Face frames


trz

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i have about 10' of built-in book cases made of 3/4 maple ply.

 Now i need to face frame it and add facing strip to shelves out of solid maple.

   Normaly I would just shoot the trim on with brads but I've tried all the putties and glue and saw dust techniques but i've never been very successful at making those nail holes"disappear".

   So, looking for suggestions on either better way to attach it or hide the nail holes. 

For the shelves I'm sure i can just glue and tape clamp but, for the face frames???

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23 gauge micro pins ! The cheap guns shoot up to 1", but the better guns shoot 1 1/2 , and the best guns shoot up to 2" brads. Tiny holes that will fill with sawdust or just a speck of filler. My gun is made by GREX. The pins have no heads so shoot them at a slight angle to increase the holding power while the glue dries.

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Biscuits, dowels, dominos, pocket screws. 

Hmmm,..... no pocket holes in this project, not fond of dowels,dominoes,well lets just say "that ain't gonna happen any time soon", biscuits? Probably not!

  So that brings us to wdwerkers suggestion which means buying another tool (not a bad thing) but its one I might be able to afford!

  I'll have to look into this option!

     Thanks

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==>23 gauge micro pins ! The cheap guns shoot up to 1", but the better guns shoot 1 1/2 , and the best guns up to 2" brads

I've got the 2" Grex and/or Cadex in 23g, 21g and 18g nailers and always shoot Grex/Cadex pins - headed and headless.  I find the 23g gets hinky as the length increases and really hinky over 1 3/8".... Do you get good results with long 23g? I seem get more consistent results going 21g headless for anything over about 1 3/8". and reserve the 18g for shop fixtures and shoot headed brads...

Edited by hhh
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You do have to watch thick hard woods with the longer pins. But most hardwood trim and faceplates nail just fine into plywood cases and drywall covered framing. It does help to watch and read the grain, turning the gun either 90 degrees  or shooting with the gun parallel helps prevent nails from deflecting and coming out the side of the board. 

 I didnt know that a 21 gauge nail was an option. I knew about Cadex but haven't used one.

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