Greenlee 1873 Heat Gun

I used this on cabinets that had 8 layers of 100 year old lead based paint. You can move along at a pretty steady pace as a friend uses a putty knife to scrape it off. It is MUCH quicker and MUCH more cost effective than using paint stripper. If you have a lot of lead paint to take off this gun will be a real time and money saver, and it doesn't turn the paint into dust which can be a health hazard, it just melts it into globs that you can toss out. I don't use the tips, I just put it about 1-2 inches away from the surface until the paint started to bubble and then you can move along at about 1/2" per second. I should have bought a heat gun years ago. It's a very simple tool with few moving parts. The heating element has a chemical coating that will smoke as you first start using the gun. Don't be alarmed, it's just "priming" the heating element. You probably don't want to be breathing it in though. It is short lived and only lasts a minute or so. It is not the gun burning out or anything like that. Hope that helps. Read more

This is not the green lee that I used before and was expecting a different one. Read more

I've purchased 4 units. We've been using these at my company for 5 years, and use them daily for adhesive lined heat-shrink tubing. I was initialy concerned because the price was so reasonable, I expected a lower quality product. We've only had one failure and I believe it was due to being dropped one too many times. These have been remarkably rugged. The variable temperature control is very useful. I have no reason to ever buy anything else. Read more

I bought this thing to reflux some things on my motherboard. It did the job, but I wish it had some sort of temperature gauge on it so that it can tell you how much heat it is outputting. Don't get me wrong, you can adjust the temperature, it is just a dial between Cool and Very Hot with no Degree measurements to be seen. Read more

One of the best heat guns I've worked with. Tried several different makers over the years - this one really shines. Simple and lightweight. Very reliable heating element and fan (still have an OLD one I've never had to replace or repair after a LOT of use), comfortable grip, and decent heat controls. It's the one I recommend to colleagues when they're looking for a decent heat gun for electronics work. Read more