“Senco makes cordless tools?!” That was my response when JLC asked me to review the Senco F-35XP, the latest battery-operated framing nailer to hit the market. I was interested in trying it out; my company does a lot of remodeling work, and we rarely sub anything out, which means we might be rewiring or tiling on one job, then framing an entire garage or outdoor deck the next. Especially on the smaller jobs, setting up a compressor for one hour for a pneumatic framing nailer isn’t efficient, so we were eager to see how this battery-powered alternative would compare. I provide a monthly tool allowance to my employees, which means they own a lot of quality tools, so I put this nailer in their hands as well to get their opinions.
Overall, we found the F-35XP to be a powerful nailer capable of sinking 34-degree paper-taped nails into anything we used. Unlike the flywheel-style drive mechanism found in many other battery-powered nailers, Senco employs a brushless motor to set the piston within a pressurized cylinder filled with nitrogen (Senco calls it “Fusion air-power technology”). Pulling the trigger releases the piston, which drives the nail. This results in no ramp-up time and the power to shoot into engineered lumber with ease.
While we haven’t had this nailer long enough to speak to the longevity of the company’s battery-operated lineup, this nailer feels well put together, without any cheap plastic parts that might break off. We worked it hard, nailing into both dimensional and engineered lumber, and it never jammed or overheated. As fast as we were able to bump the tool along, it always kept up.
Comparable in size to other cordless nailers, Senco’s 18-volt F-35XP has a 60-nail magazine that accommodates nails up to 3 1/2 inches long and 0.148 inch in diameter. The kit includes two 3.0-Ah batteries, a 5-amp quick charger, and a carrying bag.
The nailer has a handy, bright-green indicator light that informs you if the tool is on and shows you what mode it is in. Another nice feature is the easy, no-tool depth adjustment.
At 11.37 pounds with a battery, this nailer is hefty, though comparable to other battery-operated framing nailers. One of my employees owns a Milwaukee M18 Fuel framing gun, which is similar in size and power and weighs in at 11.3 pounds, while another crew member owns a gas-powered Paslode, which weighs less than 8 pounds (without the fuel). Because of that weight difference, I don’t see this—or any battery-operated framing nailer—replacing a pneumatic on a full-fledged framing job yet.
Initially I thought to myself, why does this nailer come with a bag and not a hard case? But with the way we use this tool, performing many small tasks in different hands and on different sites, the additional bag space was convenient, allowing us to have a handful of sheathing and framing nails at the ready, along with the nailer. The F-35XP runs on an 18-volt battery, and the kit comes with a charger. The weight and $550 price tag may scare off those who are on another battery platform and are shopping bare tool only. But if you are thinking about going mobile with your next framing nailer, you should give the F-35XP a look. The quality, power, and features are there. senco.com
Photos by Tony Blue.