Battery-Powered Cordless Finish Nailer
It’s amazing how much time you can save by finding a good nail gun, be it for occupational needs or DIY projects. The nail guns are now considered the standard in carpentry and similar areas where beating the hammer just doesn’t do the job anymore. Pneumatic nail guns are developed by various manufacturers to bring you a solution for the quick placement of nails on your carpentry and metalwork.
There are indeed a large number of nail guns on the market, and many people believe there just can’t be that much of a difference between them. The fact of the matter is that this cannot be farther from the truth. Buying a good one or a bad one can trickle down to the difference between finishing the job and stopping in the middle of it. In this article, we bring you the best cordless finish nail guns in our opinion, be it for the heavier jobs or the smoother trimming finishing.
Quick Comparison of 5 Best Cordless Finish Nailer
| Finish Nailer | Key Specifications | More Info |
|---|---|---|
 Ryobi P325 Nailer | Gauge: 16 GA Capacity: 105 nails Nail Range: 1-1/4"- 2-1/2" Voltage: 18v Weight: 7.59 lbs. | PriceDetail review |
 DEWALT DCN660B Nailer | Gauge: 16 GA Capacity: 110 nails Nail Range: 1-1/4"- 2-1/2" Voltage: 20v Weight: 6 lbs. | PriceDetail review |
 Makita XNB02Z Nailer | Gauge: 16 GA Capacity: 100 nails Nail Range: 1"- 2-1/2" Voltage: 18v Weight: 8.25 lbs. | PriceDetail review |
 Paslode 902400 Nailer | Gauge: 16 GA Capacity: 100 nails Nail Range: 1-1/4"- 2-1/2" Voltage: 7v Weight: 4.5 lbs. | PriceDetail review |
 CRAFTSMAN CMCN616C1 Nailer | Gauge: 16 GA Capacity: 105 nails Nail Range: 1-1/4"- 2-1/2" Voltage: 20v Weight: 9.05 lbs. | PriceDetail review |
Top-Rated 5 Cordless Finish Nail Gun Reviews
Here’s a little sneak peek over the top choice of 2021 and most probably coming years as well – the five best battery-powered finish nailers! So, to find out which are the best, keep reading and we’ll help you to make the best buying decision:
1Ryobi P325 Battery Powered Cordless 16 Gauge Finish Nailer
- Voltage: 18V
- Capacity: 105 nails
- Weight: 4.5 lbs.
Highlight Features:
- Low nail indicator.
- Two-mode operation: contact and sequential.
- LED lighting.
- Nail depth and air pressure adjustment.
- Drives up to 800 nails in a single charge.
- Easy jam clearing mechanism.
- Comes with extra rubber molding to prevent the marring of wooden surfaces.
If you are looking for a straightforward, efficient nail finisher effective for baseboard, crown mold, and block form-related intensive tasks, we highly recommend the Ryobi P325 16ga finish nailer.
Powered by a 4-Ah Lithium-ion battery, this unit supports up to 800 shots when fully charged. With this, you will be able to handle intensive tasks for a whole day without charging the battery.
When it comes to safety, this nail finisher has a low nail indicator that prevents dry-firing and protects you from potential hazards. Jam clearing has also been made easier by the easily accessible magazine. The magazine capacity for this unit is 105 pieces.
Another impressive feature of this unit is its LED indicator, which improves visibility when working in low-light areas and acts as a low battery indicator. What’s even better is that the light has a time delay such that the light stays lit for a little longer even after you have stopped pressing the light trigger.
Also, RYOBI P325 has a nail depth and air adjustment knob that is easy to use. Combining these two features makes this versatile unit one of the best cordless finish nailers for 2021.
2DEWALT DCN660B 16-Gauge Angled Cordless Finish Nailer
- Voltage: 20V
- Capacity: 110 nails
- Weight: 6 lbs.
Highlight Features:
- 110 nails magazine capacity.
- Two non-mar tips.
- Seamless jam release
- Comes with multipurpose LED Lights.
- Tool-free selectable trigger.
- Impressive battery lifespan.
The Dewalt brand makes reliable power tools, and their 20V 16ga DCN660B finish nailer is no different. This nail finisher is battery powered, which means that you do not need a hose, gas cartridges, or compressor. The 20V battery has an impressive lifespan and can fire thousand of nails when fully charged.
As with most of the other nail finishers we have reviewed, this unit uses a tool-free mechanism for efficient and fast nailing. Its magazine has a decent capacity of 110 nails. It is compatible with nails whose length is between 1-1/4″ and 2-1/2″.
Even though the belt hook of this unit looks basic and only works best for right-handed users, it is impressively strong. It comes with two non-mar tips; one pre-installed and another beneath the magazine.
Another feature that makes the DCN660B one of the best 16 gauge finish nailers is its multipurpose LED lights. The double lights work in both illuminating dark areas and for error indication.
Overall, the DCN660B nail finisher is a lightweight, powerful, and impressive unit. It comes with a three-year warranty to give you comfort and assurance on the quality of the product.
3Makita XNB02Z 16 Gauge Straight Finish Nailer
- Voltage: 18V
- Capacity: 100 nails
- Weight: 8.25 lbs.
Highlight Features:
- Offers a brushless motor for more power and run time.
- Fire up to 1000 nails per full charge.
- Can sink 1″ – 2-1/2″ inches finish nails in the hardest woods like Oak.
- Operates on powerful LXT technology.
- Anti-dry fire mechanism to prevent unnecessary marring.
- Features a solid construction.
- Comes with LED lights for visibility.
- Great for sinking slim nails into hardwood.
Looking for the best cordless nail gun that’s capable of sinking 2-1/2 inch nails in solid oak? Look no further. The Makita nailer kit comes with a brushless motor to provide impressive power, more run time, and longer life. Although it’s heavier than similar models, it will last for years to come and offer reliable performance.
It operates with a powerful LXT battery that provides unmatched strength and eliminates the need and cost of gas cartridges. Makita invested a lot of effort into making it one of the most advanced units with the anti-dry fire mechanism that minimizes the risk of damaging the battery in case of overloading.
When it comes to loading and unloading the nails, this 16-gauge angled finish nailer offers a button to slide for easy swapping of nails. The jam release opens up to 90 degrees which allows for easy clearance of a stuck nail. Although it’s on the heavier side, it is very easy to use with a rubberized angle for grip.
4Paslode 902400 16 Gauge Angled Cordless Finish Nailer
- Voltage: 7V
- Capacity: 100 nails
- Weight: 4.5 lbs.
Highlight Features:
- Non-mar tip
- Maximum magazine capacity: 100 nails.
- Maneuverable even in hard-to-reach places.
- Powerful precision.
- Lightweight and compact design.
- The battery charges very fast.
- Comfortable to use for extended periods.
If you often work on projects involving confined areas, we recommend the Paslode 902400 cordless nail finisher. This unit’s key feature is its high precision that can drive up to 12,000 nails when fully charged. It is compatible with straight nails whose length is between 1-1/4″ and 2-1/2″. Its magazine accommodates up to 100 nails, which means that you work for more extended periods before reloading.
Even though this unit uses a 7.0 V Lithium-ion battery, it only takes 30 minutes for a full charge, saving your time. The battery operates on stand-by mode, thus conserving runtime.
This cordless nail finisher is lightweight. At only 4.5 pounds, this unit’s weight provides better control and balance to users to facilitate longer working hours without feeling exhausted.
Besides, Paslode 902400 cordless nail finisher uses a battery and a fuel cell, which makes it more powerful compared to those operated using a battery only. It is powerful enough to drive nails into hardwoods.
This 16GA nail finisher has a non-mar tip to protect work surfaces from scratching and getting dents. In addition, it comes with an angled magazine, which makes it working in squeezed places easy.
5CRAFTSMAN CMCN616C1 Cordless Finish Nailer Kit
- Voltage: 20V
- Capacity: 105 nails
- Weight: 9.05 lbs.
Highlight Features:
- Powerful Li-Ion battery
- Up to 375 2” nails per charge
- Ergonomic handle and a great center of gravity
- Tool-free depth setting.
In our opinion, the best 16 gauge cordless finish nailer is the Craftsman 20v 16 gauge nail gun. The reason for this is the fact the gun works consistently across different working conditions, climates, and temperatures. The lithium-ion battery provides enough juice for hours of work up to 375 nails per single charge.
The best cordless finish nailer in our opinion eliminates the need for cords, compressors, hoses, and various tools other nail drivers require. The settings for depth, jamming, and stalling are already installed and reliably available on the tool which provides ease of use and the job done quickly. 16 gauge is a great category because it basically sits between the trimming smooth finishes and the more demanding heavier carpentry.
There are some other excellent cordless 23-gauge pin nailer HERE.
Things to Consider – Before Buying the Best Cordless Finish Nailer
There are various cordless finish nailer reviews that just list up several nail guns and don’t go beyond that. In this article, we have decided to present you not only with a list of the best battery-powered finish nailers in our opinion, but also give you a list of reasons why we believe so. Moreover, we will teach you what to look for in a good nail gun so you may find the best one for yourself.
Whether you are looking for the best cheap cordless finish nailer or the best cordless 18 gauge finish nailer, or 15 gauge, the differences between the bad ones, the good ones, and the top of the class may be large or by a strand of hair, so pay close attention.
Battery life
Cordless nail guns depend on their battery. The sole nature of the work they need to accomplish is such that they need a significant amount of electric energy. Not only this, but the juice needs to come with a charge. Current batteries can accomplish that and the truth is that we could use stronger batteries. The companies are racing to develop them and until they come, the manufacturers resort to some variants of the lithium-ion base.
The battery’s life should be longer than 300 nail hits. The difference between the good ones and the bad ones is in the manner they provide energy over time. The really good nail gun batteries will provide stable energy throughout use without the loss of power to the device significant enough that it loses the ability to administer the nail fully into the material.
Getting stuck
Stuck and jam is in the very description of nail gun’s line of work. This is why the most famous manufacturers exerted tremendous effort in creating products that minimize jams. If your nail gun jams, there’s no need to panic, as even the best ones do. It can be due to the minimal distortion of a single nail combined with the slight overheating. Simply unjam it through the setting or the given tool and a good nail gun should keep working like nothing ever happened.
Weight
Cordless nail guns have to solve three problems – power, durability, and energy storage. All three things ideally use some of the heavier materials in the material palette. This means that ideally, a really good nail gun might be too heavy to carry. In a similar vein, a too-light nail gun may snap and stop working at any moment. The engineers had to find the balance between the three main traits. An excellent nail gun feels light in spite of its weight due to the fact that the supreme designers managed to balance the weight distribution for the most comfort and least exhausting handling.
FAQs
What is the best finish nailer for the money?
In our opinion, the best cordless 15 gauge finish nailer for the money is the Craftsman CMCN616C1 20v 16 gauge nail gun. Its ergonomic design greatly reduces fatigue at work and the battery removes cords, hoses, and other pieces of equipment.
Which is the better 15 or 16-gauge finish nailer?
The difference between a 15 and a 16 gauge finish nailer boils down to the nature of the job required to be done. If you are working with heavier materials, a 15 gauge nailer should do the job better. If the work is more delicate and you want to leave cleaner entrance holes on thinner materials, a 16 gauge nail gun would do a smoother job.
Do battery-finished Nailers work?
Yes. Though smaller and limited in power compared to their compressor-based relatives, the battery nail guns can finish the task just as efficiently as their compressor-based counterparts. This depends on the amount of work and the length of time. Compressor-based nailers depend on the compressor and its overheating features, while battery-based nailers might need an extra battery or charging between larger and longer tasks.
What is a better angled or straight finish nailer?
An angled nailer has a couple of benefits: it has better access to corners and angled areas, and more length of their magazine enables them to hold larger nails more suitable for heavier materials. Straight nailers jam less frequently and can hold smaller nails which is better for more delicate work.
READ MORE: 6 Best Pneumatic Finish Nailer.
What is the difference between finish nailer and Brad nailer?
Finish nailer works with smaller finish nails and is most utilized at the coarser stages in carpentry, while Brad nailer works with 18 gauge nails and is more suitable for finishing works.
Read our reviews intently to learn how the Cordless 18 Gauge Brad Nailer can benefit you for carpentry.
What is the best nail gun for home projects?
In our opinion, Craftsman takes the lead in the home project race. Their 20V battery-powered 16 gauge nailer is especially useful for DIY projects for its power, longevity, and ease of use. This is why we believe it’s the best battery finish nailer.
Who makes the best cordless nailers?
Some of the best companies that produce the highest quality cordless nailers are Porter Cable, Dewalt, Craftsman, and Makita.
How do I choose a finish nail gun?
The most important factor (other than the quality we covered in our Buyer’s Guide) when choosing a finish nail gun is the size of the nail’s gauge. While 15 and lower gauge is used for heavier carpentry like construction, trim carpenters resort to 15, 16, or 18 gauge, all providing increasingly smoother and better finish on the product.
What kind of nailer do you use for a trim?
Brad nailers are by the rule used for trim. They usually operate with 18 gauge nails suitable for more delicate work and smoother openings. A 16 gauge finish nailer may also do the work, yet the end result may not be as perfectly smooth as with the 18 gauge nailers.
READ MORE: 5 18-Gauge Pneumatic Brad Nailer
Conclusion
This is our list of the best cordless finish nail guns you can purchase for your professional and DIY projects. We recommend considering the Craftsman CMCN616C1 16 gauge battery nailer for its ergonomic design and chord-free/equipment-free ease of use.
