How to Use a Palm Nailer: Beginners’ complete guideline

Getting stuck on how to use a palm nailer?

Palm nailer is specially designed to provide better comfort to users. When working with a hammer repeatedly, it can cause musculoskeletal disorders such as carpal tunnel syndrome. We guarantee you won’t ever feel this pain with a palm nailer.

For driving nails fastly & accurately, your best option is a palm nailer. Today, you will learn how to properly use a palm nailer. We are here to make you familiar with this pneumatic power instrument. After reading this content, your problematic concepts with palm nailers will disappear.

What is a Palm Nailer?

A palm nailer is a small, lightweight tool to drive nails into wood. It is held in the palm and operated with one hand, leaving the other hand free to hold the workpiece. Palm nailers are used to installing trim, baseboards, joist hanger, and crown molding. They can drive nails with head sizes ranging from 1/8 inch to 3/8 inch.

Palm Nailer Pros & Cons

This palm nailer is a machine & the machine must contain both positive & negative sides. Would you mind reading the pros & cons of a palm nailer?

Pros

  • Not too heavy to carry. It’s very handy.
  • Capable of providing much better performance than a habitational nail gun.
  • Both small & large size nails are perfect for individual purposes with this fastener.
  • In the nearby hardware store, nails suitable with palm nailers can be found. No hassle of searching from one store to another store.
  • It can save you precious hours. It is faster than a normal nailer. 

Cons

  • Cordless palm nailers produce less power & slow down the work.
  • In the palm nailer, you need to reload nails with your hand again & again. This is a boring task.
  • Some old models may require you to use a hammer to finish the nailing task accurately. 

What Types of Palm Nailer are Available?

There are two types of palm nailers available at the market according to the power source. They are pneumatic palm nailers & cordless palm nailers. The power source can be considered as a major difference between them. 

Pneumatic palm nailer 

Air compressor is used as a power source in a pneumatic palm nailer. If you seek firmly, you can find a port behind the nailer. The port has to be connected with the cord of the air compressor for the beginning. 

Cordless palm nailer

Electricity is considered ideal for cordless palm nailers. There are different voltages of battery for palm nailers. Usually, 18v & 24v batteries are used for cordless palm nailers.

Unfortunately, electric palm nailer is not widely available nowadays.

How Does Palm Nail Gun Work?

A palm nail gun is a tool to drive nails into wood or other materials. It is operated by a trigger located in the hand’s palm. The tool is held in hand like a pistol, and the trigger is squeezed to drive the nail into the material.

The gun has a magazine that holds the nails. The magazine is located in the gun’s body. The gun is fired by pulling the trigger. The gun is reloaded by removing the magazine from the gun’s body and inserting a new one.

You should know that there are also variations of nailers for several models of nails. It usually gets classified by nail sizes. For 6d to 16d nails, mini palm nailers are compatible. On the other hand, for heavy works with a palm nailer, a large palm nailer will be preferable. From 5d to 70d, nails are perfect for a big palm nailer.

Very well. Now, let’s simplify the using method of palm nailer by elaborating some steps.

How to use a palm nailer as a beginner

Here is the details process of how to use a palm nailer for beginners. But make sure you have the best palm nailer.

Read Out the Manual

As a responsible worker, you need to be very careful about an manual. You can know details about the tool such as how to use it, safety protection, and others from the manual.

We advise you to wear ear protection to overcome noise pollution. The helmet, side shield also can be maintained for safety purposes.

At the same time, know the palm nailer attachments and understand them properly.

Power it Up:

We have mentioned before that a pneumatic palm nailer works with the help of an air compressor. For this corded version fastener, just connect it with the air compressor. Then it will be powered.

If your fastener is running on a battery, your way is easier than the previous one. Just turn the power on & get started. Keep that in mind; getting a troublesome battery may ruin your work & decrease your performance.

The Right Posture Matters:

Your manner of standing can affect your work result directly. We strongly suggest keeping your face away from the nailer while performing a nailing project. Unwilling accidents can be reduced by carefulness without a doubt.

It is significant to ensure that you are not in an uncomfortable position. Be normal & straight. Holding your fastener is a significant part & you have to do it by your consciousness. 

A Secure Grip = Fast Nailing:

You need to hold the machine with a good grip but not with uncomfortable pressure. Companies make the grip in the way you feel pleasant.  Just remember, you have to counter some incoming vibration from the fastener & for this reason, you need sufficient grip.

Nailing Process:

After getting your position ok, ensure that the nailer is in the right position.  The nail’s pinhead should stay where you can see a magnetic point on your fastener. This magnetic point holds the nail accurately & absorbs it into the hole.

After that, position your nailer at the fixed place you want to nail. Push your nailer down to start nailing. After pushing down, it will be executed inside the nailing material.

A Bit of Manual Work:

Sometimes, the nail head remains on the surface where the work has been performed. You have to go through some manual work methods. Bring a hammer & try to deliver it fully inside. 

Yeah, you’re at the termination. Wow, you have done it successfully! 

Some Safety Concerns

When using a palm nailer, it is important to keep the following safety tips in mind:

  • Wear eye protection for higher eye safety.
  • Do not use the palm nailer to drive nails into metal or masonry.
  • Do not use the palm nailer to drive nails longer than the tool is designed to handle.
  • Be sure that the workpiece is properly secured before driving nails into it.
  • Be aware of your surroundings and keep your fingers clear of the path of the nail.

Our Verdict for you

You are almost done with this article. If we can make you understand how to use a palm nailer while maintaining all the safety manners, we will be delighted.

If you’re looking for a way to speed up your construction projects, a palm nailer is a great tool to consider. With a palm nailer, you can quickly and easily drive nails into wood, making it a great choice for projects like framing or installing trim. Here’s a quick overview of how to use a palm nailer:

To start, you’ll need to load your palm nailer with the appropriate nails. Check the manufacturer’s instructions to ensure you use the right size and type of nails for your project. Once your palm nailer is loaded, position it on the wood surface and squeeze the trigger to drive the nail in. Repeat this process until all of your nails are in place.

When you’re finished using your palm nailer, unload any remaining nails to avoid accidental misfires. With a little practice, you’ll be a palm nailer pro in no time!

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