A reader asked a tough question the other day, about choosing a new brad nailer. Should they go cordless, or air-powered?
Koko wrote:
I’m setting up a shop, and I have a cheapie air-powered brad nailer. So I’m looking at compressors. I like the quiet ones, so that’s $150 to $200. But another option is a cordless brad nailer. My batteries are mostly DeWalt 20V Max, with a few M12s.
So what should I do? Get a compressor? I might use it only for one or two nailers. Or buy the DeWalt brad nailer, which is more expensive? Or the Ryobi AirStrike, which is cheap but I’d need to use a battery adapter. I need advice!
I’ve been giving this some thought, and I haven’t come up with a confident recommendation.
Generally speaking, air nailers are smaller, lighter, and less expensive than cordless ones.
With respect to power and performance, cordless nailers come close these days.
Cordless nailers do away with the air hose that has to drag behind pneumatic nailers. With a cordless nailer, you don’t have to figure out where to plug in the air compressor, where to place the usually loud and noisy compressor during use, or where to store it away between projects.
With air nailers, you don’t have to worry about charging a battery pack, or limiting yourself to battery platform compatibility.
Cordless is convenient. But there are “gotchas” to where air nailers aren’t yet obsolete.
In this particular scenario, the user is “setting up a shop.” This suggests a fixed workshop type location.
For a carpenter setting up trim around a kitchen or throughout a home, cordless will make a lot of jobs easier.
For a woodworker using a nailer to help set up glue joints, is there much difference between cordless or air-powered?
I think that, for longer projects, air-powered has advantages. Dragging a hose around is a small price to pay for being able to maneuver a smaller and lighter nailer wherever it has to go. There’s still that hose to deal with.
What about for shorter projects?
Speaking about my own use, I bought a set of air nailers, but also use cordless – there’s always a test sample floating around.
The benefit for cordless nailers in a workshop setting is in being able to forego the setup. My small shop is often cluttered. My portable air compressors are often stored away. Pulling out an air compressor to drive a couple of nails or staples can be a hassle. It’s not necessarily time-consuming, but it’s usually at least an interruption.
With a cordless nailer, I pull out the tool, grab a battery, load it with nails, and it’s ready to go. With an air nailer, out comes the air compressor, the plug goes into an outlet somewhere, I grab the hose, connect everything, wait for the compressor to fill, drive the nails, empty the tank, drain the condensation, and put everything away.
(A lot of air nailers require oiling, some don’t.)
Which would I buy today?
Honestly, it’s good to have both. I bought a set of air nailers (Hitachi/Metabo HPT), and expect them to last for a very long time.
But I also use cordless very regularly. Come to think of it, I use cordless nailers far more often. I haven’t purchased a set yet, and don’t know which brand I’d go with.
I thought pneumatic nailers made better sense for me, and they do.
I think that I would use my air nailers more if I had a more convenient semi-permanent air compressor placement, and even better hard-plumbed air line around my workshop. But I don’t.
If I had to drive in say 10 brad nails right now, it would take me under 5 minutes with a cordless nailer from start to finish. With an air nailer, it might take me 10-20.
That all said, Dewalt’s 20V Max cordless brad nailer sells for $349 for the 1-battery kit, or $299 for the tool-only.
You can get a compact and quiet portable air compressor AND a good air brad nailer for the same money – or less.
If you need a brad nailer often enough to justify $299 to $349 for workshop use, you’d definitely be able to justify semi-permanent air compressor placement for quick and easier access, barring space limitations.
At the time of this posting, Home Depot has the Ryobi 18V HP brushless brad nailer for $189. OR, buy a Ryobi 18V 3-battery and charger starter kit for $199 and get the nailer for free. They also have another bundle with the air nailer and a battery and charger for $189. There’s a kit with the older version nailer for $188.
You could get the Ryobi and a Dewalt battery adapter – I shy away from battery adapters – but I’m not sure that makes a lot of sense, seeing that you can get a native battery at no extra cost, or 3 for just $10 more than the tool-only.
With $150 to $200 to spend, what would I do?
I’m not sure. I think I would get situated with a quiet air compressor and pneumatic brad nailer, and then keep an eye on cordless options. The Milwaukee M12 Fuel compact brad nailer is coming out soon, but it’s priced at $249 for the tool-only.
I think that would be a great combo – the M12 for quick tasks with nails up to 1-1/2″ long, and then an air nailer for bigger projects.
I don’t think I’d buy into another cordless power tool system for just a nailer. However, the Dewalt is priced well outside of the reader’s mentioned budget.
Hold on.
I recently came across these Metabo HPT 18V cordless brad nailer kits, and they’ve been on my “is this a DEAL?!” consideration list.
The kit on the left is $149 at Amazon, and the one on the right is $199 at Amazon. The less expensive model has a mechanical spring, and the more expensive one has an air spring drive system. They both work with 18 gauge brad nails 5/8″ to 2″.
If it’s a question between $200 for a Ryobi cordless nailer, or $200 for Metabo HPT, I’d go with Metabo HPT without hesitation.
I have a feeling that the $149 kit is built around the lower price point, and would spend a little more for the $199 air spring model kit. I sent my contacts at the brand a quick note just now asking if they can share more about the differences.
Air compressor plus air nailer vs Ryobi 18V Airstrike cordless nailer vs Metabo HPT 18V cordless brad nailer?
If I already had an air compressor, just not a quiet one, I’d lean more towards the Metabo HPT cordless brad nailer. That’s my gut “don’t think about it” instinct.
There’s no wrong answer here. I think it’s a question of what to buy first.
Here’s the criteria again:
Workshop setting. $150-$200 budget. Got a cheapie brad nailer already in-hand. You’re looking at a quiet-style air compressor or cordless brad nailer. What do you buy?
