Hilti and Ramset tools have been a great asset to many trades including the data comm field for hanging cable hooks. Overhead fastenings can be a challenge in some concrete. If you’re having trouble with low success rates when shooting ceiling clips into the concrete deck above, the problem many times can be traced back to the quality of your pin. Most tool supply houses and even the big box stores offer pins and loads for Ramset and Hilti tools. The problem is, many are stocking the cheapest pins available to maximize sales and profit. The result is that when you run into brittle concrete or pre cast decks, you can have a lot of blow outs. If you are shooting up a ceiling clip with pre attached, every failed fastening can start to add up. If you are having more blow outs than you like, or you are getting a lot of fish hooked pins, consider a ballistic point pin like the Ramset SPC78 and Ramset SPC114 series of ceiling clips. These clips are assembled using a polished point pin rather than a standard “pinched” point. See the pictures, there is a difference. Add to that the thicker shank on these ceiling clips and you will see fewer blow outs and less fish hooking of your pins. The SPC114 pin has an even thicker shank than the SPC78 and while you may not be able to sink it all the way, get it in 3/4″ and you will have a solid support for your light fixtures and cable hooks. For even better success, use a Ramset or Hilti tool made just for overhead work like the Ramset Viper 4.