Screw Gun Recommendation, Please
stantheman987
| Posted in Tools for Home Building on
I’m looking for a good quality screw gun (corded) for both drywall and flooring installations. Some have 4000 RPM max and some have 2400 RPM max (usually double geared). Is 2400 RPM too high for deck screws? I’ve looked at Dewalt and Milwaukee. Any suggestions on features, etc and first-hand experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Replies
For high volume drywall work, especially with metal studs, you wantr the higher speed with the nosepiece. If it's a variable speed drill, it will work for wood decking.
I had the basic 3/8" dewalt, $49 or something, and it work very well til I wore it out. All plastic case. Then I went to the 3/8" Mil with the metal gear housing. Lots of torque. I don't like the trigger as well as the Dewalt, but otherwise it's a very good tool.
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
I think for flooring 1200 rpm, drywall 4000. A typical 4000 rpm drywall gun will not do any flooring at all. A 2400 rpm 5 amp tool would do both. You would be compromising one or the other with only one tool. In my opinion.
The 4000 RPM Milwaukee is variable speed, so in theory I could keep it down to 2400 RPM for flooring. I'm just not sure how practical that is. If I went with a 2400 RPM tool, is it a real problem for drywall? What do I give up?
If you have the drywall gun I have, it does not have the torque to put screws in flooring. (milwaukee 3.5 amp 4000 rpm drywall gun). What kind of flooring are you talking about?
I will recommend this one for the little I know of what you're doing. I haven't tried this one though. Milwaukee 6791-21 Remodeler's Screwdriver Kithttp://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000051WRU/ref=e_deav_acc_1_1/102-5628070-3280939?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=228013
You can get by with a good cordless or corded drill most of the time. The only problem with slower rpm on drywall is it takes a little longer to screw down.
Too fast of rpm for flooring and the drill can fly out of your hands, strip screw heads, break screws and bits, set the screw too low, stall out before everything is tight, burn out the motor, etc.
Also those slower 1/2 inch drills are hard to use on decking because they spin a little after you let off the trigger and overtorque the screws.
Edited 12/27/2005 2:14 pm ET by MarkH
Thanks. The flooring part of the application is screwing down subflooring to the joists.I spoke with Milwaukee customer support today and they also recommended the 6791-21 Remodeler kit. That's what I'm leaning toward.Thanks for all your help.
You might find one at a better price, I just used that one for illustration. Looks sweet, plenty of power too. Love the milwaukee drills.
I'll do a search online for price. Yeah, I love my Mil circular saw. So far, in general, I'd pick Milwaukee over PC, and certainly over Dewalt. I'm turning into a regular tool snob.
Nothing wrong with that!
I have a Milwaukee 4,000 RPM drywall gun. It works great for drywall, and I highly recommend it. But like others have said - it ain't worth a dang for flooring. I tried screwing down some subflooring with it, and it just twisted the screws off. The variable speed doesn't slow down enough for screws in wood.
OK, so what's the speed of dark?