OT Cutting Torch

Depends on what you want to do. Cutiing up scrap is a little different that making welments. My favorite is this HENROB 2000. It is amazing what this bugger will do

• CUT LIKE PLASMA

So if you have a lot of welding, brazing, heating, or cuttting to do, then I'd recommend a medium to heavy-duty rig. If you just want to heat a few bolts, cut of some stock, or do some light brazing or welding, it will do all of that nicely.

Pertrogen

DoD likes it a bunch. Gives me the shivers just thinkin about it.

TOH

Welp, that's news to me!!!!

But the idea of standing next to a full gas can holding a lit torch makes me a tad antsy!!

TOH

TOH

TOH

Most leased cylinders will have the owner's identity indelibly embossed on the top collar. Customer owned tanks are blank.

Serial numbers are also stamped on each cylinder and a list of stolen cylinders is maintained by the industry.

My local supplier will sell or lease cylinders.

Lease cost for a medium size rig was about 100/yr 10 years ago. I figured the break even time for purchase was about 3-4 years.

My supplier will sell you a set of "customer owned" cylinders. They don't refill them - they just swap them for full ones when you bring them in. First time I brought in by HF cylinders they simply swapped my acytelene for one of theirs - I've never seen it again.

My O2 cylinder is a b**stard size so the keep it and send it out for refill - takes about a week to turn it around - not handy.

Also the O2 cylinders have to be pressure tested every 10 years which is an added expense if you keep the cylinder in perpetuity. Acetylene cylinders don't have to be pressure tested but there are other maintainance issues with them.

In the unlikely event I move out of the area or want to sell my cylinder's the supplier will provide me with a receipt for the "customer owened" ones I currently have in my posession.

HTH,

TOH

My welding book says welding 1/4" plate uses 27.5 CF/hr Acetylene and 25 CF/hr Oxygen. So you got about 15 minutes burn time.

Cutting 1/4" to 1/2" plate will bump the O2 to something in excess of 60CF/hr if my metric conversion is correct so maybe 20 minutes burn time.

TOH

Unless you need the portability i.e. carrying the thing in the truck to use wherever (on HVAC units and the such) and will rarely use it forgit it.

Don't get it in your mind that when you have it to use, and get used to having a torch, you will have to have it all the time, for all kinds of new things that you will come up with.

Then every week right in the middle of what you are doing you will have to stop and go buy gas.

Go to a good welding supply and buy you a good torch set, while you are at it buy you a propane cutting tip for the torch you buy, and an owner oxygen tank (a little over 4' high)

Then go to Home Depot, Lowes, or whever and buy you a 100 lb propane tank $75 (or find you a good used one for $30, or free) then you are in business, it should last you months or years on the gas even with fairly regular use.

Get the propane tank filled at the local propane supplier (cheap).

(maybe I didn't leave too much important stuff out, and got my point across)

Acetylene is just too expensive for the tank, and the refill for the difference in heat. And for how long it lasts.

BTDT, learned the expensive hard way, pinching pinnies to feed my family.

Then get a price on the torch.

At one time HF was selling Coyne cylinders - I bought the largest set they had for about $250 - I think it was 40CF Acetylene and 120CF Oxygen.

TOH

Well...my two cents: Leave those little toy rigs alone.
Go down to the Chinese Tool store and purchase their gas-rig ($99 on sale, $129 otherwise). It includes a 4-torch kit, backfire arrestors, 25' of twin-hose, both regulators, all all the little accessories. Call your local PraxAir or other gas supplier (not your local welding supplier ordinarily). Tell them you do NOT want to lease tanks. (If you only use them occasionally you'll waste 10 years of lease fees before you'll empty those tanks. It'll be cheaper to own them. Owned tanks are simply swapped with replacement, already-filled tanks, and you pay for the gas only. There is no charge for recertifying the tanks...it's built into the orginal sale of the tanks.) Tanks are sized according to their capacity in cu.ft. of gas. This set from Praxair pictured cost me $350 including the cart (which came from HF.) You can cut/braze/weld for hours and hours and hours with this much and not have to worry about it. If you do a lot of cutting you'll use oxygen twice as fast as acetylene (which is better than any other gas for the reasons mentioned in the two following articles.)

REad:
Link
and
http://www.stanford.edu/group/prl/documents/html/OAweld.htm

http://www.esabna.com/euweb/oxy_handbook/589oxy5_3.htm