Nailers and compressor size

[Roger Feeley]

I tried an interesting experiment. I bought a new air hose that was a smaller diameter than the old one and I wondered if it would make any real difference with my framing nailer. So I tried an extreme test. It just so happens that you can take a 1/4-20 tap and thread the inside of the air fitting. i did that and then I took about 1/4" of a 1/4-20 bolt and drilled a 1/16" hole almost through. Then I took a #75 bit and finished the job. That's gave me an orifice of about .021. I threaded that into the fitting and hooked up the air hose to my framing nailer. The thing took a while to fill but it nailed just fine.

The lesson here is that you can run a framing nailer with a bicycle pump (although I didn't try that). The output of your compressor is of interest to you only if you want to drive more than one nail. Small compressors will cycle more often and the smallest may not keep up at all. But for us weekend warriors, it really doesn't matter.

[Jason Neal]

Very nice experiment, I always thought that to be the case but have never experimented to prove it. Based on the sound of air rushing into the framing nailer just as the hose is connected (seems to take maybe 1 to 1.5 sec to pressurize), I figured the nailer must have a chamber that pressurizes with all the air it needs to fire. So I suppose some might be better designed than others in this respect but I expect it is generally true. Thanks for sharing.

[Roger Feeley]

I would suspect that many of us have wondered which is why I broke down and tested the hypothesis. I think it would be a fun demonstration at woodworking shows by the nailer manufacturers.

[Matt McColley]

The output of your compressor is of interest to you only if you want to drive more than one nail.

now there's insight for you ;^)