My Plaslode has worked great for the past 4 months of building a barn, pump house and out in the vineyard...
My Plaslode has worked great for the past 4 months of building a barn, pump house and out in the vineyard...
Regarding Harbor Freight and the China built nail guns. They aren't a bargain for a pro unless you drive by HF daily. For a couple projects and casual usage afterwords, they might be acceptable in the following instance.
HF offers extended warranties on their tools at a really reasonable rate. They are EXCHANGE waranties. If the tool has a problem take it in and get a new one. No down time for repairs. If you aren't a high volume user making a living relying on your tools who can't stand to have it break then pay 2-3 times as much for a Senco or Paslode.
Same story for big hammer drills, grinders, and such. Not all their tools are total "do do ca ca" but some are pretty close. Still with an exchange warranty and the low initial cost it can be worth the gamble on some items depending on you specific situation.
[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
I picked up my framing and finish nailers at a local pawn shop, paid around 100 each, they are both Sencos and have worked fine for occasional use for several years. I got a Hitachi coil roofing nailer at a different pawn shop for around $70, it works well.
TWSTANLEY, I thought of going the pawn shop route but need a knowledgeable guru to assist as I don't know enough to make a wise choice... A N D... the local shops seem to only have pretty beat up nailers... A N D... their warranty is try it and if it doesn't work bring it back same day.
[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
Ahh, well that makes a difference. The ones I buy from ( CashAmerica chain of pawnshops ) have a 30 day warranty and are really good about honoring it without any problems.
They also have scrap lumber and an air compressor so you can try the guns out. Mine were a bit beaten up but tested fine so I bought em. I haven't had any problems at all, if I do rebuild kits are cheap from the local Senco supply place. If I can't figure out how to put em back together I will just take them into the Senco place, haha.
[img]/forums/images/icons/cool.gif[/img]
Tim, you have it made wth the convenient testability and short drive. I'd be looking at used NAME brands instead of cheap Chinese units from harbor Freight with a set up like is available to you.
[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
TWSTANLEY, I forgot to mention how I came by my LOW PRICED NIB SENCO nailer... A local hardware-building supply (chain, I think) Payless Cashways went out of business nearly two years ago and the stock on hand was sold off at ever increasing discounts. I bought a lot of materials and a few tools. One was a SENCO nailer for about 50-60% off of their usual discount price. I also bought a trailer load of rebar at 70% off 3 units of lumber at 60% off and so forth. Every day or two the discounts were raised untill stocks were depleted. I even bought a beautiful Buck lockback knife in a nice leater belt sheath and the Buck version of a Leatherman belt caried tool. It is hard to resist the temptation of quality stuff at deeply discounted prices.
There are getting to be a lot of used "JUNK" nailers floating around, Harbor Freight and the like. Cheap, but I wonder about the value of having one repaired so I don't buy any of the bargains. Thought it would be hard to go wrong with the new SENCO at such an attractive discount. The instruction manual goes to great length to explain the difference between the two trigger firing styles and to offer you a free replacement parts kit to change modes if you desire. If you can't rub your tummy and pat your head at the same time while reciting poetry (nursery rhymes are OK) I recommend you do not use the "bounce fire" trigger setup as you will "get nailed."
[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
Pat, that sounds like a great deal. We had a Payless Cashways around here as well, I finished my basement at the last house with products from that store. I was SO glad to see them go under, the folks working there were so rude and unhelpful it was all I could do not to just throw the stuff I was going to buy down and leave.
Home Depot moved in closer to my old house, I never went back to Payless Cashways. Home Depot has its faults as well, lack of help being one, but they never have been rude or arrogant to me.
Happy Holidays!
- Tim
Oh, and I forgot to say: Senco sent me the parts ( for free ) for my used framing and finish nailers to put "safety" triggers on them so they won't bump fire. I figured that was safer since I am not a pro and don't use them every day, less chance of hurting myself.
Tim, as usual, I guess it just depends on the individual employees and managers. I was sorry to see our Payless Cashways go under because that was where I got the best service.
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