# HOLY CRAP- Why pay $100+



## depictureboy

yep I bought one just a bit ago too and I love it.. I bought the bostich pins…though I need to find some 1/2 inch pins too..


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## tinnman65

I may just have to give this a try also, I've been meaning to buy one and at that price how could you lose. I guess if you can't find an American made tool anymore (no offense to our none American friends), actually you cant find many none Chinese tools let alone "Made In The USA" why buy the expensive China tool when you can get a similar tool for 1/4 the price. Its kinda funny that the pins are almost as much as the gun, lets just see what last longer the box of pins or the gun!


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## Dez

I love mine! Not HF but WAY less expensive than the Grex! 
It is an AirLocker brand, I believe I paid $69.00. Comes with a complete rebuild kit although at the rate I use it it will most likely be a long time before I have to use it!
It is nice to know that there are reliable brands that are budget conscious!


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## dbhost

I have that pinner. It doesn't shoot the longest pins, but for any pin I am willing to use, this works GREAT! I have beat the tar out of mine, and gotten my $15.00 worth!


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## surfin2

I've wanted a pinner ever since I saw the Cadex CPB 23.50 Shoots 5/8 to 2" head & headless pins…

Grex finally went up to 2' but lust headless pinner…

The price was kinda high but as it started to come dome problems with it jamming big time were reported in the reviews & the customer service was horrible…

I was hoping by now it would have been corrected….

I'll have to check this out, Thanks….


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## PhineasWhipsnake

I bought one a couple of weeks ago (less than $20 with coupon). How can you go wrong… A box of Bostich pins was the same price. The name brand makers oughta be embarrassed at their prices.


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## TopamaxSurvivor

Thanks for the tip. I have found HF to be a good resource. If things that are not made in America are available at varying price levels, why pay a big box $100 when HF sells at $25? If we are talking about going dirt cheap at an American Job's expense, that is a different matter, but sems like this is the diference between paying 100% markup vs, 1000% markup (also known asa windfall profit!!).


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## MikeGager

yup i have one of these as well as their brad nailer/stapler, 1/2" stapler, 16 gauge finish nailer, and 28° framing nailer. all have performed flawlessly. best thing is i got ALL of these for less then the price of a grex pin nailer!


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## BigTiny

I picked up a really nice set of nailers from Canadian Tire on a great sale price of $99.99 last fall. Got three tools that run from the brad nailer/stapler to a heavy duty job that handles up to three inch nails. Three year warantee too.


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## Billyr

Hello all.I am just getting back into woodworking after 50 years.That nailer seems just like what i need.I havent ever been to Harbor freight.Guess I will need to go and check it out.Thanks Jim for the information.


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## EEngineer

Just a quick tip. I found this on the web somewhere so I can't take credit for it.

I bought one of the cheap 18 gauge brad nailers from HF. Out of the box, it didn't do such a good job. It missfired (jammed) once in a while and didn't consistently recess the heads below the wood surface. I mean, it left 1/2" to 3/4" of a 1 3/16" brad above the surface!

Acting on advice from the web, I removed the top of the air cylinder with an Allen wrench, used the supplied oil to put a consistent film of oil around the cylinder at the top of the piston and reassembled. Not one problem since! I put 2-3 drops of oil in the air inlet before each use and I use the cheap HF brads.

I think they ship these things dry or with a very slight oiling. By the time they get to our hands they are too dry to form a good seal between the cylinder and the piston.


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## StumpyNubs

Cessna- That's true. Sometimes you get a dud at Harbor Freight, perhaps more often than with the good name brand stuff. But since the return policy is perhaps the best in the industry it is worth taking a chance.


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## StumpyNubs

EEngineer- Great tip- I'll try it out and maybe resurrect my HF brad nailer. The pine nailer only goes up to 1" so I miss the Brad Nailer quite a bit. I guess in a perfect worly we'd just hand cut dovetails to join everything, or use tiny rosewood pegs…


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## Blondewood

Thanks for this great review. I have that nailer. My problem has been that the pins sit proud of the wood and if I press the pinner a bit harder the tip leaves a mark on my wood. I will buy a better brand of pins and try Engineers tip as well.
Vicki


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## StumpyNubs

Vicki- It's VITAL to use good nails in all guns. The cheap ones will not work. This is one area in which you can't cheap out.


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## NBeener

Got one.

Love it.

Yet ANOTHER Harbor Freight pig in a poke


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## TheOldTimer

Been using the HF pin nailer, brad nailer and finishing nailer for about 5 years now and have never had a problem with any of them. I keep them oiled prior to use by putting two drops of oil into the air inlet prior to use as I do not have a automatic oiler. All my clamps are from HF as well, my only coplaint with them is with cutting tools that dull very quickly.


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## Blondewood

It's on my Lowes list. Thanks a bunch, Jim I'm glad to have this good tip and eager to see if it solves my problem.


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## Raymond

I have the same nailer, great tool not one missfire. I purchased the HF nails and have not had any troubles at all. Great tool to have. Great review.


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## Oakfan

HEY EVERYONE, PLEASE READ…..
Here is a complete failure story. I bought one also about a year ago. The firing piston broke after about 100 brads. I replaced it with the extra one that came with the nailer. Then after about 300 brads the gun would fire without pulling the trigger. I would depress the foot and it would fire a brad. Took it apart and cleaned and lubed gun. Did not help. I was afraid to use it, thinking it would shoot me. I threw it away and purchased a Rigid brad nailer from Home Depot. Great reviews and it comes with a Lifetime warranty. Don't get me wrong, HF has some good stuff but this isn't one of them.


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## dbhost

Oakfan,

Sometimes it's hit or miss. When you can get the pin nailer for $15.00 on sale with the coupon… It's worth a shot. Mine has shot at least 1K pins so far…


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## StumpyNubs

oakfan- this review is not for the brad nailer. I have had trouble with that tool too. THIS review is for the micro pin nailer which has no "foot" like you mention. This nialer is a different design and I like it a lot better.


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## dbhost

I'd be more than happy to use a Grex instead… Anyone wanna fund the difference in cost?

Okay more seriously though, yeah, look and feel of a product IS important. How important is the big question…


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## craftsman on the lake

My nephew just sent me a notice saying he purchased a Rigid brad and pin nailer at HD together on a card for $79


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## Ken90712

Interesting, I have one and have had nothing but trouble with it…. Miss fires, hisses all the time and barley works. I will try buying non HF pins and see if that works. I'll also be taking the head off as well and seeing if oiling it will help. It was hard to pass up when they had it on sale for $19.99…...


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## davidmicraig

I have this one and just to throw in another tip - I didn't like the indentations it would put in softer woods due to lacking a non-marring tip so I made my own. I bought a small can of plasti-dip and just put the tip of the nailer in it for about 3 coats. I fired a nail, after letting it dry to open space for the pins. I haven't had it misfire and the tip is now non-marring so the pins are even less noticeable.

David


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## azwoodman

Thanks for the review! I may just have to go and pick one up!


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## iowawoodworker

have it, love it… paid $12…


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## JasonWagner

Wow, now I feel ripped off paying $22 for mine. Does anyone here have a bad story about using the HF pins? I got two boxes of 1" and 3/4" for about $4 each and now I'm afraid to try them out.


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## StumpyNubs

I wouldn't say it would be "bad" to use the Harbor Freight pins. I just had trouble with them misfiring a lot, but I think it was more due to not oiling the nailer enough. Some say the cheap pins have more lead that will foul the nailer over time, but the jury os out on that.

Just put a few drops of oil in the air inlet every time you use it and you should be fine.


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## rance

Jim, I'm not one to get expensive tools like Festool etc. However, a good friend of mine had a cheap pin nailer and it jammed almost every time I saw him use it. When I bought one, I went for the Grex(but I get a discount). Two advantages the Grex 'can' have over others, 1) I've never seen a Grex jam. 2) The Grex seems to mar the wood less than others. Hey, maybe you could add a rubber baby buggy bumper to the tip of a HF unit. And if yours doesn't jam, then that is great. Maybe I'll get a HF to loan out when folks say "Can I borrow your Grex?". LOL. Thanks for the review Jim.

How long of pins can the HF take?


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## StumpyNubs

rance- You're not going to get any argument from me about the quality of the Grex. But I've never had my HF pin nailer jam, and never marred the wood either. My HF brad nailer used to jam all the time, but when I starter using better brads (Grex brand  and oiling it more often, that problem cleared up too.

Bottom line is buy the best you can afford, but the Harbor Freight nailers are not the junk you'd expect for less than $25.


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## nailbanger2

I bought a Senco 23 ga. pin nailer before we had a HF in town, so this is not about your review. A tip for the pins that don't sink (shooting at an angle may cause this): a random orbital sander will quickly take it down to the wood surface. I do mean quickly!


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## HorizontalMike

My 23g pin nailer is the newer silver and red version, I love it! I find myself using the PC pins from HD in it but all is well. I think I got mine for under $22.


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