Educate me a bit on torches

   / Educate me a bit on torches #11  
kOua has give you good information that should get you on the right track for a good set up. I posted about propane in the 1" bending thread I think might interest you. I also posted about a homemade torch that's capiable of far more than those on 1 pound bottles. From a safty standpoint here are some often overlooked (after the "drawdown" kOua talked about which is #1). There's no need to store tanks outdoors but they should be chained to a cart 100% of time and cart chained to wall any time they are not in use. You need to read up on " flashback arrestors and backflow protective equipment" because they aren't supplied with guages.
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #12  
For home use I have found the portable torch kit to be adequate. It is easily transported to where you need it if you can't get the job to the shop. For a professional shop environment a full size torch kit is the way to go but overkill for most home owners.

I recommend buying a set without tanks and buy the tanks from where you plan to get gas. OR check with the gas supplier on their tank prices and ask if they will swap out budget bought tanks.

Add a rose bud tip and you are good to go. Note: To get a rose bud tip to light and function set your oxy/acetylene to equal pressures. I usually set both to 10-15 PSI.
 
Last edited:
   / Educate me a bit on torches #13  
The thread to bend 1" steel got me thinking about this.

Though my project is now done, I went to replace the blades on my flexwing mower. Prior owner said they were original. If true, that means something like 20 years old.

I'm a persistent little cuss..... ultimately getting out the 7" grinder with diamond blade and cut two of them off. I flogged, beat, heated, sprayed, cussed at the other four and they finally came off.

I had a 1 11/16th's 3/4" drive socket. Only had 1/2" breaker.... snapped a 4" Craftsman extension clean in half (when at the time I also worked my 4x torque multiplier into the equation)

Got to thinking that it might be much easier if I had "real" heat, over & above my 'plumbers' MAP gas that I use for soldering.

What kind of tanks & tips (as in ends of the wand for the flame) would you recommend? Also...what issue is there with this likely having to be stored either in the garage or, out in the woods in a clearing where we keep implements? (I'm guessing the wisdom would say keep tanks out there and keep hoses/regulators in garage, which strikes me as logical)

In that other thread, Smokeydog said "Too big a tip can easily draw more acetylene that can come out of acetone solution and media in the tank. Then acetone gets entrained. Causing all kinds of safety issues and damage to your equipment."

Can anyone explain what this means?

(trying to learn some basics before I decide that I want/need to do this....might be smarter/easier to borrow my brother in law every now & then....but I don't like doing that too much)
I made my living with an oxy/acetylene torch for years.
Also traveled through central america with the torch and an old truck set up for tinkering and blacksmithing.

Torches are simple devices and pretty much trouble free. Lots of folklore about them.
I'll be glad to answer any questions you have.
rScotty
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #14  
kOua has give you good information that should get you on the right track for a good set up. I posted about propane in the 1" bending thread I think might interest you. I also posted about a homemade torch that's capiable of far more than those on 1 pound bottles. From a safty standpoint here are some often overlooked (after the "drawdown" kOua talked about which is #1). There's no need to store tanks outdoors but they should be chained to a cart 100% of time and cart chained to wall any time they are not in use. You need to read up on " flashback arrestors and backflow protective equipment" because they aren't supplied with guages.
Yep, on the arrestors and backflow devices. And another thing is many users have found that handheld inductive heating devices are satisfying their heating needs. Might or might not for you. Advantages, no tanks, no fuel, no flame and not much in the way of costs after buying the unit and its coils. Also Plasma cutters are supplanting cutting with fuel for more and more people. And add to that, hardly anyone welds with gas anymore. The various forms of electric welding has pretty well taken over. Gas welding was very popular 100 years ago. And back then that was the prominent form of welding.

People used to heat with their stick welders and a device called a carbon arc torch. However they have complete fallen out of favor. Not the least is the production of some nasty versions of carbon emitted from those old devices including a kind of rare version of carbon called a Buckminster Fullerene. Also known as a "bucky ball". These things are not very good for people.
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #15  
If you wanna know the "why" (and you SHOULD)

Fuel your safety knowledge - acetylene

I looked into getting a rosebud for my acetylene set about 40 years ago - back then the recommendation was no more than 1/7 of tank volume per hour; if you actually READ the above link, it's now recommended no more than 1/10 of tank volume. Even at the OLD rate, I found that even the SMALLEST available rosebud (at that time) needed the LARGEST acetylene single tank you can typically find -

which is why my tank set has a 330 CF acetylene tank and about 300 CF oxy.

If you
1 - Get "brain pain" trying to figure out all the details of staying "safe", and
2 - Do NOT ever want to actually WELD with a gas torch, and
3 - Haven't already got acetylene torches...

Then I would recommend FORGETTING Acetylene and instead getting a torch setup that uses Oxygen/PROPANE - because -

Use ANY size propane tank, it'll work til it DOESN'T

If you use it a LOT, you can get 25 gallon tanks (AKA 100 pound, propane is about 4 pounds/gallon)

Still need the correct HOSES for propane (grade T hose) - the older hoses that're fine for Acetylene won't last with propane.

There are differences to be aware of, such as which part of the flame is the hottest; it's different between Acetylene and Propane, which is part of the reason there's so much negativity on the web about using propane.


Here's the size tanks I use; again, BARELY big enough for serious heating or cutting -

AcetyReel.jpgAcetyReel2.JPG

A final note ('bout dang time :=) - the only SERIOUS reason for getting Acetylene if you're new at this is actual WELDING - Acetylene is the ONLY known fuel gas that generates it own SHIELD - NONE of the other gases do this, so if you're thinking of "going Retro", either choose Acetylene or FORGET it for gas welding.

Also, the fuel gas isn't the ONLY thing that can get you in trouble; so can Oxygen; the Fabricator link has this covered too.

Bunch of info here I know; but if you CARE about your safety, I recommend reading all the above until you REALLY understand what's involved... Steve
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #16  
Yep, on the arrestors and backflow devices. And another thing is many users have found that handheld inductive heating devices are satisfying their heating needs. Might or might not for you. Advantages, no tanks, no fuel, no flame and not much in the way of costs after buying the unit and its coils. Also Plasma cutters are supplanting cutting with fuel for more and more people. And add to that, hardly anyone welds with gas anymore. The various forms of electric welding has pretty well taken over. Gas welding was very popular 100 years ago. And back then that was the prominent form of welding.

People used to heat with their stick welders and a device called a carbon arc torch. However they have complete fallen out of favor. Not the least is the production of some nasty versions of carbon emitted from those old devices including a kind of rare version of carbon called a Buckminster Fullerene. Also known as a "bucky ball". These things are not very good for people.
Gouging rigs use carbon rods.
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #17  
This is worth watching in my opinion. Several things are covered here.

 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #18  
James, I agree; he does a pretty thorough job, including a good intro to fab work. I think he could've been a bit more thorough on the neutral flame; I was taught (about 57 years ago now) that to get a neutral flame, close the oxy just til the "feathers" on the blue cones barely disappear - more feathers = a carburizing flame (used for slight hardening of mild steel) and increasing oxy from neutral gives a reducing flame (usually NOT a good plan)

I REALLY liked his coverage on regulator safety; I barely missed getting KILLED 57 years ago when a "weldor" who had the habit of never backing his regulators off, replaced the oxy bottle, opened the tank valve super fast (I don't think the vid mentioned these can run around 3000 PSI when full), and blew out the regulator - the T handle on the regulator missed my head by about an inch, then it went thru two plywood covered walls and bounced off a car outside the shop. After I cleaned out my shorts, I drove to the nearest LWS and asked about safety pamphlets - after reading that was the LAST time I stayed in the area when the bozo headed for the torch... Steve
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #19  
Steve you obviously "dodged a bullet" 57 years ago. As you know it is hard to get the fine details from a you tube video, and even harder when you don't have the shade 5 in front of the camera. I saw a video somewhere of a cylinder falling over and knocking the valve off and the cylinder going thru a concrete block wall. Wouldn't want to be standing there or in front of your regulator operated by your bozo co worker as noted above.
 
   / Educate me a bit on torches #20  
James, I sure did "dodge a bullet" - and that experience was a helpful reminder for the rest of my life, especially the last 33 years of "indentured servitude" spent doing instrumentation/control in a couple different rare metals plants - we had forge presses and extrusion presses that developed over 15 thousand TONS of thrust, furnaces that could hold 3 Zirconium ingots 3' diameter and 25' long, rotary forges that could take a solid ingot and make a cannon barrel up to 24" diameter -

Plants like that use chemicals the average person can't even imagine; some of which can dissolve metals like stainless steel in SECONDS - and all that stuff had to be sensed/controlled, many times there was only ONE material an instrument could be made of and survive for more than an hour or two.

Only reason I survived THAT experience is NEVER assuming - in that kind of environment, knowledge isn't just power; it's LIFE... Steve
 
 
Top