Finish Nailer VS Brad Nailer
What Is A Brad Nailer?
A brad nailer is a pneumatic nail gun that uses compressed air to drive brad nails into wood. It is designed to shoot 18 gauge brad nails that are about 5/8 to 2 inches long. They are used to attach delicate woods like trim and mouldings. Due to the small size of brads, they can attach this lightweight wood without splitting the material. The brad nailer is also used to add finishing touches to your woodwork project as well as to restore old furniture.There are two types of brad nailer; electric and pneumatic brad nailer. The electric brad nailer runs on an electrical power source. It has an electric motor that powerfully drives nails into wood. The electric brad nailer can either be corded or battery-powered. The other type of brad nailer is the pneumatic brad nailer; it makes use of compressed air to drive nails into wood. It uses an air hose to pass air from the compressor to the nail gun.
To know more about brad nailers, see What Do You Use a Brad Nailer For?
What Is A Brad Nailer Used For?
Brad nailers are used on woods that are too delicate to be attached by regular-sized nails. If you are concerned about splitting the wood or you want less of a hole in your wood, then the brad nailer is the ideal church.It can be used for the following projects
- Trim work
- Rejuvenate antique furniture
- Paneling
- Casing and Baseboards
Benefits of a Brad Nailer
- It is ideal for thin and delicate wood that can be damaged easily
- It leaves small nail head holes because brad nails have small heads
- It can be used to hold two wood pieces in place when using glue
- It can also be used for plywood of about ½ inch
Disadvantages of a Brad Nailer
The major disadvantage of the brad nailer is that it cannot be used with larger pieces of wood.It is not big enough to go through plywood or MDF. It can only be used for thin pieces of wood. The finish nailer is much better at handling larger wood pieces.
What Is a Finish Nailer?
A finish nailer is very similar to the brad nailer; it is used for wood that requires a more holding power. It is also used to hold trims or mouldings, but unlike the brad nailer, it uses thick 15 gauge to 16 gauge nails.This makes it capable of holding larger pieces of wood, and due to its large head, it may leave behind larger holes. They can be used for heavy cabinets and baseboards that require a lot of strength and holding power. The finish nailer can either come as an angled or straight finish nailer. The angled finish nailer fits better into tiny spaces and corners.
There are also two types of finish nailer; electric and pneumatic finish nailer—this difference is based on their power source.
The electric finish nailer can either run on batteries or direct source of electricity. The pneumatic finish nailer is known to be more powerful than the electric. It is the best choice if you already have an air compressor.
What Is A Finish Nailer Used For?
The finish nailer is used with heavier and thicker pieces of wood. They are ideal for heavy-duty projects that require more strength and holding power.You can use the finish nailer for projects like
- Installation of crown and base moulding
- To fix chair rails, cabinets and staircases
- It can be used for window and door casing
- It can also be used for hard and softwood flooring
Benefits of Finish Nailer
- They work with 15-gauge and 16-gauge nails that have higher holding strength and are much bigger
- They can be used to fix thicker and heavier wood
- Their high holding power makes them ideal for baseboards, cabinets and mouldings
- They permanently hold pieces of wood together
- The finish nailer is very versatile and can be used with various types of wood and materials
Disadvantages of a Finish Nailer
- The finish nailer cannot be used with thin and delicate material. Due to their high firing power, they are more likely to damage these types of material
- The finish nailer use large 15 and 16 gauge nailers that have large heads and leave behind large nail holes in the material
