Hello All,
First, Boris need not reply! To everyone else, I was wondering if anyone has used Bostitch nailers, and could offer some feedback on their operation. I picked up the N80SB-1, fitted it with 1/4″ fitting, installed the Sequential Trigger mechanism, and test/dry fired it on a couple of 2x4s, one on top the other.
I noted that ‘something was plunging into the wood about 1/8″ when no nails had been loaded into the nailer. I then loaded 12S 3.25″ Bostitch nails (plain shank) and tried them. Being inexperienced with nailers (and 2x4s), it did not occur to me that driving 3.25″ nails into 3″ of wood on a concrete floor would be good for the floor!
So, I retested with three 2x4s stacked for 4.5″ of wood to test on. The N80SB-1 was still counter-sinking, which is both good and bad. Good in that I know the nailer (and the compressor feeding it) are sufficient for my basement activities. Bad in that I would prefer to have a flush-driven nail then one counter-sinked. The following URL shows the default (factory) depth position, and some wood nailing results:
http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/wanmangr/lst?.dir=/&.src=ph&.view=t
If you signup for Yahoo Photos, I believe you can view much larger versions of the photos as opposed to the smaller public-sized versions.
Replies
Adjust your air pressure?
I`ll second that. Adjusting the outlet pressure on the compressor should do the trick.
Also, not to be funny, if you are new to the world of pneumatic nailers be sure to wear eye protection at all times.
Have fun!
J. D. Reynolds
Home Improvements
"DO IT RIGHT, DO IT ONCE"
Kartmano
I don't have a Bostitch, but I have a PorterCable. First of all somewhere in the directions for the gun should be instructions on adjusting the factory setting for depth of drive. You can do this or you can fiddle with adjusting the air pressure, both methods are useful. Framing nailers do not take away the need for a hammer. wood differs in its density slightly, and depending on what you are nailing in to the nail will probably vary occasionally in the depth it is driven. A hammer is still needed often to fully sink nails especially when bounce nailing. I have found that the best thing to do is to experiment on test pieces before you start working, if nailing depth is critical.
My over all advice is to read the manual, play with it, nailing various material together. Always diconnect from the compresssor when making adjustments. You need to have a nipple on the gun not the connector,( it amazes me how many peole set up their gun/hoses wrong). Oil it if it needs oiled, watch where you put your hands and body. Wear safety glasses, and don't nail into your garage floor :)
Clwebb
CLWEBB, thanks for the reply. I did read the manual (in fact, I read it online before buying it), but the line illustration is not that great and any analytical mind is bound to second and third guess the meaning of any instructions unless explicit, which it is not.
I emailed Bostitch via their website and they said explect a response with 24 hours. Thats about 4 more to go before the 24 hour has struck.
Kartman, you know owe me because I actually read the stupit instructions. Your nailer is shipped at the depth setting 0. Your setting range is from 0-12, 0 being the deepest. If you don't want to have the nails set so deep adjust up. I gather you are having a hard time figuring out how to do that, look at the tool. You have an adjustment on the tip of the gun to adjust the outer contact sleeve, you will want to extend that. Loosen the stupit nut and slide the sleeve down, it should have ridges so you will feel it set into place, tighten said stupit nut.
I don't know why you opted for the sequential fire, I think you will be hating life when you want to nail sheathing. And I also think you will find that play fire on wood is different from constructing, so don't be in such a hurry to have the nails flush. You may have to toe nail, or maybe nail against a less solid surface, or maybe nail in more of a hurry. Try setting #3 and go build something.
Safety isn't a joke, I know a guy that shot his cousin thru a wall, they don't call these things guns for nothing.
Qtmeg,
Thanks for the reply. A little clarification on my part is needed.
I bought this nailer for a DIY (do it yourself) project that entails finishing my basement and building a home theater. This means framing the poured concrete walls with 2x4s mostly, but the home theater will consume approximately 3 sheets of 3/4" TG plywood for the second row of seating in the home theater. Thus, minimal sheathing will be the calling compared to the framing involved, which is what the tool was bought for.
As stated earlier, I read the instructions. After reading the instructions I compared them to the line illustrations, of which I'll include next reply. I swapped the trigger in less than five minutes because I'll be doing a lot more framing on my home project than anything else.
My problem is the line illustration does not show any of these setting, but I could 'guess' if I were to throw caution to the wind. Also, I was not 'play fire', but following the instructions mentioned.
Edited 4/19/2002 10:34:34 PM ET by kartman0
This is a cropped screen capture from the manual that can be found online.
Gawd! Are you going to make me read intructions twice in one year? Guy, those look a little different from the ones I read, but who knows. You have a sleeve on the business end of the gun, that rests against the work, there is an adjustment on that sleeve to extend it away from the gun to limit the depth of the nail. Loosen it up and adjust it. Go for it, if you aren't comfortable with what you have done stop. The concept is simple, the piston drives the nail, Bostich has allowed you to adjust that depth with the tip. La dee da dee da, did I tell you I don't have a Bostich? Ha, don't let that bother you, this is just a mechanical adjustment.
As for the play fire, I meant you shot nails one at a time, carefully, on a solid surface. You don't often work like that. You will work at angles and on less than solid surfaces. Under the latter conditions the nails will not set so deep, so don't over do the adjustments on the trial work. You might also want the gun to drive more than worry about where the head of the nail ends up.