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Heat gun: worthwhile investment

DawgDays
DawgDays Posts: 83
edited October 2012 in EggHead Forum
Not that we ever sink $$ into our big green love frivolously, but this ACE $20 gun was right on. Never going back to starter squares again!
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Comments

  • EggerinLA
    EggerinLA Posts: 186
    Well, good for you. Awesome! :))
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  • travisstrick
    travisstrick Posts: 5,002
    Welcome to the club. 
    Be careful, man! I've got a beverage here.
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  • Botch
    Botch Posts: 15,463
    There was another recent thread on heat guns used to light Eggs, but I have a question:  is this Ace gun an electric gun, or one that runs on propane?  
    I do have a propane gun, and tried it last night.  It got the lump glowing pretty quickly, but blew a lot of sparks onto my wooden deck.  I "lit" the pile of lump in three spots, and shut the Egg, but the fire never took, ended up using a paraffin square and it lit fine (with no sparks flying out).  
    Does the Ace gun light the lump thoroughly, and does it cause sparks to fly out?  
    _____________

    Remember when teachers used to say 'You won't have a calculator everywhere you go'?  Well, we showed them.


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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    @Botch - it's electric if it's a gun.  I mostly use a propane torch and it sparks like a 4 year-old's sprinkler.  Sparks generally look way worse than they are - I've never had any damage on my finished wood table top.  Just keep an eye on everything and be vigilant. 

    The electric heat gun doesn't spark as much.

    If it didn't light with the torch, you need to increase the time you blast each spot.  I just do one spot for low and slows...one big spot.  For grilling/pizzas, etc. where you need a lot of lump lit at once, I light 3 or 4 areas to start.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • DawgDays
    DawgDays Posts: 83
    Yup, it's electric as NOLA says. There were a few sparks but nothing like you're describing. I lit in 3 places for about 1 min each and was at a stable 370* in record time.
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  • MikeG
    MikeG Posts: 174

    My heat gun will throw sparks with the best of them if I let it, moreso with WW than RO.

    Botch you are in SLC, no?  Come to east millcreek and I'll give you a demo.

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  • crmwell
    crmwell Posts: 19
    I just started using a heat gun and then after it is lit and I close the lid, I put it in front of the lower vent to act like a fan to get it up to temp quicker!  A lot quicker that my electric charcoal starter.
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  • DonWW
    DonWW Posts: 424
    I read the other thread and followed a few links to heat guns.  One advantage I sense of the looftlighter over a gun is that the looft is kind of like a hairdryer on steroids.  Once a small chuck of lump is lit, pull back and let the forced airflow take over.  It blows and forces the superheated air deep into the lump and can get a really good fire going very quickly.
    XL and Medium.  Dallas, Texas.
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  • DawgDays
    DawgDays Posts: 83
    I could see that, Don. I may end up with the looft if this cheap one breaks on me. Still dealing with wife's eye-rolling from other eggcessories and can't justify the looft's price point just yet.
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  • Whataguy
    Whataguy Posts: 16
    Something you might want to look into is a Looftlighter. After BBQing for 40 yrs, I bought one about 9 months ago and wouldn't trade it for anything. Within 5 minutes I can have 3 areas going and can walk away. No fluids, no propane, no starter chips and no fire chimney. Check it out at LOOFTLIGHTER.com, buy it at Amazon, about $80
    1 - Lg Green Egg
    1 - X Lg Green Egg
    1 - Brian Alan table
    2 - DigiQ thermometers
    Lots of passion and alcohol
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  • EggerinLA
    EggerinLA Posts: 186
    Do people ever read a thread before posting a redundant post?
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  • Botch
    Botch Posts: 15,463
    DawgDays said:
    I lit in 3 places for about 1 min each and was at a stable 370* in record time.
    I think you found my problem, I know I didn't stay in each spot for an entire minute...  :-L
     
    Thanks guys!  
    _____________

    Remember when teachers used to say 'You won't have a calculator everywhere you go'?  Well, we showed them.


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  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    DonWW said:

    I read the other thread and followed a few links to heat guns.  One advantage I sense of the looftlighter over a gun is that the looft is kind of like a hairdryer on steroids.  Once a small chuck of lump is lit, pull back and let the forced airflow take over.  It blows and forces the superheated air deep into the lump and can get a really good fire going very quickly.

    the heat gun blows just like a hair dryer also but at 1100 degrees.
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