How to Use Brad Nailers for Crown Molding

Brad nailers are hand-held automatic driving devices for propelling small diameter nails or brads into wood. The brads are generally small in diameter, approximately 1/16 inch, and are placed in line into the nail gun's receiver. Brad nailers have the advantage of swiftly driving the fastener into wood without splitting or damaging the surface. These types of nailers are ideal for delicate wood trim such as crown molding. By following a basic process, you can use the brad nailer to install crown molding and other small trim work.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pneumatic tool oil
• Brad nails
• Brad nailer
• Air compressor
• Air hose
• Scrap piece of trim
• Crown molding trim

1. Squirt a couple of drops of the pneumatic tool oil into the air fitting of the nail gun. The internal workings of the nailer require a few drops of lubrication every time it is used to keep the mechanical hammer and air cylinder in working order.

2. Slide the spring-loaded receiver clip backward and load a length of brad nails. The length of brad nails for most guns are in the range from 3/8 inch up to 2 inches long. The length of the nails needed depends on the thickness of the molding. A good rule of thumb is that you will want at least a 1/2 inch of penetration through the backside of the molding to hold the trim piece securely to any woodwork.

3. Plug the air compressor into a wall outlet and plug the air hose into the regulator fitting. The air regulator should be set between 80 and 90 PSI.

4. Attach the air hose into the nailer air fitting. Test the hammer strike on the nailer into a piece of scarp wood before attaching any crown molding. If the nailer leaves a hammer mark on the wood, adjust the hammer spring on the face of the nailer. Generally, turning the spring adjustment clockwise will leave a heavier strike, which can leave a hammer track on the wood surface. Turning the spring adjustment counterclockwise will leave less of a track. The crown molding species of wood will determine how "hard" the hammer must strike to penetrate the surface.

5. Place the crown molding into the space you want to cover and fit the end of the hammer into a small crevice of the crown molding. Pull the trigger and set a nail. Finish nailing the trim securely by placing a brad every 16 to 18 inches along the horizontal surface into a crevice of the molding. By placing brads in the crevice of the molding will conceal the nail marks or small holes left by the tiny nails.

Tips & Warnings

• Always oil any type of pneumatic tool prior to its use. Proper lubrication will add years to any pneumatic tooling.
• Never disable the safety catch on nail guns as serious injury can occur by misfiring nails into areas they do not belong.

References

• Fundamentals of Carpentry; Walter E. Durbahn, Elmer W. Sundberg: 1968