buying a nail gun - what angle to get?

June 15, 2023 11:09 AM

We're going to buy a cordless nail gun (it will be a gift). Looking online, the Milwaukee brand offers options in the angle: 21° and 30°. The tool will be given to a construction guy and used to build a house, so which angle should we get?
posted by anadem to Grab Bag (6 answers total)

Best answer: Generally, the 21-degree nailers are larger, and more powerful, and aimed at framing and other "rough" carpentry. The 30-degree nailers are generally more compact, not as powerful, and more suitable for projects around the house and finish work.

Are you sure they want a cordless (as in, battery) nailer, and not pneumatic? The reason air nailers are still so popular among builders is they hit hard, and their "power supply" is basically limitless.
posted by xedrik at 11:15 AM on June 15, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Aside from nail size, angle has to do with how the nails are loaded -- a 30 degree angle is steeper so in theory the nailgun is narrower and can possibly hold more nails; 21 degrees is a flatter angle so the back where the nails go in sticks out more but can hold longer nails.

Here's an explanation; it talks more about the kinds of nails it fires, the angle is less important. From what I've seen, 21-degree nails are easier to find in stores, but for general framing of building a house both degree nailers will have the kinds of nails they need. Most of the differences in the link above are 'specialty' nails, but they may want to get a special nailer for flooring versus using the same nailer for both.
posted by AzraelBrown at 11:19 AM on June 15, 2023

Response by poster: > Are you sure they want a cordless (as in, battery) nailer, and not pneumatic?

Yes, cordless not pneumatic is the request
posted by anadem at 11:33 AM on June 15, 2023

Best answer: This is from the days of pneumatic tools, but I always had two--one 21 degree framing nailer, and an 18 gauge brad nailer for trim.
posted by pullayup at 12:17 PM on June 15, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: In many jurisdictions the only allowed nail for framing load bearing construction is full head, which is only possible on the 21° nailer. So for building the walls and roof of a house the safer option is to get the 21°. The reason the 30° exists is because they are both smaller and easier to use and the nails are generally cheaper. They will also want to get IBC 2018 Code approved nails and keep proof

I would strongly encourage you to include safety glasses with the unit.
posted by zenon at 2:17 PM on June 15, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: The 30-degree gun will be easier to get into corners - that's the main difference, assuming all other factors are the same (particularly nail size and type capacity). I think 30-degree collated nails are paper-collated, though, and the 21-degree plastic or wire collated. Plastic or wire collation means you end up with a bunch of plastic or wire all over the place, which can be a pain to clean up.

In my experience, assuming either will do the job, the biggest issue is the availability of nails. Whatever nail type/size is most commonly used will be far easier to find. Whatever you decide, make sure you check how widely available the nails are. A nail gun you can't easily and quickly get nails for at any hardware will be of limited use. I have a coil-fed nail gun that uses unusual-sized nails and I have to keep stocks of them and buy them whenever I see them in stock because I can't guarantee I can get nails at short notice.

Also, a tiny difference in weight can make a massive difference - think about how many times you have to lift the gun to frame a house. All else being equal, buy the lightest you can.
posted by dg at 3:56 PM on June 15, 2023