Heat gun

I have a new toy! A heat gun, obviously. I bought it because I had seen a video of someone very easily stripping the plastic lining off the doors of cheap kitchen cabinets. And I have cheap, plastic-lined kitchen cabinets. And I had been thinking of getting the plastic off. But until I saw that video, I wasn't sure if that was feasible, and if so, how. 

New toy

The first task I made it do was not kitchen-related, though. Many months ago, Neil bought me a little present: a little rearview mirror for my bike. It is really handy! And it is mounted on some sort of ball-and-socket joint. So you can aim it precisely how you want it.

One day my bike fell over, onto the little mirror. It popped out of its joint. I didn't manage to push it back. And when I got home and tried it with less distraction, I still didn't manage. Neil couldn't do it either. I suppose the ball has to fit quite snugly into the socket for it all to work.

It came off

As the construction is made of plastic, I then tried heat. Surely that would make the plastic softer? (Yes I know, not all plastics work that way, but I suspected these would.) Maybe then I could fit the mirror over the ball socket? I dipped the little mirror in boiling water and then tried again. Still no success. 

But now I had a heat gun.

I laid the mirror reflective side down on my oven plate. And then aimed the heat gun at it. I had my oven glove nearby so I could pick the mirror up and try to whack it back over the ball socket when I thought it might be hot enough. Lo and behold, in two or three attempts I managed it! The mirror is back where it belongs! I already like this heat gun thing! And I barely got started…