milwaukee heatgun

today i had one last spot to touch up with my milwaukee heatgun before i was done and ready to go home. had to ask the customer to come back because the heatgun wouldn't turn on all of a sudden. this is the second time a milwaukee heatgun died on me during the end of the job. does anyone else have problems w/ milwaukee heatguns dying on them?
maybe it's the way i use it... i always set it to high when heating and shrinking... but that shouldn't be an acceptable reason for it to break down...

those little black el cheepo milwaukees will do that. i never got one to last more than 6 months.

you might want to look into getting something more HEAVY DUTY. you might pay twice as much for a industrial heavy duty model but they ususlly last for years not months you can get a reall nice gun for around 80 bucks, or you can keep buying those cheep ass black ones a couple times per year

popular ones here seem to be PORTER CABLE, MILWAUKEE RED, MAKITA and mabey a couple others.

hehateme is dead on about the life of those guns. but if you dont want to pay for the better guns. then just watch your gun. you can tell when they are about to die. you will see little silver flakes come out. and you will notice. it will not be as hot as it once was. the cheap milwauke guns are good for one thing though. fingers you have to heat from the outside. because they blow less air. the glass gets a more direct heat to it. for example it takes me 9 seconds. to have enough heat from a cheapo. to knock the finger down. and know it is staying down. and 16 seconds for a milwauke red. but for anything else id rather use my red. for the durabilty and other reasons.

It is a good idea to keep a spare.

they are garbage just like the wagners you've got to spend more than $30.00 if you want one that'll last

ok, later this afternoon i'll post pics of my blue point one.. it's supposedly new (TTS can't find it) and it heats up to 1200 degrees (but it was 100 bucks too)

Funny...I've used just about everything. Milwaukees shrink film, that's their job. Garbage? No. They might not last as long as some others, but for an abusive heat gun tosser, they aren't a bad option.

I just got a Milwaukee gun in desperation, 'cause my old one died during a job. I think is was only the second day that I used it and the thing wouldn't turn on. I took the thing apart and there wasn't anything wrong with the wiring or the switch. I just smacked it on the bench a couple of times, and then it worked. It has done that to me twice now.

Strange about heat guns! Once I bought a $48 Shop Fox heat gun and it broke on me in 6 months. Burned out! Piece of crap, that heat gun. So I go to my local Harbor Freight tool store and I buy a $25 Chicago brand heat gun. It's been 4 months and so far so good. I like the Chicago one better than the $48 one. Much better for shrinking. If the Chicago one goes, maybe I'll go and buy an expensive Makita! Until then, Chicago is good!

99.9% of the time you get what you pay for!

I think the life of a Milwaukee and Wagner heatgun has alot to do with how you handle it when not in use. I know alot of you probably just put it down on the ground but it is a good idea to do that gently or better yet, hang it up.

The heatguns that I personally use usually last for several years. The ones that my guys use only lasts about 6 months. Don't think mine are any more special but I do know that I am more careful once I finished using it.

My Milwaukee gun pulled this crap again today. I sent the hubby to the hardware store and asked him to get the Makita or Porter Cable. They didn't stock either one, so he bought me OEM Ace gun. It was just a re-labeled Milwaukee, so I didn't even open the box. I just smacked mine on the work-bench again to get it working.

It's amazing how well you'll treat your tools and supplies when there is a vested interest in it's efficient use.

I now always used the floor to hold the gun during a job, after having it knocked off of my bench too many times when someone kicks the cord. I set it down gently with the cord. My last gun lasted me like seven years if I remember correctly. This Milwaukee didn't hit the floor hard once and it started failing on me. It was new!

I think the problem has to do with a high temperature switch. I am still using this gun, with only small interruptions when the gun shuts down. Someday I will take the time to buy a better one.

I have had my cheap-o for 2 years now, and still kicking. Myboy is having problesm with the Ace relabled too, He just leaves his on the whole time he tint cause when he shuts it off it will not come back on unless it feels like it. But He hasto use my heat gun because Mine works like a charm, I don't abuse it at all. although once it got ran over by customer ( just handle) but still works. I don't like huge HEAVY Duty ones. just not comfortable to use.

Well, guys, you were right! My Chicago heat gun took a big today! Was heat forming the BG on a Nissan Altima and it went pop, spark, and stopped working. Tomorrow I will go and get a quality heatgun. No more cheap piece of crap heatguns!

Just in case any Milwaukee gun users weren't aware of it...

The newer Milwaukee's are now controlled by a temperature sensor that will not allow it to turn on immediately after turning it off, when it has been run hot for long periods of time (like doing a back glass). Have to wait for it to cool long enough... have a back up for those instances.

yeah, buy a back-up. like a PC. then you don't have problems like this. EVER. ok, i'll shut-up now. i've about beaten this dead horse long enough.

i like being different anyway. gives me a reason to up my prices higher than anyone else's.

This is my heat gun, there are many like it but this one is mine!

Maybe give your heatgun a name! you might respect it more!

Fellas, take better care of your guns, the nice guns have a cool switch so you can cool it down before u shut it off. I think the $20 guns are great, they get hotter, just put it on low before shutting it off to help it cool and if you understand how they work, you can take them apart and make them last longer; like when u hear it grinding inside, the fan gets a piece of the housing stuck in it and it burns out the motor trying to spin, just open the baby up and get out the pieces thaty have broken off cause you have thrown the thing across the parking lot after you burned through your tint and got mad!, also drill a few holes in the back to allow for more air!

Someone else already tipped us off to the velocity trick for more blow.

what hardware store can i buy a heat gun at? California

any hardware store that sells painting supplies i think.

i tried home depot and lowes and they dont have anything

amazon.com sells every heatgun under the sun

cool deal thanks

no problemo i tried slinging amazon ads for the porter cable heat gun here for a while, but nobody wanted them

wow. imagine that.

They both have 'em here.....

Ive used my fair share of heatguns.....I've had them all fail, and as much as I had wanted to toss a couple, I dont abuse them. The best heat gun I've come across is the Makita, a little spendy, but the best heat,veriable, hasent failed yet(2years running on one).......the cable dosent melt if you happen to miss leaving the hot end on it and it isnt heavy for those long days of tinting

I tend to accidentaly touch the film while using my heat gun.

my co worker has one and the sucker is always stops...... don't know why... but its funny

because it has a thermal switch inside that will cut it off when it senses the gun is too hot.

I have taken it apart and found the switch and removed the part that switches the gun off. But like anything else I do from a mechanical standpoint, the gun nozzle now flops loosely in the gun... Must have lost a screw...

get a craftsman industrial heat gun...it is the best..

I have not found one in the stores, but I looked online. Nice looking gun TG I think I may buy one

YEAH..it is the best i have ever used..it gets really hot..make suer you get the one with the heat adjustor on the back..they run about 99 bucks at sears...