Thread: aldi air comp and associate tools

there is an air compressor kit and air gun nail kit in this weeks Aldi catalogue. i don't know anything about these sort of tools except that they certainly seem to make framing and other renovating tasks easier and quicker. has anyone had any experience with the aldi (taurus) compressors and nail guns? the compressor is 30litre, 2Hp, 1500 w motor, max operating pressure 115 psi, 198l/min displacement while the nail gun is a 2-in-1nail and staple gun with max speed 180 nails/min, 4.5cfm and includes brad nail and staple assortment. how does all this compare with other such compressors and nail guns? is it sufficient to do the framing on our new extension? what should i be looking for in a compressor and nail gun?

It's not for framing. For example, you would use it to knock up kitchen cabinets to hold them flush before you screw them.

thanks shauck. any views on the compressor itself?

Like most of these cheap direct drive compressors, I'm tipping the quoted free air delivery figure is a little optimistic.
I've got na 8 year old 2.5hp GMC that rattled away in the shed for 7 years (including a bit of trade site work) before being replaced with a large 12cfm belt drive.
It ran a fixing gun no worries, but would run out of puff with alot of framing gun work.

These little compressors are great for staplers, fixers, air dusters and pumping up tyres, but that's their limit. Forget medium to high air volume tools.

The Aldi one looks similar to my father inlaws Bunnings 'Trade Air' one... Hopefully it's not as painfully slow to pump up to preasure.

what would be the specs I should be looking for then to get a decent framing gun and compressor to drive it? Maybe i should consider a gas driven framing gun?

If you are only looking for a nail gun then a gas gun makes sense - you won't have to drag out the compressor. hoses and the bits and pieces each time. Gas is especially convenient if you do a lot of small jobs - the gun is so easy just to "grab and go", althougb a little planning ahead to make sure the battery has charge is important. I have a gas gun and a variety of battery powered tools, which suits my needs. I 'look after' a mate's second small compressor for pumping up types etc.

But if you are likely to want many air tools, go with a good spec'd compressor at the outset. (What "good spec'd" is, I'll leave to others)

Peerless have a very useful selection tool for their products which you can go to school on even if you don't fancy invest money in decent tools Peerless Products - Select a Compressor

As for what you pick....direct drive is hopeless for building because it will not have sufficient duty cycle to be able to do framing and live a long and reliable life. Belt drive is king.

I agree with the others, direct drive is OK for nailguns providing it is not a framing gun. I have a GMC 2.5 hp direct drive and to make it good for the framing gun I had to replace the relay for one that regulates not only the max but also the minimum pressure. I got it to cycle from 100 to 120 and that is the only way it drives my Senco 90mm. I also have a Paslode that shoots 100 mm and it struggles with that one, but its good for all the others.
One word on Nail guns, you choose the nail you want to drive for the job and then the gun for that nail, not the other way around. That is why you end up with half a dozen guns and still want to buy more. I think I own at this stage...let me think...7 plus a couple of staple guns and still would like to have a few more, probably a couple of gas guns, even when I hate the gas smell of them.
Aldi usually sells reasonable good stuff. I bought a small 4wd compressor years ago and it is a real good one. They also had an automatic welding helmet that had all the bells and whistles for a quarter of the price of a mediocre one at the tool shop. A friend bought an electric winch that turned out to be good too.
Always ware googles when you use a nail gun. I saw a person loosing an eye with a small 60mm T nailgun that hit a knot and turned around on him

thanks blokes. as an occasional user, i think a gas gun is the way to go. marc, thanks for the tip about buying the gun based on the choice of nail required for the job and not the other way around. now to find out which one to look for...

Originally Posted by ajm

what would be the specs I should be looking for then to get a decent framing gun and compressor to drive it? Maybe i should consider a gas driven framing gun?

You would want free air delivery (not pump displacement) to be at least 160 litres per min. Places like Total Tools will have small belt drive ones for around $5-600.

For occasional use I'd go an air framer over a gas framer. Nails hardwood with no issues, no fuel cells or service kits, cheaper to add a fixing and coil gun to the kit, air compresser has hundreds of uses and tons of different tools. Plus a decent air nailer and compressor will give many more years of trouble free service over a gas gun.

Having said that, I'm about to shell out for a Max brand gas framer!

I love my Paslode gas guns - been using them for years - never go back to dragging air hoses and noisy compressors

I found my paslode gas gun a bit finicky to use at first but once you get used to it's "ways", it kicks. Air hoses suck.