# siding nail gun or 15 ga. finish nailer for tongue and groove siding



## Lbert (Oct 31, 2010)

Which is a better tool (siding nailer or a 15 ga. nailer) to use on a tongue and groove siding? The siding board has the tongue on top and matching groove at the bottom. I was told I can toe nail the tongue on an angle and lay the next board on top. In this manner, the nails are not showing. 

Perhaps I am better off to nail the face board slightly recessed and patch the indent before painting. 

I do not have neither nailer. I am trying to decide if the siding nailer can be used to toe nail. I wonder if the thickness of the siding nailer may cause the wood to split so perhaps a 15 ga. nailer is better. 

I appreciate any inputs you can provide.


----------



## thehammer01 (Oct 20, 2010)

*nailer issues*

Lbert, yours is a common pnuematic nailer question. I'm Ray the Hammer and unless there is a new siding nailer that I don't know about, I think that a finish nailer is the way to go. I work at The Home Depot and all the siding nailers that we carry use coil nails that have a large head and I think that this would interfere with your fit. You could rent both of them and try it before you buy it. With the proper depth setting on the finish nailer you shouldn't have any issues with over or under penetration, but I would give it a test run first. You might want go with the angled version to avoid any clearence snags. Hope this little nugget helps, let me know how it works out


----------



## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Lbert said:


> Which is a better tool (siding nailer or a 15 ga. nailer) to use on a tongue and groove siding? The siding board has the tongue on top and matching groove at the bottom. I was told I can toe nail the tongue on an angle and lay the next board on top. In this manner, the nails are not showing.
> 
> Perhaps I am better off to nail the face board slightly recessed and patch the indent before painting.
> 
> ...


7/16” x 1 ½” Stainless Steel Staples for hidden fastener T&G Siding


----------



## Lbert (Oct 31, 2010)

Ray and kwik, thank you for your response.

I am now considering a 16 ga finish nailer instead to reduce the chance of splitting the board during toe nailing. During my research of the 16 ga nails, I am confuse why the angled nails cost about 50% more compared to the straight or non-angled nails. Does anyone know why? Also, the Paslode angled nailer and straight nail cost almost identical. I understand the angled nailer can get in tighter spots. Considering the cost benefit ratio, should I just get the non-angled nailer?


----------



## thehammer01 (Oct 20, 2010)

*angled nailer conundrum*

Lbert, I've asked several of my suppliers at The Home Depot that very same question, and the response is always "um, I don't know." so that will have to suffice. you're right about the tight space issue, but if your budget only allows for the straight nailer, you'll be fine. Kwikfishron makes a good point about the stapler being a good choice, so if you think that would work out for you on future projects, you might want to give that a look too.


----------

