I was first introduced to this company at a lumber yard probably 7 years back and I was informed they had been purchased by a Japanese company and they were striving to be the pneumatic gun leaders. I'm well aware that Japan is putting out some of the best tools in the world through makita so this was enticing. The smart point tips on the bostich/dewalt guns are amazing but after the 16g straight bostitch refused to sink a nail into bread since day one I finally had an excuse to hop brands, regardless of the obsolete press in safety tip. I don't have high expectations and this gun sinks nails perfectly fine but with that said, it definitely requires effort. Anyone who has shot an old school hitachi, senco, or bostitch will know what I mean when I say it's effortless. No recoil, nothing bounces back to the web of your hand, the nails in and that's it. This gun sends the nails but it seems worked, like it's trying too hard. Another disappointment is that it's made in Taiwan. It's not a huge deal but I was hoping for Japan as my Hitachi's that are made in Japan are 20 years old. When this gun comes out with a smart point tip and less recoil I'll buy it 5x over and give it 10 stars. Until then, they are absolutely not the leaders of pneumatic tools.

I returned an Hitachi 16 gauge finish nailer because it wouldn't set the head of a 2" pin even in 2" red pine, which is very soft (about halfway between white pine and pudding). My Hitachi 15 ga finish nailer works well, so I was surprised. I just received the Max 16 ga nailer and tried it on pine to see if was more powerful, as advertised. I was not familiar with the Max brand. At first it didn't set the 2" nails either. But the compressor was sitting at a little under 100 psi.I raised the pressure to 120 psi (the maximum for this nailer). Then it set the nails below the surface enough to fill the hole (which requires at least 1/16" to keep the wood filler from popping out later). I then tried it on hickory, again shooting through the edge of the board to get the full 2" of solid wood. If I held the gun securely, it set the nails below the surface just as it did on the pine. The resulting hole in the work was not over sized, as it is with some nailers. This is all I need to know, even though the gun should be able also to drive 2-1/2" nails. I think it will do that, but I didn't have any on hand to be sure. I can't see any need to use 2-1/2" nails in such hard woods. If I'm bridging a gap, as in probing for a top plate when running crown molding or shooting through drywall for door and window casing, then I'll be shooting into pine on the back side of the trim so wouldn't expect any problem from 2-1/2" nails.I am a cabinetmaker and often build with hardwoods. So testing finish nailers on softwoods is not sufficient. This is my first 16 ga finish nailer and I find that it is crucial to hold the nailer to the wood surface with some force because, if the driving force is allowed to push the gun away from the surface, the nail head will not be set below the surface. The mass of the tool by itself doesn't have sufficient momentum to prevent the recoil. If you are used to 18 ga finish nailers, this might catch you off guard.At first, the gun did not fire when I pressed the trigger. Three drops of oil in the airway solved that problem. The gun is easy to use. The depth adjustment works a lot easier than other guns I've tried. Switching between bump fire and single fire modes is easy to do on the Max gun but would be difficult or impossible to do by accident. You have to push the pointer up out of its recess in the trigger by pressing a button on the opposite side of the trigger, and rotate the arrow to the other mode, releasing the button so the pointer settles into the other recess.In my work, reliable nail guns are an absolute necessity. Any double fires mar the surface of expensive work-pieces. And going back to set proud or flush nails with a nail set is not only time consuming but also difficult to do since power-driven nails have a blunt point and are fairly soft steel. I will follow up if this gun gives me any such trouble or wears out too soon. The hickory test is the most severe use I can imagine for this gun.Another tip, by the way-- if the gun is set on bump fire mode, a little bounce will likely cause it to double fire, making a nasty ragged hole in your work and leaving a bent nail to pull. So be sure to set the gun to single fire when doubles would be ruinous. My Hitachi 15 ga finish nailer, which is very good, will also double fire if set to bump mode unless it is held against the wood forcefully. Bump fire is fine when you aren't placing the nails with great precision and want to make time. The bump fire action in that case doesn't cause double fires because you are immediately pulling away from the work, bouncing across the surface. I use bump fire more with my large nail gun or my stapler.This gun suits me well so far. I hope it lasts as a tool should. ( I have nailers that are about 20 years old.)

Great gun! Smooth and easy to use! 👍🏼

I got this gun about a year a go now I did buy it from a local supplier not from amazon but thought it was worth a review. I bought this gun to replace my paslode when i started to trim a 12,000sq foot home. Between that job and following jobs in the past year I've shoot roughly 100,000 nails in this gun. After that many nails yes i did have a few jams in the gun but nothing that isn't expected. But un jamming of this gun is very simple. this was my first MAX finish gun that I've owned but have had MAX roofing guns and siding guns for many years with out having to go in for service for things other than simple seal replacements after years of use. Yes a MAX nail gun is more expensive than most of the other brands. but to me the expense is worth the price. one trip in the the repair shop with a lesser priced nail gun would easily make up the difference in the price between guns. Like i said i bought my nail gun from a local supplier that I put a lot of trust into them, and this is the nail gun the recommend if your not on a budget. Since buying this gun a year ago i have continued to replace all my other finish guns to MAX. At this point I have 2 16ga guns, 2 15ga 3 18ga and 1 23 ga 4 roofing nailers 2 hardie guns 2 stick framers 3coil framers/sheathing nailers... Yes i like MAX nail guns that much as well do my guys. In my opinion it is worth paying the extra price for a tool that won't break down on you during the day. Btw the paslodes that i still run a always in the shop.

Only gave it 4 stars because I haven't put a significant amount of nails through it to judge the longevity. So far it has performed flawlessly with no jams and I have been pleased with the more than ample driving power. It's relatively lightweight and very well balanced. I also have a Bostich 16 ga. nailer and one of the things I like about it is the different shaped rubber nose pieces that allow for nailing into different shaped trim pieces. For a few pennies more, and considering Max's generally higher price, Max could have done the same or at lease provided an extra one. Other than that, very satisfied with the Max.

over the years i have used many different brands of nailers, and i must say this is one is far and away the very best i have ever used.its not only much lighter, but also the quietest. after 3 weeks of heave use it has not jambed once, just make sure to oil once a day and your good to go!!