Knot-Tec glue guns are now easier to use

Power Adhesives has introduced two new hot-melt glue gun kits featuring upgraded components as part of its Knot-Tec wood repair system line that debuted in 2009.

These mobile systems allow woodworkers to repair unsightly knots in their work, which helps lower operating costs and reduce waste, and can be used safely on windows, doors, furniture, wood floors, cabinets and millwork applications, according to the company.

New kits feature either the Tec 250 glue gun, suited for light use in a small shop, or the Tec 810-12 glue gun, designed for more industrial woodworking settings.

Sales manager Lee Stegall says the new kits improve both the system’s ease of use and project finish. The new Mouseplain flush trimming knife is the key, replacing the need to trim additional glue material with a chisel or razor before sanding, as those tools can cause damage.

“In the process of using this system, you take the glue gun, let it heat up, put the repair material in and you fill a knot. Then you take an aluminum block and place it over the top of it to compress the material into the hole, and that also cools and flattens the adhesive to the surface — but you always have some material over the top that needs to be trimmed off,” says Stegall.

“The Mouseplane sits perfectly flat on the material surface. You use that to very quickly knock anything standing above the wood surface.”

The new kits also feature additional repair stick colors made of a modified glue formula that’s easier to trim and sand, says Stegall. Each kit now comes with a variety pack of 12 TecBond 10” long glue sticks in amber, black, cola, light-brown, beige and white.

“Although the cola- and black-colored repair sticks are the most popular ones purchased, we were getting some questions for some light browns and also some white, so we’ve added a couple of additional colors,” says Stegall.

The Tec 250 hot-melt glue gun has a 40-watt heater that will reach an operating temperature of 380 F in about five minutes, according to the company, which states a melt rate of 1-1/2 lbs. an hour. It sells for $119.

The Tec 810-12 is a 250-watt applicator hot-melt glue gun with a melt rate of 4-1/2 lbs. an hour. It sells for $159.

The Mouseplane can also be purchased separately for $24.95.

Contact: Power Adhesives Ltd., 1209 Lilac Road, Charlotte, NC 28209. Tel: 704-334-2425. www.poweradhesives.com

This article originally appeared in the July 2011 issue.