Stick gun or bulk gun: which do you need?
Buy an 11 mm stick gun for crafts, repairs and light packing. Switch to a bulk hot melt gun when you glue for hours a day, refill sticks more than you glue, need an adhesive that doesn't come as a stick (PUR, for example, runs in a cartridge gun), or need a consistent bead every time.
If you need a glue gun for crafts, repairs or light packing, buy an 11 mm stick gun. It costs a few hundred rupees and does the job. This page is about when it stops being enough.
Where a stick gun runs out
- Speed: it melts one stick at a time.
- Capacity: our guns hold 150 to 330 ml of adhesive.
- Temperature: most of ours are adjustable (the TR 700 runs at a fixed 120 °C), and electronic control holds ±2 °C on the .E and LCD models.
- Adhesive choice: granulate, pillows and cartridges, PUR included; blocks through the VSB 40 pre-melter. See hot melt adhesive, in short.
- Operator effort: air-driven guns push the glue for you.
Even Reka makes stick guns
Reka’s own stick guns weigh 330 to 400 g, run at 35 to 125 W and melt 950 to 1,650 g an hour. The switch to bulk isn’t about quality; it’s about volume and adhesive.
Time to switch if
- the glue runs for hours a day
- you spend more time refilling than gluing
- your glue is not available as a stick (PUR)
- the bead must be consistent every time
Past that point, Help me choose will point you to the right gun. Not there yet? Keep your stick gun.
Questions.
What glue stick sizes are there?
Craft guns take thin sticks, commonly 11 mm. Industrial bulk guns such as the Reka MS 200 family also take large 43 mm sticks, and granulate or pillows.
What is the alternative to a glue gun for packaging?
For closing cartons, a hot melt gun with a wide slot nozzle lays a flat band. For high volumes, a carton sealing machine; Mahisa makes those too, at mahisa.com.
Can a glue gun be used on plastic?
It depends on the adhesive, not the gun. Tell us the plastic and the job, and we will suggest the adhesive.
What are industrial glue guns used for?
Packaging and carton sealing, displays, automotive trim, upholstery and mattresses, food and drink packs, hygiene products, construction, woodworking and printing.
Tell us your job.
Tell us what you are bonding and how many a day. We will suggest the gun, nozzle and glue, with prices.
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