Curious if anyone has a favorite hammer tacker/stapler.
jt8
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Replies
That is what I have. Wouldn't call it my favorite, just the only kind I've ever used.
Rapid 11
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Best Materials
Jon Blakemore
RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Edited 1/20/2006 4:31 pm ET by JonBlakemore
Jon and Jim, I assume it doesn't jam or tear?
jt8
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools." -- Herbert Spencer
I have very few jambs or tears as compared to the arrow staplers that seem so prevalent.Another benefit is there not that expensive. I think some of the staplers mentioned here go for $45-50, the Rapid 11 was about $20.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Didn't notice them in Lowes or Menards. The link in your first post:
http://bestmaterials.com/detail.aspx?ID=11251
Says: "SUPERIOR TO RAPID-11 TYPES." Makes it sound like it isn't the regular Rapid 11.
If it isn't the 'real' rapid 11, does anyone have an online link to a 'real' rapid 11?
jt8
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools." -- Herbert Spencer
http://www.machinerunner.com/HammerTackers/Rapid11ERGO.htmlI didn't notice that they were fakes. The link above has the stapler for $35. I think it's the real one.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
They sell them at my local yard, John. I'd be glad to send you one if you can't find them mail order.TIPI,TIPI,TIPI!
They sell them at my local yard, John. I'd be glad to send you one if you can't find them mail order.
What the heck is the brand name on that thing? My main and secondary lumberyards only seem to carry Arrow, which is all that Lowes had. Menards had Arrow and something else, but not a Rapid 11. Amazon carries several hammer tackers, but doesn't seem to carry a Rapid 11. Yahoo only shows the place that Jon linked to, and they have a $50 min order. I have no trouble hitting $50, except they don't say whether the staples they list as accessories are rust-resistant (and they don't have 1/2" listed --IIRC, 3/8" and 1/2" are my most common poly/insulation staples, 3/8 for single layer and 1/2 for double/triple folds).jt8
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools." -- Herbert Spencer
Rapid 11 is the name of the manufacturer, John. Mine is a "model c". It says "designed and manufactured by Isaber8 A8 Hestra Sweden" on it (those zaney Swedes have some funny names, huh?).
3/8" is the longest staple it takes. That's why I also have a heavy duty Arrow, for undercoursing for cedar sidewall shingles, which I secure with 1/2" staples. But that's about the only time I need them - good thing, too because the rod came flying out of my almost new Arrow last time I used it and the slider got bent.
I'll tell you how bad those frikkin' Arrows are, man. Our lumber yard even sells replacement slider rods for them. "POS" doesn't begin to describe those things.TIPI,TIPI,TIPI!
Rapid 11 is the name of the manufacturer, John. Mine is a "model c". It says "designed and manufactured by Isaber8 A8 Hestra Sweden" on it (those zaney Swedes have some funny names, huh?).
OK, lets see what Yahoo can find...hmm...see if this link posts:
http://rapid.litium.com/litiuminformation/site/page.asp?Page=4&IncPage=530&Destination=306&Section1=8&KeepImageMain=0
Hmm.. the R19 goes from 5/32" to 1/4", the R11 goes from 1/4"-3/8", and the R54 goes from 3/8" to 9/16".
Amazon does have a listing for it, but its not currently available
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009Z88Q4/qid=1138222329/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl60/102-4903695-5363300?n=507846&s=hi&v=glance
Trying to put an order in with a company up near Chicago. We'll see if it goes through OK.
jt8
"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals." -- Sydney Smith
Ever notice how many boxes of staples for the Bostiches are the wrong size? No matter what you tell someone, they always come back with a big box of the size that doesn't fit--R20? or R50? Heck, I'll never remember the number of my Slammer.
A carpenter could buy the off-size Slammer and never have to buy staples since everyone is throwing them away. :-)
That's true Idaho Don.
I've got a real nice bostich that I bought in the 70's. I quit trying to buy staples for it sometime inthe 80's when I kept getting a box of them that don't fit. I really, really got tired of that thing laying around my shop.
blue
Would that company be Berland's?
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Berlands wasn't listed on the Rapid website, this company was:
http://www.amplesupply.com/
Dude was quick to reply to my e-question, but haven't heard back from sending the e-order. If I don't hear from him by noon-ish, I'll give 'em a call.
jt8
"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals." -- Sydney Smith
Edited 1/26/2006 9:33 am by JohnT8
Bingo! Ordered it late Wednesday afternoon..and it showed up this morning (Fri). That is some darn good service! Also got 10k 3/8" staples to go with it. That should get me started.
Rapid Proline R11. Designed and Manufactured by Isaberg Rapid AB, Hestra Sweden.
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Folks I ordered it from again:
http://www.amplesupply.com/
jt8
"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals." -- Sydney Smith
Edited 1/27/2006 11:50 am by JohnT8
I think a lot of jamming is caused by slightly rusty staples, John, or maybe some staples are just different enough in size to not slide smoothly? That being said, the Rapid 11 takes T-50 staples (or the generics widely available).
Another thing, I drive a van, so all my tools, nails, staples, get the benefit of at least a little heat to and from the job everyday - I think it might make a difference in the corrosion/rust/jamming ratio.
Something else along the same lines I learned while partnering with another local contractor a couple years ago was to keep my staple hammer staples in those soft plastic/rubbery squeeze bottles with the slotted lids they sell at Home Depot. Very easy to throw the bottle in my bags when I need a few rows and I think those bottles help reduce corrosion, too.
Crimony. I bet I could buy Doud's sawmill with all the money I've spent replacing broken or corroded staples through the years (maybe he'd trade me!). HEY DAVID! HEY...
TIPI,TIPI,TIPI!
I have two of those that you pictured here. I have been happy with mine. Don't have any experience with others though.
Stu
The style you have pictured seems to tear tar paper easier than the other style pictured
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It's only satisfying if you eat it.
Thought we'd get some Bostitch fans in here. They had fans in the archive posts.
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jt8
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools." -- Herbert Spencer
Edited 1/20/2006 5:34 pm by JohnT8
I love the Bostich I picked up at cal's this summer, and the price was extra right<G> Hey, pocket doors can't come off the track if they're nailed open
Bostich Grand Slam - has a lot of nice features and you don't tend to take the skin off your knucles. HD was selling them out so I got one and a lot of ammo.
We have the Arrows. We some some Swedish tacker. These usually don't work. I bring my ownThe ToolBear
"Never met a man who couldn't teach me something." Anon.
I work with guys that can break a hammer tacker in three hours. I can use the same hammer tacker for two years and never have a problem. It's all about the usage, if you kill it, then it will die. Arrow all the way.
I'm with Jon Blakemore, John. That Rapid 11 is a huge step up from any of the others I've abused through the years. Very good tool.TIPI,TIPI,TIPI!
I must give credence to Jim as his review in FH was what turned me on to those staplers.Jim, was that you first published piece with FH?
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
"...was that you first published piece with FH?"
Um...I'm not sure, Jon. Might have been. I'm pretty sure it was the first one I wrote, but the Japaneese hammer might have been the first one published. Or maybe the full extension undermount slides. Hmmm. Now you got me wondering. That was a lot of fun, back then.
Anyway, I still have (and use regularly) the first Rapid 11 I ever bought. Can't believe how good a tool it's been compared to those p.o.s. Arrows I used all those years. Goll, what a frustration those things were. TIPI,TIPI,TIPI!
I buy those Arrow ones that you first posted with the orange grip. I hate them. Don't ask why I keep buying them or I'll have to admit to being an idiot. Mine jamb constantly, I loose the little springy thingy, and they only seem to work on the third whack. Sometimes a staple comes out though. That's when I call them my favorite.
I do the same thing with my cheap handsaw. I break one or two a month, but keep buying the same one. Works great just before it breaks.
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It's only satisfying if you eat it.
You guys are a corrupting influence. Got me ordering rice-burner tools.
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=67098.14
jt8
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools." -- Herbert Spencer
I have one of those Arrow things too and share your admiration for it. It gets me by no more than I hammer-staple. Not too much attention to detail on the design, for instance you can pretty easily get the spring holder to shoot out the back (I fixed that with a spring wire clip taped with a plastic tie holder). The staples push in rather hard (clearance not precise?). I'm just too cheap to go collecting other ones. I figure some day maybe it'll get broke in.
about all i've used too.
RTC
Wish I knew the model number, but my boss has an older Bostitch that loads from the front and uses the powercrown staples. That thing is a masterpiece. Works like a dream, seems like it holds double the staples of that orange handled POS, and you load from the front, with no spring to mess you up. Unfortunately, they don't make/sell them anymore.
Young, poor, and eager to learn
I've got the same Arrow tacker and don't like it much: it jams even when clean; the magazine keeper sproings out from time to time; it's a PITA to reload from a ladder; and it must be hammered 'flat' or else it cuts the paper (but then the knuckles take a beating).
I have a serious negative bias against Arrow staplers...the T50 is a pos that is engineered to fail: that darn thing must have 100 parts in it!
The Bostitch jams up too and will not reliably feed the largest staple size it's rated for (even in Bostitch brand). But they staple sweetly, quickly and effortlessly when they work - and they usually do. Local roofers prefer the Bostitch as it does not cut the paper.
Next one will be a Rapid 11.
Edited 1/21/2006 12:46 am ET by Pierre1
Edited 1/21/2006 12:47 am ET by Pierre1
John, I have that one and the rapid 11 too. I always use the rapid 11.
The one you are showing is heavier duty, but has two known problems: I can't get two complete rows of staples in it and it's heavier and thus, slower.
blue
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4433868466&category=20763