Tools & DIY · Head-to-head
Steinel HG 2320 Eco Professional Heat Gun vs DEWALT D26960 LCD Heat Gun
Which should you buy? Our verdict on both, pulled from our full The Best Heat Guns: 4 Compared (and One to Skip) comparison.
The Steinel is the only one of the four whose documentation tells you where its temperature figure is taken, which turns the display from a guess into a reading. The DEWALT gives up that feedback and the fine 10 degree steps, but it is the one that publishes how long you may run it and what happens when it overheats.
Steinel HG 2320 Eco Professional Heat Gun
Buy itThe one whose manual states that the number on the display is the actual temperature measured at the nozzle outlet, not just the setting you asked for.
- Steinel's instruction manual states the actual temperature is measured at the nozzle outlet and shown on the display, so the readout is feedback rather than a request.
- Sets continuously from 120 F to 1200 F in 10 degree F steps, with four programmable temperature and airflow presets and a lock function.
- The data sheet names the parts most makers leave unstated: ceramic heating element, brush motor, 1000 hour motor life, replaceable 6 ft rubber cord.
- No tolerance is published on the temperature setting, only on airflow at plus or minus 0.5 cfm.
- The manual describes the thermal cut-out as completely shutting the tool down when overloaded, so a fault stops the job rather than throttling it.
- No duty cycle appears anywhere in the documentation, so how long you can run it flat out is not stated.
DEWALT D26960 LCD Heat Gun
Buy itThe only one of the four that tells you how long you are allowed to run it and what it does when the element gets too hot.
- The manual publishes a duty cycle: do not exceed 60 minutes on in a 2 hour period, which no other manual here states at all.
- Overload protection is described rather than just named: the element switches off, the motor keeps running cold air, and the element comes back on by itself in a few seconds.
- Sets in 50 degree F steps on the LCD across 150 F to 1100 F and remembers the last setting per airflow stage.
- The top of the range is tied to the fan: 150 to 750 F on the 8.8 cfm setting, 150 to 1100 F only on the 17.7 cfm setting.
- No tolerance on the temperature setting and no statement of where in the airstream the figure is measured.
- The 50 degree F step is five times coarser than the Steinel's, which matters on heat sensitive plastics.
Side by side
The 8 criteria below are the ones our full comparison judged every product on, narrowed to these two.
| Steinel HG 2320 Eco Professional Heat Gun Our pick | DEWALT D26960 LCD Heat Gun | |
|---|---|---|
| Our verdict | Buy | Buy |
| Best for | Anyone whose work has an actual temperature target, such as shrink sleeving, plastic welding or heat sensitive materials, where you need the display to reflect what is leaving the nozzle. | Someone running a heat gun for long stretches on paint, flooring or shrink work who wants a maker's own limit on continuous use rather than guessing. |
| Price tier | $$$ · premium | $$ · mid-range |
| Published temperature | 120 to 1200 F | 150 to 1100 F |
| How you set it | Continuous, 10 F steps, LCD | 50 F steps, LCD |
| Where the maker says it is measured | At the nozzle outlet, shown live | Not stated |
| Stated tolerance | Airflow plus or minus 0.5 cfm | None published |
| Published airflow | 4 to 13 cfm, continuously variable | 8.8 cfm low, 17.7 cfm high |
| Overheat behaviour in the manual | Thermal cut-out shuts the tool down | Element off, motor keeps blowing, auto restart |
| Published duty cycle | None | 60 minutes on per 2 hours |
| Heating element named | Ceramic | Not published |
Which one is right for you?
Pick the Steinel HG 2320 Eco Professional Heat Gun if
anyone whose work has an actual temperature target, such as shrink sleeving, plastic welding or heat sensitive materials, where you need the display to reflect what is leaving the nozzle.
Know before buying: no tolerance is published on the temperature setting, only on airflow at plus or minus 0.5 cfm.
Pick the DEWALT D26960 LCD Heat Gun if
someone running a heat gun for long stretches on paint, flooring or shrink work who wants a maker's own limit on continuous use rather than guessing.
Know before buying: the top of the range is tied to the fan: 150 to 750 F on the 8.8 cfm setting, 150 to 1100 F only on the 17.7 cfm setting.
The bottom line
Our overall pick is the Steinel HG 2320 Eco Professional Heat Gun - The one whose manual states that the number on the display is the actual temperature measured at the nozzle outlet, not just the setting you asked for. Choose the DEWALT D26960 LCD Heat Gun instead if someone running a heat gun for long stretches on paint, flooring or shrink work who wants a maker's own limit on continuous use rather than guessing.
Want the full picture, including the other options we compared and the popular one we'd skip? Read the complete The Best Heat Guns: 4 Compared (and One to Skip).