I am thinking of getting in doing some sack repairs on my pens. Is a heat gun needed or will a hair dryer suffice? If a heat gun is needed what type, what maximum setting should be used?
Heat gun
Started by Bradley A, Nov 14 2011 08:39 PM
1 reply to this topic
#2
Ron Z
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Posted 14 November 2011 - 10:02 PM
You do need a source of dry heat. I don't even try to open most pens without one.
A hair dryer will work, and I used one for quite a while. But my preference, and the preference of a lot of repair guys is to use a heat gun, and not one of the ones from a hardware store, or one of the fancy temperature controlled ones. The reason is that it produces more heat, and heat that is more focused, than a hair dryer.
The other advantage is that I can hang the thing off the edge of a table (I made a clamp for shows) or on the front of a drawer when I flip the stand over. This aims the opening straight up and at a comfortable level for working. I've used one for about 6 years now, long enough to wear one out completely. I never use the $150 temperature controlled Steinel heat gun.
Your craft stores like Michaels, A.C. Moore, and Hobby Lobby sell an embossing gun. This has an opening about 1/2" in diameter, which means that it's quite focused and therefore limits the exposure to a smaller area. I work with the pen about 3-4 inches away from the opening depending on what I'm doing. Typical price is in the $20-$25 range, but they often have 50% off coupons in the paper or on line.
I would suggest reading my articles Cheap Tools, as well as the article on Seeing With Your Fingers on my web site.
A hair dryer will work, and I used one for quite a while. But my preference, and the preference of a lot of repair guys is to use a heat gun, and not one of the ones from a hardware store, or one of the fancy temperature controlled ones. The reason is that it produces more heat, and heat that is more focused, than a hair dryer.
The other advantage is that I can hang the thing off the edge of a table (I made a clamp for shows) or on the front of a drawer when I flip the stand over. This aims the opening straight up and at a comfortable level for working. I've used one for about 6 years now, long enough to wear one out completely. I never use the $150 temperature controlled Steinel heat gun.
Your craft stores like Michaels, A.C. Moore, and Hobby Lobby sell an embossing gun. This has an opening about 1/2" in diameter, which means that it's quite focused and therefore limits the exposure to a smaller area. I work with the pen about 3-4 inches away from the opening depending on what I'm doing. Typical price is in the $20-$25 range, but they often have 50% off coupons in the paper or on line.
I would suggest reading my articles Cheap Tools, as well as the article on Seeing With Your Fingers on my web site.
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