1st fix nail gun

[Lons]

Hi Richard
I have 3 batteries all 18v x 4 amp as I also have a drill that takes the same ones, my other DeWalt drills are old 14.4v ni-cads. The batteries last a long time for me and get fairly heavy use as I said earlier I used my nail gun at the weekend and fired several hundred nails to put up a rail and board fence probably 20% were 90mm galves and the rest 50mm. The battery was showing 3 bars as full though not freshly charged and when I finished was still on 2 bars and far from being discharged, that's normal for me. Only one stuck nail in all of that which is quickly and easily ejected on the dewalt, it used to happen regularly with my paslode otherwise perfect.
The gun has more than enough clout to sink the 90mm nails below the surface certainly in softwood and that is adjustable by turning a knurled collar on the nose of the gun so as far as I'm concerned power and battery life are definitely not an issue and my batteries are a number of years old now.

As far as weight is concerned I had the opportunity to compare the two guns side by side in a practical situation and the DeWalt definitely felt heavier than the paslode but imho unless the user has weak wrists it isn't an issue as the gun is fairly well balanced.

Just my personal opinion of course but I'm happy enough with mine to say I would be very reluctant to part with it.

 

[gog64]

One thing that might be worth mentioning. I’ve been thinking about buying the Dewalt, so have done a little research and there are THREE versions of the nail gun all with the same product number. Version 1 was apparently problematic. Version 2 has a completely different flywheel / driving mechanism and much better. Version 3 is the current version with incremental improvements that I haven’t got any details on. So, if buying second hand, we’ll worth making sure it’s not a version 1 (it’s printed on the side of the tool).

 

[Lons]

One thing that might be worth mentioning. I’ve been thinking about buying the Dewalt, so have done a little research and there are THREE versions of the nail gun all with the same product number. Version 1 was apparently problematic. Version 2 has a completely different flywheel / driving mechanism and much better. Version 3 is the current version with incremental improvements that I haven’t got any details on. So, if buying second hand, we’ll worth making sure it’s not a version 1 (it’s printed on the side of the tool).

I hadn't seen that but in fairness should say that mine is very definitely a version 1. I know that because I have one of the very first prototypes which I tested for DeWalt prior to launch, I'm not the only forum member to have done that. My gun has ( so far) been faultless, maybe I'm just lucky. My mate who bought s/h last year must have version 2 as his is 2 speed where mine is single.

 

[quintain]

Hi Richard
I have 3 batteries all 18v x 4 amp as I also have a drill that takes the same ones, my other DeWalt drills are old 14.4v ni-cads. The batteries last a long time for me and get fairly heavy use as I said earlier I used my nail gun at the weekend and fired several hundred nails to put up a rail and board fence probably 20% were 90mm galves and the rest 50mm. The battery was showing 3 bars as full though not freshly charged and when I finished was still on 2 bars and far from being discharged, that's normal for me. Only one stuck nail in all of that which is quickly and easily ejected on the dewalt, it used to happen regularly with my paslode otherwise perfect.
The gun has more than enough clout to sink the 90mm nails below the surface certainly in softwood and that is adjustable by turning a knurled collar on the nose of the gun so as far as I'm concerned power and battery life are definitely not an issue and my batteries are a number of years old now.

As far as weight is concerned I had the opportunity to compare the two guns side by side in a practical situation and the DeWalt definitely felt heavier than the paslode but imho unless the user has weak wrists it isn't an issue as the gun is fairly well balanced.

Just my personal opinion of course but I'm happy enough with mine to say I would be very reluctant to part with it.

Lons...thank you again
Best Regards
Richard

 

[Peterjgray]

I am looking for a 1st fix nail gun, either UK mains or battery NOT air powered everything considered, used, reconditioned, new even ugly as long as it works and the price is low.

There’s a guy in Bracknell ( or was) who repairs serviced snd sells Paslode guns. He was very helpful to me selling and subsequently servicing mine. Not sure if he is around given Covid etc but if you want I will give you his number

 

[quintain]

Thank you Petergray...yes please to his number either openly or by private message or phone me NUMBER REMOVED BY rICHARD
Thank you

 

[Lons]

Hi Richard
I'd suggest that you remove your 'phone number from a public forum or you may well get a load of nuisance and sales calls.
Bob

 

[DBT85]

I bought the dewalt battery one for my build and it was absolutely faultless. Didn't even use one of the two batteries. Sold it on after I was done for maybe £120 less than I paid for it? Only to get rid quick tbh and that was still cheaper than hiring one for the amount of time I ended up needing it.

 

[quintain]

Hi Richard
I'd suggest that you remove your 'phone number from a public forum or you may well get a load of nuisance and sales calls.
Bob

Thank you

 

[quintain]

OOOKay
I am now changing my mind and I can understand all persons correctly thinking "make your bl**dy mind up".
However, with excellent help from persons on this forum, I realise I do not necessarily want what is generally called a 1st fix nail gun; i.e. 50-90 mm nails.
I consider I need a 16 gauge nail gun giving me nail lengths from (about) 1 1/2"-3" (30mm to 70mm)
I am asking the kindly Mr Google to give me selections.
Nail gun-16 guage-30-70mm-battery-not gas-not compresser-with avaiolble replacement parts-low cost.
BUT if any one on this forum can help on this new & revised specs I would be thankful.

Embarrassed Richard watching England v Ireland at 3 each En3 Ir 10

 

[quintain]

I have purchased a second hand Dewalt DC 618 via Ebay.
I am happy that the 16 gauge nails lengths from 32-63mm will satisfy my requirements.
The gun works wonderfully and (not v important) has a good appearance.

The gun will be used but it will also sit on a hook for long periods.
Ques1: should I leave the battery plugged into the gun or will the battery more quickly discharge.
Ques2: is the DC618 a brushed or brushless tool, i.e. do I need to consider replacing armature brushes.
ques3: should I recharge the battery after every use even short usage or wait until the battery shows it is getting low i.e. inbuilt lights frequently flashing.

BTW; my decision to go along the Dewalt route was as a 'non-daily' user to avoid the purchase of a compressor and/or the need for gas cartridges (Paslode) and the possibility of the cartridge being empty when I infrequently needed the gun.

 

[JobandKnock]

IMHO any 1st fix nailer for not a lot of money is risky if you aren't familiar with the tool. I'm on my second cordless, this time a Hikoki NR1890 which replaced a 2-speed dewalt DCN692that had done 5 years. If you buy a DW avoid the earlier 1-speed model (DCN690) as they can struggle to sink.90mm nails even when fairly new and check that your intended purchase will actually sink 90mm ring nails into softwood - inability to do so can indictate a bent drive pin or weak return springs (both self fixable - at a price). The Li-Ion batteries should do 5 years in trade, but probably no more, based on my own experience (Makita and DW) and that of colleagues

In gas nailers you may well find that bargain needs new seals and a complete strip down and thorough clean out (using brake fluid cleaner) to "decoke" it. Cordless nailers don't need this at all. For some reason gas nailer batteries don't last anywhere near as long as ordinary cordless tool batteries and are ridiculously expensive for what they are. The chargers aren't long lived either. Gas nailers can be finicky with a number of issues causing problems, such as blackened battery connections (caused by arcing), dodgy/leaky/out of date gas, fan and igniter issues, etc. I've had Paslodes that have gone through igniter boards (plus one Senco which did the same) whilst Senco and Rawl guns (they come from the same factory?) are prone to the microswitch in the top of the gas canister housing getting broken (at which point they want you to spend £140 for a new handle unit as they won't sell you a £3 microswitch). I still live with 3 no. Rawl/Senco guns of varying ages for price work (where we have guys on who don't have their own guns) and can strip and service them pretty quickly, but a lot of guys can't or won't do it meaning that second hand guns are often "goosed". Larger firms also get their guns as part of deals where they buy, say, 100k nails and the vendor throws in a gun for free. These get passed around a workforce who don't look after them simply because they don't own them, so they can be ropey after as little as 6 months. All I am saying is to be very sceptical of cheap second hand gas nailers, especially at a time like now when jobs are chasing tradesmen, unlike last summer when we were in lockdown and work was scarcer.

On a practical note, nails with gas cost more than nails alone (a key reason to go away from using gas if you are an independent tradesman). Another thing is that some cheaper nails, especially Champion in my experience, come with gas which seems guaranteed to clog up your gun and require a premature strip down - the gas canisters contain not only gas but also a lubricant oil, a bit like a 2-stroke engine needs

Edit: and as you've now gone 2and fix instead what I have just written...

 

[JobandKnock]

The gun will be used but it will also sit on a hook for long periods.
Ques1: should I leave the battery plugged into the gun or will the battery more quickly discharge.

Unlike gas guns there is no flashing light to discharge the battery so it can be left on the gun (with gas guns you are advised to take the battery out even if going for lunch)

Ques2: is the DC618 a brushed or brushless tool, i.e. do I need to consider replacing armature brushes.

They are brushed (this is old technology having appeared around 2003 or 2004) but the motors are hardly stressed so brushes and bearings should last a long time. What does kill them is getting lubricant on the drive pin which can then contaminate the drive flywheel (causing slipping) - same goes for all the new generation DW guns, though

Ques3: should I recharge the battery after every use even short usage or wait until the battery shows it is getting low i.e. inbuilt lights frequently flashing.

The batteries are NiMH technology and I found when I used them that they could de elope "memory" when recharged too frequently

In fact the weak point of the 1st generation DW 2nd fix guns was the battery technology used. Never had a battery last more than about 3 years in trade use (I had 16ga and 18ga guns before going to the 2nd generation DW which are on Li-Ion). The only other thing which fails on them are the pair of rubber "bungees" (return "springs") which are cheap, but a bit of a pallaver to replace, although doable oneself

 

[Lons]

If you buy a DW avoid the earlier 1-speed model (DCN690) as they can struggle to sink.90mm nails even when fairly new and check that your intended purchase will actually sink 90mm ring nails into softwood - inability to do so can indictate a bent drive pin or weak return springs (both self fixable - at a price). The Li-Ion batteries should do 5 years in trade, but probably no more, based on my own experience (Makita and DW) and that of colleagues

As I said in an earlier post my experience is different, I'm not saying there isn't an issue generally as I can only base my opinion on my own gun. I'd need to look to find the date but it was a good few years ago when just before DeWalt first brought the 1st fix cordless to the UK market I was given one of the prototypes to review and keep, it served a couple of years fairly heavy use and occasional since I retired, it still works perfectly as do the 4 amp batteries that came with it though the batteries also get used on my drills so aren't sitting deteriorating.

So the gun is a very early version, single speed, old technology batteries and most importantly it sinks 90mm nails of any type without difficulty and I can sink the heads into softwood (fence posts for example) effortlessly. My mate who puts up a lot of fences borrowed mine before buying his own second hand a later 2 speed model with 5 amp batteries and he told me he's noticed no difference in performance.
Mine could be an exception and I'm lucky so maybe the only answer is to test a gun before buying to make sure you get a good one.

 

[AJB Temple]

There is a known issue with early DW 1st fix guns. My supplier also has a repair shop and when I bought my 2nd fix battery DW he steered me away from 1st fix for this reason. DW then dealt with it. The battery DW are excellent in my experience. Used to have a Paslode. The service guy at my supplier reckons most problems are caused by absence of cleaning, but they will be history before long as battery tech has come such a long way.

To OP, if you are using it for roof construction ? then the 2nd fix gun will be insufficient.