Air Tools and Accessories

An air tool is only as good as the air that reaches it. The nailer or stapler gets the attention, but the hose, the couplers and the oil decide whether it fires clean all day or stumbles. WBC’s air line covers the whole chain: Senco and Grip-Rite fastening tools, Flexeel hose, couplers and plugs, air-tool oil including winter grade, a Tru-Flate tire chuck, and hangers that keep a nailer within reach.

Pick the fastening tool for the joint

Each air nailer and stapler is built for one kind of fastening. WBC carries:

Tool	Built for
Senco Joist Pro 250	Nailing joist hangers, straps and other metal connectors
Senco SN71P1 15-degree coil siding nailer	Siding, with 2-1/2-inch coil nails
Senco 16-gauge pneumatic stapler	Driving 16-gauge staples
Senco SKS XP-L finish stapler	Finish and trim work
Grip-Rite GRTMP16 mini palm nailer	Driving nails where a full-size nailer won’t fit

A metal-connector nailer like the Joist Pro has an exposed tip that puts each nail right in the hanger’s hole, which a framing nailer can’t do. A palm nailer fits in your hand and drives nails in tight spots between joists.

Hose: size it to the tool, and buy for the cold

Hose diameter is about how much air the tool needs. A 1/4-inch hose suits nailers, staplers, blow guns and spray guns. A 3/8-inch hose suits air-hungry tools like impact wrenches and grinders. WBC carries Flexeel in 1/4-inch by 25, 50 and 100 feet, and 3/8-inch by 50 feet. Use the shortest hose that reaches; a long, small hose starves a tool.

Flexeel stays flexible down to −40°F, and that’s the reason to buy it in Montana. A cheap hose turns stiff as a garden hose frozen in January, and fighting it across a cold job site is half the day. If a hose end gets cut or kinked, a repair fitting can put a new end on it; WBC carries a Flexzilla 1/4-inch repair fitting. Bring the hose along, because a repair fitting has to match that hose’s construction and size.

Couplers and plugs: pick one style and stick to it

Quick-connect couplers let you swap tools without unthreading anything: a female sleeve coupler on the hose end, a male plug on each tool. Push the plug in, the sleeve snaps back and locks it. The catch is that coupler styles don’t mix. WBC’s I/M (industrial) couplers and plugs come in 1/4- and 3/8-inch, and the 13201 set gives you a 1/4-inch female coupler and male plug together. Put the same style on every hose and tool you own and they’ll all connect. Wrap the threads with thread tape when you install them.

Air-tool oil, and winter oil

Oil the tools that call for it, on the schedule and in the amount the manual gives. It keeps the internal parts from wearing and seals the moving parts against air leaks. Use real pneumatic tool oil (WBC sells it in 4- and 16-ounce bottles), not general-purpose oil.

Cold is a different problem. Below freezing, ordinary oil thickens and any water in the air can freeze in the tool’s valves and exhaust. Winter-grade pneumatic lubricant is made for that; glycol-based versions also soak up moisture and lower its freezing point. WBC carries winter grade in 4- and 20-ounce sizes. Regular air-tool oil isn’t antifreeze, and a hose that stays flexible doesn’t stop the water inside from freezing. Drain the compressor tank after every use. In an unheated Montana garage or on a fall framing job, that’s what keeps a nailer firing at 7 a.m.

Tire chuck and nail-gun hangers

The Tru-Flate ball-foot air chuck (1/4-inch FPT, 150 PSI) fills tires off the same hose.

A nailer hanging from your belt or a rafter beats one set down in the sawdust. WBC’s hangers fit specific tools: the hanger for the Metabo HPT NR83A2 framing nailer, the hanger for the NV83A2 and NVH65AH coil nailers, and an I-joist nail-gun hanger for working on I-joists.

The Pick

Match the nailer to the joint: the Senco Joist Pro for metal connectors, the SN71P1 for siding, the palm nailer for tight spots. Run 1/4-inch Flexeel for nailers and staplers, 3/8-inch for heavier tools, and standardize on I/M couplers and plugs. Keep air-tool oil in the box year-round and switch to winter grade when it freezes. Add the hanger that fits your nailer.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size air hose do I need?

1/4-inch inside diameter handles nailers, staplers, blow guns and spray guns. Step up to 3/8-inch for impact wrenches, grinders and other tools that use a lot of air, and keep the hose as short as the job allows.

Are all air couplers the same?

No. Coupler and plug styles don’t mix, even when the threads match. Pick one style, such as I/M (industrial), and put it on every hose and tool so everything connects.

What oil should I use in air tools in winter?

A winter-grade pneumatic tool lubricant. Ordinary air-tool oil thickens in the cold and doesn’t protect against frozen moisture. Glycol-based winter lubricants absorb water and lower its freezing point. Drain the compressor tank after each use too.

Why use a metal-connector nailer for joist hangers?

Its exposed tip lets you put each nail exactly in the hanger’s holes, which a framing nailer’s nose can’t do. The Senco Joist Pro 250 is built for joist hangers, straps and other metal framing connectors.