Am I a genius or am I reinventing the wheel?

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I drill three 1-inch holes in the top plate. One to shine a light in, one to look in, and one for a fish stick or even just the wire. Then I place a light in front of the box to shine into it

A lot of times I can just push the wire down the wall and right into the box without any fish stick and with no help
 
Ravenvalor said:
This sounds like a great idea. If I can find a way to drill a 2" hole quickly and without damaging my drill bit on a nail the benefit would be immense because like you said I could literally place a fish tape directly through the ko from the attic.

Normally I drill a 1/2 to 1" hole and have someone at the box grab the fishtape or weighted string from the gap in-between the box and the sheetrock.
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Have you tried the rackateers wooden ball drill centering device?
 
I have really bad luck with those long flex bits. Either I can't get them to go through the top plate or I end up drilling though the wall.
 
Coppersmith said:
I have really bad luck with those long flex bits. Either I can't get them to go through the top plate or I end up drilling though the wall.
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Or you want to drill through bottom plate in an old plaster wall and there is an inch or better layer of plaster laying on the bottom.
 
kwired said:
Just avoid the carlon ones :)

If you do need to install a Carlon old work box, lubricate the clamp screws somehow before installing it will make life much easier.
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Thanks for tip!

What I been doing is running clamp screw all the way tight, and then backing it out, before installation. I think I like your trick better

edit: as Larry Fine said
 
readydave8 said:
Thanks for tip!

What I been doing is running clamp screw all the way tight, and then backing it out, before installation. I think I like your trick better

edit: as Larry Fine said
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I wanted some round boxes one time, usually get the fiberglass ones, but supply house was out of stock and gave me some Cantex ones that look almost identical to the Carlon ones. They worked great. Next time I decided to get those again because I liked them, all they had was Carlons. First screw I tried to tighten got really hard to turn before even any clamping pressure on it. That when I decided to try something different, had a small tube of dielectric grease and put a little bit on each screw before installing and it made a huge difference.
 
4x4dually said:
I must live in a cave. I've never seen these. These are sweet. Screws those dang nails...no pun intended. LOL

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They're ok in some instances, but not near efficient enough. Sometimes the box wants to slide around a bit, making it hard to keep the height exact. That matters for me in kitchens, for sure.

Plus, they're 3 times the cost of a fiberglass nail-on box and 8 times the cost of a plastic nail-on.
 
James L said:
They're ok in some instances, but not near efficient enough. Sometimes the box wants to slide around a bit, making it hard to keep the height exact. That matters for me in kitchens, for sure.

Plus, they're 3 times the cost of a fiberglass nail-on box and 8 times the cost of a plastic nail-on.
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It's a shame they aren't cost effective. I'd make a jig out of wood to slap on a stud and hold them for 1/2 rock and hit the two screws with a gun and be done. They look super slick but the screws being on an angle would make sticking them hard. I'd rather there be two small holes on the opposite side for a long screw gun bit to go all the way through and the screws be straight into the stud. They could be removed with a 90 deg driver if necessary down the road. Great concept...just not fully executed.
 
4x4dually said:
It's a shame they aren't cost effective. I'd make a jig out of wood to slap on a stud and hold them for 1/2 rock and hit the two screws with a gun and be done. They look super slick but the screws being on an angle would make sticking them hard. I'd rather there be two small holes on the opposite side for a long screw gun bit to go all the way through and the screws be straight into the stud. They could be removed with a 90 deg driver if necessary down the road. Great concept...just not fully executed.
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I might have mentioned this before, but IMO the best ones are the allied "slider" boxes. The screws are still at an angle but there is a plate with slots so you can adjust/fine tune the depth easily. That said, I don't usually use "smart boxes" for new construction, but they are nice where you have a tight space.
 
4x4dually said:
It's a shame they aren't cost effective. I'd make a jig out of wood to slap on a stud and hold them for 1/2 rock and hit the two screws with a gun and be done. They look super slick but the screws being on an angle would make sticking them hard. I'd rather there be two small holes on the opposite side for a long screw gun bit to go all the way through and the screws be straight into the stud. They could be removed with a 90 deg driver if necessary down the road. Great concept...just not fully executed.
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The do work well. The angled screw is set into an adjustable cleat (? not sure what to call it). And the holes in the box itself are slotted. This makes it so depth can be adjusted.

I particularly like the horizontally oriented version. I just wish the all installed a little faster
 
electrofelon said:
I might have mentioned this before, but IMO the best ones are the allied "slider" boxes. The screws are still at an angle but there is a plate with slots so you can adjust/fine tune the depth easily. That said, I don't usually use "smart boxes" for new construction, but they are nice where you have a tight space.
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I thought all of them slide 😯

I looked again and see the Arlington doesn't. That makes it a no-go for me
 
James L said:
I thought all of them slide 😯

I looked again and see the Arlington doesn't. That makes it a no-go for me
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Well the idea is you hold it at the right depth before you drive the screws, but that don't mean it always works real well. Get an old hard stud or even knot in wood at the wrong spot where the screws don't want to start very easily and you can have a hard time getting it exactly where you want it
 
I use the F101 boxes for exterior receptacles.

Sheathing and siding are already on when rough in is ready, and it’s impossible to nail on a box against the sheathing.

Besides, you’d never get it out far enough. 👍

And here’s the jig for setting boxes. The tabs on the side of a nail on always set the box too deep, so I built this. And the leg is 12 1/2” above the sub floor too. 👍

6F86E960-4103-40E5-B8D1-AAE67879FFC4.jpeg
 
Seven-Delta-FortyOne said:
I use the F101 boxes for exterior receptacles.

Sheathing and siding are already on when rough in is ready, and it’s impossible to nail on a box against the sheathing.

Besides, you’d never get it out far enough. 👍

And here’s the jig for setting boxes. The tabs on the side of a nail on always set the box too deep, so I built this. And the leg is 12 1/2” above the sub floor too. 👍

View attachment 2559267
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I have similar jig, but without anything on side the nails are on, that gets in the way for driving the nails. and yes made out of 1/2 inch material for setting proper depth.
 
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