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Talking with an old framer changed how I feel about nail guns
Met a guy named Dale at the lumber yard last week who said he still hand drives every nail on his jobs. He told me I'm losing feel for the wood by relying on the gun, and it made me wonder if I'm rushing too much on my own projects.
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laura_schmidt821mo ago
Dale sounds like a guy who has a point about feel, but I think he's forgetting that feel comes from the finished product too, not just the process. I've hand driven framing on a deck before and honestly, I couldn't tell you the difference in how the wood felt compared to my nail gun work. What I can tell you is that my gun let me spend more time on the tricky cuts and joinery instead of just whacking nails. A crooked hand driven nail feels worse than a straight shot from a gun any day.
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nancyj111mo ago
Yeah I hear you @laura_schmidt82, that speed tradeoff is huge. But do you think the average homeowner even notices or cares about "feel" when the deck is done, or is Dale just flexing for other builders?
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