How far can a nail gun shoot?

Do you ever wonder how far a nail gun shoot can? When you see a nail gun in use, it’s obvious to think about the shooting distance of a nail gun.

Here, I will dive deep into this and go through all aspects of a nail gun shooting distance because the answer isn’t as simple as you would expect. There are lots of things to consider.

So, let’s not waste any more time and get right into it.

How far does a nail gun shoot? 

Before I answer this, you must know that there are several types of nail guns. They all have their particular specifications, which lead to the difference in performance. Some guns are more powerful than the other ones. And some guys don’t even work if you are not pressing the gun against a hard surface.

Most of the modern nail guns come with a muzzle safety interlock system. So, if you are not pressing the gun’s muzzle hard enough on a surface, it won’t even fire. Some older models and types of nail guns can fire and do it from a distance.

If you are thinking about a high-velocity nail gun from the old days, you can get a distance of around 2.5 to 3 miles. This is a value you get provided that you can disable the safety measures on the gun.

Comparing that to a low-velocity nail gun people use nowadays, you only get a few yards of distance. They can be lethal only within a 3 to 5 feet distance which isn’t that much.

Now, the distance depends on several factors: the pressure your nail gun can have and the force created by the gun. Also, the air pressure and nail size play a role in how far the nails can go when you shoot from a nail gun.

Many articles claim the shooting range of a nail gun can go up to 500 meters with a powerful nail gun. Whether they can shoot this far is yet to be proven, but mathematically they have the capability of a 500-meter shooting range.

Typically, the shooting distance doesn’t cover up that much area. You can barely cross a few yards with a nail shot from a nail gun. You can expect a shooting distance of around 30 to 50 yards with a high-powered nail gun at best.

Let’s take a look at the different power sources and working mechanisms of nail guns. These can also affect their shooting distance.

Different power sources for nail guns 

In terms of power sources, there are three types of nail guns you will get to see. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. Here, I will go through them one by one.

• Pneumatic 

This is the powerful power source for any nail gun out there. This provides power to your nail gun through an air compressor using an air hose. You can use the nail gun as long as you have your nail gun connected to the hose and air in the compressor.

What you experience with this method is essentially a burst of air coming through the hose to provide that force a gun needs for firing. Because of that air pressure, you get a lot of power from a pneumatic power source.

While it’s great for power, it does lack convenience. You can’t move freely with the hose attached to the air compressor. Also, it can be a bit noisy and risky to use.

• Electric 

By electric here, I mostly mean the battery-powered nail guns. These are great for portability and convenience. You can move around your workplace freely without any concern for the cables or wires whatsoever. Also, they are pretty quiet in operation as they don’t have any noisy air compressor attached.

However, there are several disadvantages of using an electric nail gun. First of all, it doesn’t have the same power as a pneumatic nail gun. Also, you can use it for a limited time as long as the battery is charged, and that’s usually not that long. Overall, you can’t use them for heavy-duty nailing purposes.

• Gas-powered 

Now, this is where you get the best of both worlds. Gas-powered nail guns are cordless, so you don’t have to go through any hassle of cable or wires. At the same time, they come with decent power using flammable fuel. So, you end up getting a longer runtime than electric nail guns.

There are some drawbacks to using these nail guns. The most problematic part of this nail gun is the cost. You have to spend a lot on fuel to work all the time using this nail gun. Next, they can be a bit heavy to use, including the fuel cartridge. Also, since the gasses are flammable, it’s a little risky to use.

For professional purposes, you have to decide on one based on your needs. But if we are considering how far can a nail gun shoot, then pneumatic nail guns are the winner there. They come with the most power and air pressure you can get out of any nail gun.

As for different types of nail guns, there are plenty of them out there. So, I can’t go through them all. But for the most part, framing nail guns tend to have a lot of power and speed in them. This also leads to getting more distance in the shots fired from a framing nail gun.

Conclusion 

To sum it up, a nail gun nowadays can’t shoot very far. That’s primarily because of the safety mechanisms maintained in using the nail guns. You can hardly find a nail gun on a job site that can shoot from a reasonable distance.

But if we consider the potentials, they can travel up to 3 miles as old high-velocity guns used to do.