be choosier about the features that are important to me.

Why one tool earned two awards

For the past few months, I’ve been using these nail guns for a wide range of jobs, but mainly focusing on their specialty: interior trim. In the end, my choice for best overall was without a doubt the Bostitch FN16250K2. It includes everything I want in a finish nailer and then some. As far as I’m concerned, it has no competition.

The choice for best value is more complicated. Everybody gives different weight to different criteria, so a nailer that has lots of features for a low price isn’t necessarily a better value than a solid tool that excels in the areas that are most important to me. Best value also depends on the amount of use the tool will get. If I seldom did finish work, I might consider buying the $70 Grizzly and having it in my toolbox for the rare occasion that I needed it. But because I do trimwork more than seldom, I would gladly spend the extra $90 for the Bostitch, which would give me a return on that extra money in just one or two jobs. To me, the slight difference in price between all these nailers combined with my frequency of use makes the Bostitch best value as well.

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