RAPID EN50 PRO
Around here in Sussex is a tradesman who specializes in constructing partition walls and on his van he advertises himself as The Nailer Man – with a graphic of a corded nailer. It seems to me that powered nailers are the way to go, especially since more and more research reveals that hammering too many nails by hand can lead to all sorts of long-term strain injuries.
Any new products to the nailer market must be welcomed, and hence we are delighted to try out the RAPID EN50 PRO.
The RAPID EN50 PRO is a newly designed product made to meet the demands of the ever-increasing number of professional nailers who want the power to shoot longer nails, while providing a safe and flexible solution. Would the RAPID EN50 Pro meet all these criteria? Let’s take a closer look. Safety these
days is not simply the provision of a lock switch or some goggles. To be effective it has to be designed into the very handling of a machine so that users adopt safe using techniques almost
subconsciously. The RAPID
EN50 PRO is very good in this respect. Primarily of course, is the contact safety mechanism on the nose of the nailer. In order to fire the nail, the nailer has to be pressed positively into the work pieces
before the trigger will operate. I found that I really had to make a conscious choice where I was to place the nails and then press down for me to be able to operate the trigger. It simply won’t go off at “half cock”. Another
important aspect of safe use, in my view, is how easy
it is to clear any jammed nails. All nailers suffer with jammed brads, better quality ones tend to have fewer jams, but often it is down to the quality of the brads you use. But clearing jams is potentially difficult and dangerous, sometimes involving pointed instruments! If you can avoid these, safety is enhanced. The RAPID EN50 PRO is equipped with a quick release nozzle cover; making it easy and fast to clear out jammed. Simply release the toggle on the nose of the nailer and the end of the magazine is revealed. This gives you access to the magazine and the driver allowing easy removal for any jammed brads.
One of my pet hates is brad magazines that are difficult to load. In my experience of using nailers, I am not always at a bench where loading a strip of brads can be easily achieved. Often I am up a ladder, or safely balanced on a roof, where getting brads out of my pocket and loading the magazine is not always as easy as by a bench. The RAPID EN50 PRO has a hardwearing all metal magazine and a click and slide mechanism. It is easy to open and lay a strip of brads in the correct position. The nailer will also lie flat on its side if necessary, so loading up a strip of brads with “one and a half hands” is also possible.
16 ToolBUSINESS+HIRE
Nailing It Independent Review by Peter Brett
I liked the fact that the RAPID EN50 has a five metre long power cord. This definitely signals that it is not only to be used in a workshop, but can and will be used on site by shop fitters, second fix carpenters etc who will need the extra range that a longer cord will give. The cord itself has a relatively hard but flexible outer covering to protect the current carrying wires inside. Right at the back of the RAPID EN50 are two key features – a small rocker type on/off switch and the round power adjuster switch. For safety the on/off switch should be easy to access so that you get into the habit of switching the machine off when loading brads or putting it down for short periods of rest. Equally, the switch should not be able to be bumped so that it can accidentally be switched on or off – for example when clearing a jam. (Yes I know you should have unplugged – but do you always do that?)
Situated just under the cord entry to the body, the switch is easily accessible by hand, but not so easy to accidentally bump. The adjustable power switch has six click stopped positions to take into account that the RAPID EN50 will shoot brads from 15mm to 50mm long. If it didn’t, short brads would be driven too deep and longer ones not deep enough, so it is a very
important, but very effective control. My experience of it was that a little bit of trial and error was needed to get the perfect result for the size of brad you were using and the hardness of the material the brad was being driven into. A sensitive understanding of the pressure you put on the nailer
when firing also helped a lot. But that is true of all nailers and it is up to the user to exercise some skill and judgment. I am not quite sure how it works, but RAPID have included a patented
“Electric Tank”, a sort of reservoir of spare electric power, that gives up to 25% shooting force behind the nailer. The designers have coupled this with a recoilless action that makes the nailer quite easy to use, although you still have to apply pressure to the point of the nail entry for effective use.
The RAPID EN50 has a modern look with quite a high magnetic housing (you need to accommodate the 50mm long brads) that is rubberized for easy handling. The large trigger area and above the loop handle is similarly rubberized. Around the part where the brad impacts most is made of cast alloy so the nailer should withstand professional or continuous use, and at a capacity of 30 brads per minute, it clearly is professional. Performance wise I could find no fault with the RAPID EN50. It did what it was supposed to do with ease. Adjustments were easy and quick to carry out and the overall handling of the nailer made it feel safe and competent. The weight is
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