When it comes to driving nails for heavy duty tasks, it is hard to go past the frame nailer. It is called such because it is most commonly used in the construction industry for assembling and securing timber house frames. The framing nailer is generally the largest pneumatic air nailer commonly available, and one of the few that will drive larger diameter, longer shank nails with clipped or full head nails. I managed to get my hands on one of the new Snap-On framing nailers, so let's see what it offers and what it can do, and how well it does it!

Snap-On 21-Degree Framing Nailer
First things first... this nailer is full round head framing nailer. This means it drives full round head nails, not clipped head or "D" shaped nails. This is important because some building codes in local regions require the use of full head nails to meet building codes. Other codes may only require clipped head nails. Thankfully you can, in most cases, use full head nails in areas where only clipped head nails are called on by code. In some instances I have heard that ONLY clipped head nails can be used, and full round head nails cannot be used, but these are rare instances. Regardless check what your local or regional building code accepts in terms of fasteners for framing work before considering purchasing this, or any other framing nailer.

Being a full round head framing nailer, this is probably not a nail gun you will find in many fine woodworker's workshops, but they are of course abundant in the housing construction industry. LONG gone are the days of manual nailing with a framing hammer when it comes to suburban home framing. Personally I love banging in nails by hand, but if it came to hammering several thousand, I know which method I would prefer! The framing nailer has certainly sped up the building process, but they are also a tool that must be respected. Search the net and you will find many images of X-Rays of body parts with nails imbedded in them, often from the careless use of pneumatic nailers.

The Snap-On Framing Nailer (part #870010) is a 21-degree framing nailer. This basically refers to the angle the frame nails are collated together at. You need to purchase and use proper collated nails designed for this gun, just in case you thought you could throw a bunch of loose nails in the magazine and get away with that... sorry, it won't work. So source some 21-degree paper or wire collated nails that match the magazine angle to the firing mechanism (which is 21 degrees of course). This angle is very common for framing nailers and most good hardware stores or builder's outlets will have a plentiful supply of nails to suit, although often you can only buy them in bulk lots of 1,000 or more. The nails also need to fit a certain size and shape to be used in the nail gun. Shank diameter must be between .113" and .131" and length needs to be between 2" and 3-1/2" long. Again, finding framing nails in these ranges should be quite easy as they are pretty much standard dimensions for frame nailers. You can also buy frame nails in various forms suited to the project or fastening tasks at hand. They might be "bright" nails for indoor framing, galvanized for outdoor frames and exposed frames, or even stainless steel for specialized applications where maximum rust protection is required. Various shank profiles and types may also be available.

The nail magazine can hold 60 plastic collated full head framing nails (strips often come in 25-nail lengths). This may vary depending on brand of collated nails used, but I often just load up two strips of 25 for a total of 50 and away I go, adding another 50 nails when the magazine runs empty. It is worth noting that the nailer will cease being able to fire when there are 3-4 nails left in the magazine. At this point you need to load another strip behind those and then continue on.  Nails are loaded from the bottom of the magazine, ensuring the nail heads enter and run in the nail head channel of the magazine. Then you slide them up to the top of the magazine, then pull down the "spring-loaded" feed mechanism (well its actually like a strip wheel retraction mechanism like that in retractable tape measures) to below the bottom nail in the strip and release. This then engages with the last nail in the strip and with spring pressure, it "feeds" nails constantly to the top of the magazine, basically by pushing them under spring tension. Another mechanism at the very bottom of the magazine acts as a nail stop so nails do not fail out under gravity while you are reloading, even if holding the nail gun upright. Regardless of the nail length used, the heads of the nails must always sit in the nail head channel at the back of the magazine.

In the event of a nail jam, which thankfully hasn't occurred as yet, the method of removing a jammed nail is not a tool-less process. You will need to remove the nail magazine via the two hex screws that hold it to the bottom of the handle. Then the magazine slides down and off and allows access to the driver area to clear the jam. I won't call this aspect as a negative point as most frame nailers I have ever used require a similar process to clear a jammed nail. Smaller finish nailers or brad nailers often offer a tool-less method of removing jammed nails, and I would love to see this on a framing nailer, but then again, these are powerful tools and without something strong (screws) holding it all together, that tool-less access latch could easily disengage and fly open, so perhaps that is why it isn't offered? Nonetheless, with careful nail loading, regular cleaning and proper use, nail jams should be an infrequent occurrence.

Moving up to the nail driver area, we have a spring loaded safety release. In normal sequential nailing mode, the nose of the driver must be pushed against the material being nailed before the trigger can be pulled to fire a nail. The nose has a no-mar rubber tip designed to prevent marking, denting or scuffing of the surface being nailed. Many carpenters or framers will take this tip off the nose and underneath the Snap-On framing nailer you find a tip featuring five hard metal "spikes". These are designed to slightly dig into framing material to prevent the nose slipping off the surface. This is better if the surface you are nailing into will not be seen or there is no concern about scuffing or marking it. In most cases where a frame nailer is used, the finish is not terribly concerning.

Depth that the nail is driven into the material is adjustable. You will need a small socket or wrench to loosen the two nuts on top of the nose to adjust driving depth. Once loose you can adjust by pushing inward or outward on the nose to increase or decrease its distance from the driver blade as it fires a nail. in effect this adjusts how far the driver penetrates in relation to the end of the nose. This works well, and there are small notches on the nose to estimate depth changes as they are being made, which can be better than some other depth adjustment methods of nailers that use a wheel adjustment. The advantage with those though is that they are tool-less. This design requires a wrench or small socket for the nuts.

The body of the nailer features magnesium material for durability, but predominantly for the lighter weight that magnesium offers. The Snap On Framing Nailer weighs in at 7.6lbs (3.45kg) which is a touch lighter than the Porter Cable FR350A nailer also reviewed on this site. Like virtually all framing nailers, the Snap-on framer has a fairly pronounced forward weight bias. This can be beneficial when driving nails as it helps balance the effect of recoil as the nail is driven, and this is the case when using this tool. On the flip side, the forward weight bias can and does cause some wrist fatigue over time, especially it seems when working and holding the nailer below your waist-line, probably due to the odd angles of arm and wrist combination in line with your body. You can avoid these to some degree by repositioning yourself but in practice this often does not occur, and speed seems to win out in these instances. Again, this forward weight bias is not a one-off instance with this tool. All framing nailers I have used seem to exhibit this to varying degrees.

The handle has a rubber overmold grip to help prevent slipping during use, and in general the handle is comfortable with the trigger in easy reach of the forefinger. The nailer is easy to hold and "comfortable" to use, for lack of a better term. At the rear of the nailer is a tool-less adjustable exhaust port. You can angle this exhaust away from yourself simply by turning it to prevent a blast of exhaust air hitting you in the face, or blowing up debris from around you and striking yourself in the eye or elsewhere. Being a tool-less design is vital in this regard, because you will not always have or want the exhaust to be facing a certain way and quick adjustment is crucial. Bonus points here. An air filter also forms part of the exhaust, preventing dust and debris entering the main housing, and this is self-cleaned as exhaust air is blown out from the opposite side of the wire nest filter.

Now, onto perhaps the best part of the tool, design wise; the trigger. It may seem an insignificant thing but a trigger on a pneumatic nailer can make all the difference in usability and safety. Firstly, lets look at nail firing modes. Many quality framers will offer both "single actuation" and "contact actuation" firing modes. On some framing nailers, switching between modes actually requires a different trigger assembly altogether. You have to remove the whole trigger and attach a second trigger to switch between modes, which can be a major hassle. But first, a very brief primer on firing modes...

Single Actuation - This mode essentially fires one nail per nailing cycle. This means you depress the safety release/nose of the gun against the workpiece and pull the trigger. One nail is fired. To fire the next nail, you have to release the trigger and then reposition the nailer, again press the safety release/nose to the material and squeeze the trigger, and so on. This is a slower form of nailer, however, it is MUCH safer, and the recommended way of driving nails as a result.

Contact Actuation - This is also commonly called "bump-firing" or speed nailing mode. In this mode, the trigger is depressed all the time (without being released) and each time the safety release/nose is bumped against the material, a nail is fired. This method allows rapid firing of nails, but is often less accurate and poses more safety risks as any bump of the nail gun against any object while the trigger is depressed in this mode will fire a nail. Most commercial builders or carpenters/framers will use this mode because it is faster than single actuation modes, but it requires more concentration and care to avoid injury.

Ok back to the review... now, on the Snap-On Framing Nailer, you can switch between these two modes without removing the trigger or swapping it out for another. There is a small actuation selection lever embedded behind the trigger. Most higher quality framing nailers will offer this style of trigger mounted switching system. You push this in and rotate it to select between single or contact actuation modes. The lever sets securely for each mode so it does not move during use of the nailer. With that simple flick of the lever you can switch between firing modes and small nail graphical images show the setting selected (one nail for single mode and three nails together for contact actuation mode), but again, unless you are an experienced contractor with many years of nail gun use under your belt, I'd be sticking to single actuation mode for the added safety buffer.  Respect for the tool, care and common sense is the best defense against injury with nail guns however.

Perhaps a feature that I have not seen on many other framers, is located just above the trigger on the Snap-On framing nailer, and this is a trigger lock. By rotating this little lever to the rear of the tool, the trigger becomes locked and cannot be depressed, greatly reducing the risk of accidental firing of the tool. This is an excellent feature and it should be engaged whenever the tool is not being used, when moving around roofs or other confined spaces or when adding or disconnecting an air supply. Kudos to Snap-On for adding this simple but effective safety feature.

Moving down the handle we have the last feature, which is a carry or belt hook fixed to the nailer. Actually it can also be, and probably is designed to be a rafter hook. This hook can swing out from the handle to hook the nailer to a rafter or your tool belt when working on roofs or elsewhere. It can swing and lock back next to the handle, out of the way, when you do not wish to use it. Another nice inclusion added to the nailer. At the base of the handle is the air inlet. You will need to supply your own air fitting to suit your air supply line. It requires a male threaded connector to fit the internal female threads at the base of the handle.

In Use and Other Bits and Pieces...
The Snap-On Framing Nailer will operate on compressed air within a pressure range of 70-120 PSI, with 120 PSI being the maximum recommended operating pressure. Since most smaller portable compressors will maintain air pressure between 80 and 120 PSI, this should pose no problem for many. If you have a compressor that delivers over 120 PSI, then you will need a regulator to regulate the pressure down to 120 PSI max. Any pressure under 70-75 PSI and the nailer may not have enough air pressure/power to fully drive a nail, especially into harder woods. The nailer requires lubrication with a quality air tool oil. This can be either manually added to the air port at the bottom of the handle before use each day (3-4 drops is all that is needed) and should also be added at the end of the day, especially if the nailer will not be used the next day or for an extended time afterward. When adding via the air port, ensure you drive a couple nails following oiling to disperse the oil throughout the nail gun. The other option is to use an automatic inline oiler that supplies oil to the tool as it is used. This is probably the better option if you plan on using this tool regularly.

Contrary to popular belief, unless you plan on driving 1,000 nails in under a few minutes, air nailers, even large framing nailers like this do not require massive air compressors to run. In fact, an air nailer will happily run on a pancake type compressor if you are not planning to nail at a furious pace. They use very little air per shot compared to other continuous use air tools like air sanders, drills or die grinders. As long as the compressor has a holding tank and can maintain output at 80-120 PSI, you should have no problem at all running this nailer off a smaller compressor. If considering a compressor, always buy a little bigger than you think you will need, because somewhere down the line you might want to buy one of those other high consumption air tools and the little compressors simply will not keep up!

Ok, for testing of this nailer I got my box of 21 degree 0.131" diameter, 3" long framing nails out. Out came some standard 70x35mm pine framing studs, as well as some hardwood pieces, including very dense woods like Ipe and others. I had a few wall frames to make up for a relatives reno project so that would be a good test there, and for the hardwoods I was going to see how well it nailed into denser materials, and how accurate the depth adjustment features were, plus the overall performance and level of comfort while using the tool.

To begin with, the pine frames came together easily. Nails were driven easily into the softer wood and held everything together beautifully. I sank about 150-200 nails all up into the frame project, often at full depth. No jams experienced and pretty much every nail went in perfectly. A good start!

Onto the hardwoods. Since I didn't have any real practical use for nailing hardwood together at the time, I pulled out a couple off-cuts and started nailing them together with an unnecessary and copious amount of nails, simply for the purpose of testing. I was looking closely at any differences in nail driven depth between adjacent and groups of nails using the one depth setting, and whether or not the depth of drive of each nail differed as air pressure decreased in the tank (down to 80 PSI) using the same nail depth drive setting on the gun. The hardwood stack was 4" thick with the nails being 3" long they had to be fully driven into the material... The results were that the nails were either fully sunk at 120 PSI with the nail head imbedded about 1/8" into the stack, while at 100 PSI, most nails were sitting flush or just slightly above the material. At 90 and 80 PSI the nails were not fully sunk, some protruding still a 1/2" above the surface. This did surprise me a little but I wasn't shocked and I think I underestimated the density of the hardwood I was trying to nail into. I pulled out the Porter Cable FR350A frame nailer and did the same test and got the same results, so the Snap-On nailer is not underpowered in comparison. Interestingly, in my 4 stack if ply and hardwoods, nails were fully driven at almost all pressures down to 80 PSI when the middle board was removed to leave a gap between the top and bottom boards. So obviously not a lot of force is lost driving through the top board, but the result of continuous resistance on the nail when boards are stacked tightly together makes a big difference to the outcome. Again, these are larger diameter nails and quite long at 3" and the issue only arises when driving nails into solid 3" or thicker materials. But still worth mentioning. In softer woods and pine framing studs the nailer has no issues and drives well into 3" of pine frame.

Of interest though is the recoil and sound level of the Snap-On nailer compared to the Porter Cable nailer. The Snap-On seems to have less recoil and is quieter in use, perhaps due to the wire wrapping (birds nest) in the exhaust port which muffles the sound output. I must say I enjoyed using the Snap-On nailer more than the Porter Cable when comfort is taken into consideration, although the PC nailer does have a larger nail magazine capacity that makes that aspect more practical in use.

Overall this is a very nice framing nailer and is certainly the smoothest in operation I have used to date. Sure, there could be some small improvements made, but at the end of the day, the nailer does do the job it is designed to do and it seems to do it well... By the way, still not a single nail jam to be chalked up with the Snap-On framing nailer!

The Snap-On 21-Degree Full Round Head Framing Nailer retails for US$199.99, which is a reasonable price for a heavy duty and well designed and functioning  framing nailer.