Duo fast tacker problem

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I had a set of expensive ones. Daughter's ex stole them. Told him if I ever saw him again, I would shoot him.
These were 74 bucks or something like that. The quality actually looks pretty good...... on the second set.

My entire truck weighs less than 4,000 lb but I like the height of these better than the wimpy looking 1 1/2 ton jack's that I bought for $15 from Habitat. They look almost brand new and I wouldn't mind using them for the back of my truck but I wanted something better to put under the frame when lifting the front.
 
Don,

That schematic is not correct for the current version of the tacker. Several of the trigger assembly parts are not correct on that schematic. Even if you have that version of the tool you'll have to convert parts. I've attached the current schematic.

Most likely you lost either the trigger actuating spring or the trigger actuator button itself when the parts fell out.

So between the plastic orange trigger (GO-215-9) and the actual internal trigger switch (GO-115-B1)inside the tool, there is an outer spring for tension (GO-115-8), a very tiny inner spring (GO-115-6A) sits inside of that spring, and goes up into the tool to act as a cushion between the internal switch and the trigger actuator button (GO-115-10). The trigger actuator button looks like a little miniature mushroom made out of metal. The stem of that "mushroom" goes up inside the outer spring and rests against the tiny inner spring and when the trigger is pulled it pushes up and compresses the inner spring enough to push the internal switch trigger causing the tool to fire.

I'm betting you lost that inner spring (GO-115-6A) when things let go. It's a common problem. The actuator button stem isn't long enough to compress the inner switch trigger without that spring being in place, that's why it isn't firing.

I wish you were closer. I'd could fix it for you in about 2 minutes. But hope this helps. I've fixed a whole lot of these over the years. ;)

FYI, I have parts. We're a distributor for Duofast.
Hi Chuck,
I am new to the forum and looking assistance with my Duo-Fast EIC 3118 stapler. I used it for 6 years doing upholstery and it was a power horse! I pulled it out recently to staple some lightweight fabric to a pine stretcher frame and after a bit it jammed / quit stapling. I thought maybe it was a switch issue like Don had, but instead I found that the front nose casting is broken at one of the two bolt holes. I think the nose is loose and allows the drive blade to move and get caught inside the stapler. My problem is I would consider buying a new nose kit (part #1015118 or XK-1166) but I can't find it in stock anywhere. Do you know where I might be able to find that replacement part? I would hate to have to replace the stapler for want of a single part!. Thanks much! Ginny
 
Hi Chuck,
I am new to the forum and looking assistance with my Duo-Fast EIC 3118 stapler. I used it for 6 years doing upholstery and it was a power horse! I pulled it out recently to staple some lightweight fabric to a pine stretcher frame and after a bit it jammed / quit stapling. I thought maybe it was a switch issue like Don had, but instead I found that the front nose casting is broken at one of the two bolt holes. I think the nose is loose and allows the drive blade to move and get caught inside the stapler. My problem is I would consider buying a new nose kit (part #1015118 or XK-1166) but I can't find it in stock anywhere. Do you know where I might be able to find that replacement part? I would hate to have to replace the stapler for want of a single part!. Thanks much! Ginny
Unfortunately, they stopped making that tool about 3 years ago. Duofast sold the "flooring" tools to a company called Southern Carlson. The only electric stapler they are continuing to manufacture is the ENC 5418 narrow crown stapler that is primarily used by carpet installers. The EWC (wide crown) and EIC (Intermediate crown) variations for upholstery were discontinued. Any parts that are available would be the "last of their kind". There are a few parts that cross over between the ENC and the others but not the main head casting. The EWC and EIC used a different coil pack (winding inside the casting that moves the driver blade when the trigger is pulled) and the EWC / EIC was machined to a different size as a result. Southern Carlson is still selling the staples, but the tools are long since out of stock. You might be able to possibly find a non-working "donor" model on somewhere like ebay and steal the casting from it.

Sorry, wish I had a better answer. We never really did much with the EWC or EIC. I'd repair one occasionally, but that was about the extent of it. Being a flooring distributor, we were more in tune with the ENC 5418. In all honesty, I don't know if there is another manufacturer filling in the void left behind duofast's exit for upholstery work or not. A few of the customers we dealt with for those were folks that do pool tables (applying the felt). You might make a few calls and see if they would share what they have gone to or if they might have a bone pile with a used casting you could buy for cheap. There also may be a pneumatic version still available through another tool manufacturer as well. Duofast made pneumatic versions of these staplers for larger upholstering operations. But there again, they discontinued many of their fine wire pneumatics even before selling off the flooring stuff, so I don't think they still offer anything. There used to be a Swedish (I think) company called Joseph Killberg who made some fine wire staplers, primarily pneumatic but I don't know if they are still around or not.

All the best!
 
Unfortunately, they stopped making that tool about 3 years ago. Duofast sold the "flooring" tools to a company called Southern Carlson. The only electric stapler they are continuing to manufacture is the ENC 5418 narrow crown stapler that is primarily used by carpet installers. The EWC (wide crown) and EIC (Intermediate crown) variations for upholstery were discontinued. Any parts that are available would be the "last of their kind". There are a few parts that cross over between the ENC and the others but not the main head casting. The EWC and EIC used a different coil pack (winding inside the casting that moves the driver blade when the trigger is pulled) and the EWC / EIC was machined to a different size as a result. Southern Carlson is still selling the staples, but the tools are long since out of stock. You might be able to possibly find a non-working "donor" model on somewhere like ebay and steal the casting from it.

Sorry, wish I had a better answer. We never really did much with the EWC or EIC. I'd repair one occasionally, but that was about the extent of it. Being a flooring distributor, we were more in tune with the ENC 5418. In all honesty, I don't know if there is another manufacturer filling in the void left behind duofast's exit for upholstery work or not. A few of the customers we dealt with for those were folks that do pool tables (applying the felt). You might make a few calls and see if they would share what they have gone to or if they might have a bone pile with a used casting you could buy for cheap. There also may be a pneumatic version still available through another tool manufacturer as well. Duofast made pneumatic versions of these staplers for larger upholstering operations. But there again, they discontinued many of their fine wire pneumatics even before selling off the flooring stuff, so I don't think they still offer anything. There used to be a Swedish (I think) company called Joseph Killberg who made some fine wire staplers, primarily pneumatic but I don't know if they are still around or not.

All the best!
Thanks Chuck - much appreciated! If the staples are going by as well, I think it's time to get a new stapler and stop trying to fix the old!
 
Thanks Chuck - much appreciated! If the staples are going by as well, I think it's time to get a new stapler and stop trying to fix the old!
Your very welcome for the information.

Did some google searches on wide crown upholstering staplers and for the most part it looks like the majority have gone to pneumatic. However, it looks like Makita offers an 18v electric that shoots the T-50 series staple. That might be the best possible replacement for an electric.

Here's a link to the tool:

https://www.makitatools.com/products/details/XTS01Z
 
I've seen some eic 3118 staplers looking on a Google search and some still say in stock.
Is #31 a 22 gauge?
A bit spendy. 😱
Some say eic 3118A. What's the A mean.
 
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I've seen some eic 3118 staplers looking on a Google search and some still say in stock.
Is #31 a 22 gauge?
A bit spendy. 😱
Some say eic 3118A. What's the A mean.
Yes, 22 gauge. The A was the revision to the 3118 that corrected the defective housing the ginnyross57 had. The original castings had an "ear" on either side of the bottom of the casting where the nose attached to the housing on either side. This made the base of the casting very thin. Over time the bottom of the housing would crack at this weak point. The A modified this and made the casting much thicker at the bottom.

Yeah, they were always a bit higher than the carpet tackers. Mainly due to a much smaller audience and lower sales, plus the additional costs of a different driver blade, nosing, and coil pack and a bit of additional machining to accommodate the different coil.

I had both a EIC and an EWC in stock up until fairly recently. I think they sat in inventory for about 4 years. They just don't move real fast. So many of the upholstering folks have moved to pneumatic as they just last longer. Smaller workrooms and folks that need portability, like pool table folks were the main users of the electrics.
 

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