What to look for in a used oxy acetylene torch?

[woodlandfarms]

I need something to cut steel. Was all set to get a Plasma and then see that a lot of people think it is not a great idea, or that a torch is a better idea unless I am loaded.

So, Looking on Craigslist and see a few, some with bottles. Not a clue what to look for or consider...

I have never had a torch, and only own a Lincoln tombstone welder that I am still learning.. It was an easy purchase. Not much to go bad on it...

Carl

[kayco53]

Best if you can try it out .I like the full size Victor with the trigger on the bottom.Personal choice. You can get combination torches. That is welding and burning. Stick with a brand name like Victor ,Harris, Or the the only decent knock off Uniweld (Victor clone).Most guys don't really like the Smith torches.You can get different size tips for around $15 each.Gauges
should look decent.And the torch shouldn't leak anywhere or look like it got hot.Get flash arrestors that fit on torch.If you get bottles with it they should not have a company name on them or you can't get them filled, up here in Canada anyways.Remember they need a retest, I think every five years.Oxy /acetylene can be used with propane with just a tip change. However I don,t think it worth it but lots of guys do.

[CCWKen]

How thick is the steel you plan to cut? Plasma is pricey but leaves a near finished cut. You can save a lot of post-cutting dress time with plasma. O/A is a cheaper investment start up but you'll go through a lot of oxygen if cutting on a regular basis. Then there's the time you'll spend dressing the cut (grinding). As already mentioned, stick with brand names when buying used. Parts are still readily available if you have to replace tips or valves.

[woodlandfarms]

Can't imagine more than half an inch. maybe rough at 3/4"

[LD1]

I agree that plasma cutters are nice, but all they can do is cut. If you want something for shop and do a lot of fabbing, a plasma is nice.

Torches can do things that plasma cant. Change tips and you can gas weld/braze. You can heat stuff to bend/form, or break loose stubborn fastners. And they are portible. Even the big sets, you can throw in a truck and go down to your scrap pile and go to town. Whereas plasma takes power, and an air compressor to run.

If you get torches, things to check are, the tanks.Usually they will say when they were last certified. If they need re-certified/inspected i think that runs like $100 per tank.

Also find out wether the tanks are leased or it they own them. If they own them, they need to have ownership papers or once they are empy, they are worthless. If they are leased, find out where they are leased at, because when they are empty, you'll probabally have to return them, and the credit for returning them may go to the origional leaser and not you, and then you just have the torches and regulators, and have to start over and buy or lease your own tanks.

[ToolcatWonka5610]

Originally Posted by woodlandfarms

I need something to cut steel. Was all set to get a Plasma and then see that a lot of people think it is not a great idea, or that a torch is a better idea unless I am loaded.

So, Looking on Craigslist and see a few, some with bottles. Not a clue what to look for or consider...

I have never had a torch, and only own a Lincoln tombstone welder that I am still learning.. It was an easy purchase. Not much to go bad on it...

Carl

Carl,
I took a 12 week welding Class during the winter at School. I did MIG welding, Oxy-Acetylene Cutting and Welding also. Torch cutting is okay but too slow for me. Plasma Cutting I have yet to try but I've heard it is a lot fast than Torch cutting. I've heard Plasma cutting is like taking a knife through warm butter when cutting. Plasma you only need to learn some basic rules and tips, with the Torch you need to learn some rules plus you have to worry about Tank pressures, leakage, etc. It can be pretty dangerous if your not careful. Only things to worry about with Plasma is Electric shock and cutting yourself with the air stream. Plasma is very easy to learn and not to mention leaves a lot cleaner cut than Oxy-Acetylene. Also you'd have to have the Bottles refilled every so often plus the bottle are Dangerous High Pressure tanks I myself would rather use Plasma cutting
Only downsides of Plasma cutting is you can only cut metal but seeing how you have a welder you'd be ok. It is also a lot more expensive than Oxy-Acetylene; cheapest I've seen was around $1,000. But it is worth

IMO Carl, I'd go with Plasma Cutting, you'll be really satisfied

[smfcpacfp]

LD1 has given you great advice on used torches and tanks.

I just purchased a new medium duty Victor torch / regulator setup, filled tanks (145 CF oxy, 125 CF act), cart from Airgas - $1,030 out the door, just to give you an idea of what kind of price would be appropriate.

The gentleman above said he would get a plasma cutter, although he has not used one. He also said that O/A cutting is slow. If O/A was slow then he probably didn't have the right sized torch/tip for the job, or didn't have the flame set correctly, because it definitely isn't slow. Plasma cutters are great. A single phase Miller plasma cutter that would cut 3/4" steel would cost a little under $3,000. Miller is top of the heap, but you can see that they are quite expensive.

[LD1]

Something else to consider is an oxy-gas cutting system. petrogen.com makes them. When I was researching torches online I stumbled onto their website. It's a real neat Idea and they have some really cool videos on their website, but they were just too pricy for me. But if someone was in business using torches a lot, they would probabally save money in the long run, as they say 2.5 gallons of gas will cut for 10hrs straight. That is a lot cheaper than acy.

[EddieWalker]

How often do you think you'll need to cut metal with a torch? I would love to have a plasma cutter, but realistically, don't really need one, but I do need to cut metal from time to time. Things like bolts, twisted metal on the tractor and odd shapes out of steel when I'm building something. A torch works great for all these things. Since I don't do this very often, I bought a compact set from Home Depot. I've had it about four or five years now and love it. I've had a few projects were I would sure like to have larger bottles, but most of the time, I'm just making a quick cut, so the smaller bottles are fine. Other then the bottle size, the only other drawback is the cutting tip is prone to getting dirty after extended use. I have a cleaning tool that I use to poke into the holes of the tip when this happens. The flame will start to distort on me and I know it's time to clean it out. I also like that I can pick it up, put it on the fourwheeler and use it where I need it quickly and easily.

With a full sized set of bottles, you have to either buy them out right, like you are considering with used ones, or you can lease them on a yearly basis from your supplier. Before buying a set of used bottles, I'd talk to somebody at the place you plan to have them filled and find out what they will and will not fill. I just exchange my bottles, so I'm always getting different ones. I'm sure the same is true with the big bottles, so what you buy isn't what you'll have as soon as you exchange them for full ones. If the supplier doesn't accept your bottles, then you are stuck with old bottles that have no value. Some old bottles are just scrap that some people try to sell off to get rid of. Be careful that if you buy them, they are acceptable for refilling or exchanging.

As for tips, there are too many options out there for me to comment on. I have Victor and it works fine. For most of us, I don't think it really matters from one brand to another, just stick with a name brand that you can find replacement parts for.

Good luck,
Eddie

[/pine]

unless you have a lot to cut (production scale etc) you might consider other more amateur methods...i.e., reciprocating saw w/ metal or bi-metal blades...
a cheap alternative to a cut-off saw is to find an old (wood working) miter saw and re-outfit it with a metal cutting composite blades...