Everwin Joist Hanger Nailer

The light and compact Everwin Joist Hanger Nailer fits in tighter spaces than its competitors and improves upon manual metal framing hardware installation by a long shot. We’re using it to construct a porch over a home’s front door by tying into the existing roof – let’s show you how it works.

Pros

Notably light at 4.4 pounds
Compact design fits between 12-inch on-center joists
Anti-nail back up pawl and sequential trigger lock for safety
Comfortable grip and easy maneuverability

Cons

No significant downsides

Recommendation

The Everwin Joist Hanger Nailer is another impressive offering from a company that keeps pushing the lower bounds of nailer size and weight. The tool proved comfortable, reliable, and efficient throughout the review. It let us easily hit the target holes of metal framing hardware, getting on with the job quickly. The anti-nail back up pawl, trigger lockout, and dry-fire lockout are excellent touches that round out a nailer we highly recommend.

Performance

Ties That Bind

You already know it’s not easy for a nailer to differentiate itself. Is it relatively light and jam-free? Is the firing pin durable? Then we can work with it.

Fortunately, the Everwin Joist Hanger Nailer gives us noteworthy features to talk about just like the company’s recent coil framer did. First, the tool’s purpose requires a somewhat unusual nailer design. Second, Everwin has again made a remarkably compact and light nailer without compromising power.

A joist hanger nailer is particularly useful to us since we do our work in Hurricane Alley. It’s handy for all sorts of metal framing hardware—joist hangers, metal strapping, rafter tie connectors, foundation caps. This nailer works well for all these applications.

The tip of the nail protrudes enough to make it easy to position it in the hole. Additionally, the patented safety nose only allows the nailer to fire when the nail tip is depressed. Contrast this to the Paslode positive placement nailer or the DeWalt cordless strap nailer—both of which use a dedicated mechanism to find the hole.

Using the Everwin Positive Placement Nailer

This Everwin positive placement nailer got a workout strapping 2×4 supports to 2×6 framing for a small porch overhang. We enhanced an entranceway to provide some cover for a front door. Aside from strapping the lumber together, we also strapped the new roof joists directly to the home’s existing supporting structure per code. The Everwin joist hanger nailer made the process go very quickly.

We particularly liked the Everwin joist hanger nailer’s Anti Nail Back Up Pawl which dampens the tool’s recoil. The nose of regular nailers rests on the material. However, since a joist hanger nailer rests on the nail’s tip, the nose travels toward the material during firing and wants to bounce back up after the drive. The pawl curtails that bounce a bit.

At just 4.4 pounds and 10.8 inches tall, this nailer can easily out-maneuver its peers. And since nailing metal framing hardware requires firing from tight spaces and awkward angles, this nailer feels really nimble. Other features we appreciate include a low nail lockout, sequential trigger lock, and rotating exhaust. It also has a nice, comfortable grip.

Price

Here’s a look at where the Everwin’s price falls among its competitors.

Bostitch MCN-150: $188.50
Metabo HPT NR38AK: $201.80
Everwin Joist Hanger Nailer MCN40: $249
Senco 6K0001N: $262

The Bottom Line

We know a lot of framers will simply use the “squint” method and fire nails into straps using a framer. The Everwin joist hanger nailer provides a better and safer way to get the job done.

Notably, the Everwin nailer’s lightweight and compact form make it an excellent tool for metal framing hardware installation. We didn’t experience any jams and appreciate the safety nose, kickback pawl, low nail lockout, and other premium features. You’ll notice its nimble performance from the first nail—and your work will benefit!