Air powered tools

[Not your average framer]

Having just bought a secondhand Bambi compressor, I am now thinking about buying one, or two, perhaps more air tools. Since these air tools are not going to be used all the time, but only when the need arises, I won't neccessarily need anything designed for continuous use and wear. So I'm looking for some informed suggestions.

My main thoughts so far are perhaps getting a brad nailer, or a narrow crown stapler, for joining stacked mouldings and fixing extended profile onto the back of frames which need some added depth. I would also like to have a range of different lengths of brads or staples for each gun. Perhaps there are other air tools, which I should be thinking about too!

BTW, I won't be wanting to use staples to secure backs into frames.

So, any advice please!
My thanks in anticipation,
Mark

[Jonny2morsos]

If you make frames for anyone who fits their own artwork e.g. photographers then a pnuematic flexipoint gun is a must in my view. The green Fletcher manual gun just does not cut it as the points tend to work loose very easily.

I bought an Omer 53 for £30 2nd hand and it has been brilliant.

CMC is a useful tool to have as well!

[Roboframer]

The Omer is brilliant, not sure what model I have but it fires flexible (black) and semi-rigid (silver) points and has not jammed once in about 8 years of constant and non - serviced use. For the thicker rigid points you'd need a separate gun, but the semi-rigids fired pneumatically do a far better job than the rigids fired manually.

A compressed air blower might be useful, especially at Christmas (all those balloons) ..... and a pneumatic underpinner

[stcstc]

I have one of the omer guns, soooo good

I also have an anti-static air gun, it runs from both air and a psu and generates ionised air. It's great for de-fluffing glass before sticking in frames as the static discharge really helps. But its not cheap, cost me best part of 1000 euros, but sooooo worth it

I also have just ordered a pneumatic stapler for doing glicee canvas stretches.

One place worth looking for quite cheap air tools is axminster. The stapler I bought was 40 quid where as buying one from a framing supplier was more like 130

[Bagpuss]

I use an Omer 4097.16 for long staples, an absolute must and a Omer 3G.16 for stapling canvases with Stainless steel staples , this has a sticker on it reminding me to turn compressor down to 4 bar, any higher and the staple drives straight through the canvas I agree about the manual Fletcher flexipoint gun, I can't get them to stay in, I think I need another air tool...

On a lighter note, my neighbour popped round a couple of weeks ago to see if I could blow up one of those rubber rings for people with Hemorrhoids, I plugged the air gun into it, wrapped a bit of pH7-70 round it and it was inflated in no time at all !

What's the strangest thing you've ever blown up with your air gun ?

[Graysalchemy]

I have an omer stapler and a tab gun. Omer are the dogs danglies will last ages. Also consider an inline lubricator to run your air tools off. However have an unlubricated line for an air blower.

Alistair

[framemaker]

I'm also looking at introducing air tools to the assembly bench in my workshop,

does anyone have a recommendation for an air gun/blower?and what set-up do people have, are the tools just run directly of the compressor?

[stcstc]

Like i said earlier i have an anti static airgun, from fraser antistatic in the uk

it is fantastic,but expensive

i have 4 lines off my bambi, with 3 regulators, so i can adjust the pressure to each bit of kit

the gunnar has its own regulator
then have one for the air gun, tab gun and the underpinner

I have a quick release on the airgun, so i can swap it with the stapler, when it arrives

the tab gun is on a fixed line with a coily line on the end

[Roboframer]

From one compressor I have the underpinner with its own regulator and the tab gun with an in-line one, the CMC has a separate compressor but both are capable of running all 3 things if one packs in.

If you know what your'e looking at there's plenty of sites where you can order all the tools, lines, regulators, joints and junctions etc. But if like me you don't know what you're looking at, the Lion tech help desk is great, they also sell a lot of joints and air lines etc that are not in the catalogue BTW.

[iantheframer]

I find this very useful for pinning the tops of deep mouldings, leaves a tiny hole the size of a pin

http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ax ... prod30590/