If you are planning on nailing something together, a nail gun is a great tool for the job. One specific type of nail gun that you may want to use is called a finish nailer. There are two sub-classes of finish nailer, an angled finish nailer and a straight finish nailer, each with its own benefits and drawbacks to consider.
The goal today is to figure out what exactly a finish nailer is, and what the differences between angled and straight finish nailers are.
What Is a Finish Nailer?
As mentioned above, a finish nailer is a specific type of nail gun. This is a special type of nail gun designed for attaching finishing materials to walls and other locations. Most people would use them to attach trim and crown molding to walls in houses.
One of the biggest benefits of using a finish nailer is that the nails are extremely small in diameter, and therefore are barely visible once inserted. The nails used with finish nailers also don’t typically have any heads on them, which further decreases the visibility once inserted.
Do keep in mind, however, that finish nailers, due to their small nail size, are not ideal for more heavy-duty use. For example, you wouldn’t want to use a finish nailer to nail together 2x4s.
As mentioned above, there are also two different types of finish nailers, the straight and the angled finish nailer. Angled finish nailers tend to be quite compact and have the nail magazine at a fairly steep angle. This is unlike a straight finish nailer that has the nail magazine straight, or at a 90-degree angle to the rest of the tool.
Differences Between Angled and Straight Finish Nailers
Now that we know the basics about finishing nailers, let’s find out what the main differences between angled finish nailers and straight finish nailers are.
1. A Different Appearance
One of the most obvious differences between these two types of nail guns is their appearance. Yes, they are similar tools, and they aren’t fundamentally different in terms of function. However, they do have a slightly different shape.
A straight finish nailer looks more or less like a small and compact nail gun. With a straight finish nailer, the angle of the magazine is 90 degrees to the rest of the tool. With an angled finish nailer, on the other hand, the magazine is located at an angle to the rest of the unit.
You could definitely say that the difference in shape leads to all of the other differences that we are about to talk about, as the angled magazine of an angled finish nailer gives it unique advantages over a straight finish nailer.
2. Nail Size and Nail Head Shape
Another big difference between these two types of nail guns has to do with the size of the nail. For the most part, a straight finishing nailer is going to use a 16 gauge nail. These are very small nails with a minimal diameter. This is ideal for small projects and thin materials. That very small nail size allows you to insert nails into thin materials without a risk of cracking or splitting them.
However, this may not be ideal for larger projects, especially where connecting two larger pieces of wood. If this is the case, you may want to consider using an angled finish nailer. An angled finish nailer uses 15 gauge nails, which are slightly larger. That said, you don’t want to use this for very thin and fragile materials, as you may crack them.
Another difference, although relatively irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, is that regular finishing nailers often have nails with rectangular heads. Angled finishing nailers, however, often have nails that have rounded heads. With that said, do keep in mind that both really don’t have large heads at all, so this won’t make much of an impact.
3. Getting Into Tight Spaces
In terms of overall functionality, perhaps the biggest difference between these two types of finishing nail guns has to do with what kinds of spaces they can fit into. If you have ever seen a regular straight finishing nailer, you’ll know that they can be quite large.
This, combined with that straight magazine for the nails, means that getting into very tight spaces can be quite a challenge.
This is exactly why angled finishing nailers were first invented, as their angled magazine makes it much easier to fit into tight spaces. There are, of course, many different projects where this versatility will come in handy.
4. Overall Size and Weight
Straight finish nailers tend to be larger and heavier than angled finish nailers. Angled finish nailers are specifically designed to be compact and lightweight. Angled finish nailers tend to be made with less and lighter materials.
This can make an angled nailer much easier to carry around from one job site to another. Straight finishing nailers are just a little heavier and more cumbersome. This size difference and weight difference means you’ll most likely get fatigued faster when using one.
5. Accuracy and Ease of Use
One issue that many people have with finishing nailers is that getting the angle of the nail right can be difficult. On an angled finishing nailer, the nail also goes in at an angle. The angle is supported, so there is no guessing involved. This makes angled finish nailers much more ideal for inserting nails at an angle.
With a straight finishing nailer, the nail goes in straight, which makes nailing something at an angle more difficult. On the other hand, if you need to insert a nail perfectly straight, doing so with an angled finishing nailer is going to be almost impossible.
6. Average Cost
The other thing to consider here is that straight finishing nailers tend to be a bit cheaper to purchase than angled finishing nailers.
Angled finishing nailers are considered to be more functional and easier to use. This is often used to justify a price difference. You will also want to consider that 15 gauge nails are going to be more expensive than 16 gauge nails.
Angled vs. Straight Finish Nailer: Which of the Two Should You Use?
In reality, if you are just going to be doing a few projects here and there, you’ll probably want to invest a bit more money into an angled finishing nailer, as they’re a bit more versatile, and could be used for a variety of jobs. However, if you are a professional who is going to be working on trim and crown molding all of the time, you’re probably going to want both of these tools.
The simple reality is that straight finishing nailers are ideal for large spaces where you need to insert a relatively small nail at a straight 90-degree angle.
On the other hand, an angled finishing nailer is ideal if you need slightly larger nails, you need to fit into tight spaces, or you need to insert the nail at an angle.
Summary
Hopefully, this article has provided a bit more clarity on angled and straight finish nailers and what separates them. Now you should be able to make a more informed purchasing decision about which of the two will better suit your next project.