Torch set

[thunders]

Hi I am looking for advice on the purchase of an acetelene torch set for ocational use. I want to be able to cut and heat to be able to bend steel. I am able to get see special pricing at air gas. I want to purchase the tanks rather than lease along with a cart. Any recommendations.?

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[scooby074]

Victor is the big name brand. The "Journeyman" is their HD model. Lots of OEM part availability, and being the big brand, most of the stores either carry the original parts of knockoffs.

Smith is another good brand. Less availability in many places.

Personally, Id avoid any "house" brands, sometimes they can use proprietary parts.

Look into getting setup with propane fuel as well as acetylene (the store can help you). For just about all I do, I run Propane. Propane is considerably cheaper to run, plus you can get a BBQ tank just about anywhere, which is awesome on weekends! Acetylene only comes out on very rare occasions now.

 

[ken w.]

If its for home use once in a while the small portable set up is another choice. I have that and a mid size set up that takes B tanks or plumber size tanks. I picked up both of mine from Craigslist pretty reasonable.

 

[Firebrick43]

What are you wanting to do and on what?

Scooby's answer is ok, agree with him for the most part.

However size and scope of the work should dictate what torch size.

The journeyman is huge. It's for heavy iron workers. I personally have the super range kit which has the medium sized torch handle (fc100) and a ca1350 cutting head. It's a nice size for cutting and heating large parts. Even it will cut 6" and weld up to a 1/4". I have cut 3/4" 16" deep I beams with no issues. And yet it's to big for me while welding.

I do a lot of gas welding of sheet metal and chrome moly tubing. I find it relaxing and with just a pair of glasses compared to tig helmet, jacket, and gloves more comfortable. I also have a smith airline which is a superb torch for this kind of work. It fits the hand much better and is less than half the weight of the victor. The cutting torch attachment will cut 2" but I would say the back of your fingers would be quite warm cutting iron that thick.

The smith is the Cadillac vs the victor Chevy. Also most victor stuff is imported now where smith is still in the USA.

For regulators victors are good durable units. However they are unstable at low pressures welding thin metal with small tips requiring constant adjustment especially near the end of your tanks. Smiths are better in this regard but dual stage airco's are superb.

 

[scooby074]

However size and scope of the work should dictate what torch size.

The journeyman is huge. It's for heavy iron workers. I personally have the super range kit which has the medium sized torch handle (fc100) and a ca1350 cutting head. It's a nice size for cutting and heating large parts. Even it will cut 6" and weld up to a 1/4". I have cut 3/4" 16" deep I beams with no issues. And yet it's to big for me while welding.

dual stage airco's are superb.

Absolutely! A Journeyman set could very well be overkill for the OP. He needs to size the setup to what he plans on doing. Personally I wouldnt recommend anything under a " medium duty" setup.

I have a set of Air Liquide branded Airco/Concoa's and they are a beautiful thing! Unfortunately the Oxygen is leaking. A rebuild was going to cost as much as a cheap Air Liquide Medium Duty plus take weeks. Ended up with the ALs because I couldnt wait. Rebuilding the Dual Stage regs are on my list of things to do for sure.

 

[matt_i]

I use the Harris Calorific (now Harris Products Group). They have always done what I wanted to do. I have a heating torch body and a cutting torch body plus some 2 stage regulators. 95% of the time I have the heating tip on the bottles, they are 100 cu ft or so.

 

[bubinga]

If its for home use once in a while the small portable set up is another choice. I have that and a mid size set up that takes B tanks or plumber size tanks. I picked up both of mine from Craigslist pretty reasonable.

Yeah, me too.
Guy wanted $125.00 for it, we couldn't fire it up though, little $8.00 fitting was broken. LWS had to order it for me.
Had gas and 02 in it and everything.
Fired it up, no mater where the acel regulator was set, the gauge was pegged.
New gauge from ebay did not fix it.
and the hose was leaking.
So then I had to buy a cheap regulator from e bay.
And a new hose set.
Lucklie,(sp?) Amazon had some kind of apply & be approved for a CC, and have $100.00 added to the card.
(don't see those sort of offers too much any more)
So basically the hose was free!
But had it not been free, I would have had about another $125.00 in to it.
Could of just got a new set..................LOL
Anyways, for my light use, the baby set like HF and lowes sells, fits my needs.
I didn't know this, but those little bottles, can not be run for too long at a time, something about only being safe to flow a certain amount of acceletine at a time.
or Acetone, (May be way off base here)
Will flow in to the hoses, and cause danger.

 

[lilredex]

I was in your position about forty years ago, and bought a Victor medium duty set with "B" acetylene and 80 Cu.Ft. oxygen tanks. Has worked OK to date.

You can't run a rosebud tip off of those tanks, but you can use the cutting head to do your heating, if a regular tip is not enough. My set came with four tips and the cutting head. I added a "000" tip (the smallest) to weld smaller stuff.

Would probably do the same today, with the addition of propane, as suggested above.

 

[Bretny]

I have had a victor firepower 250 set for a few years now. I run it on a B tank and about the same size oxygen tank. Im happy with the set. But i did buy a bigger cutting tip to heat/cut bigger metal. I have cut quite a bit of 3/4in steel with it.

If i was to do it again i would buy a oxy/propane set. I might still change mine over. The B tank is about $60 to fill. A propane tank is $10.

I do like the physical size of the set. Its just small enough that i can pick up both bottles and put them in the back of a truck or carry them across my lawn easily

 

[Falcon67]

If i was to do it again i would buy a oxy/propane set. I might still change mine over. The B tank is about $60 to fill. A propane tank is $10.

I need a good torch and this would be how I would do it rather than acetylene. Have several 30 lb tanks here. Although it's about $25 to fill a propane tank here.

 

[Kaizen]

I have the victor jr oxy/acetylene setup. Really too small. Seems every time I use it I have to go get one of the tanks filled.

What is needed to convert to propane oxy?


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[Falcon67]

From the guy at the welding store, just "the right regulator". And I think a certain kind of hose. I don't know enough about it to say which one that is.

 

[acarter92]

I got mine on Craigslist, not sure of the exact size, but the oxygen is probably about 4' high and the acetylene a little smaller of course. I don't use mine that often, maybe 5-10 times per year and I've filled it twice in 8 years. Perfect size tanks IMHO, big enough that you don't have to fill them all the time and small enough that I can easily cart them around if the hose isn't long enough to reach.

 

[MoonRise]

I have the victor jr oxy/acetylene setup. Really too small. Seems every time I use it I have to go get one of the tanks filled.

What is needed to convert to propane oxy?


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To use most oxy-acetylene torches with oxy-propane, you usually need to do the following:

1- RTFM on your SPECIFIC torch. If not covered in the manual, check online or CALL (or email, or chat on the help page, etc) the torch manufacturer for the specifics on what to do.

2- Most of the time, you will just need to change the fuel hose (to a T-rated hose, as the 'standard' R-rated fuel hose is only rated for use with acetylene fuel and not for use with any 'alternate' fuel gas such as propane) AND change the tip to one designed for use with the fuel you will be using.

3- Most of the time, you can use an acetylene fuel regulator with 'other' fuel gases. But not always, and you will (or may) be limited on the size/type tips you can use as an acetylene regulator will only go up to 15 psi delivery pressure (because of acetylene Look it up if you don't understand THAT.) and propane regulators go to a higher delivery pressure for use with propane-rated tips that need a higher pressure than 15 psi. Again, RTFM or look it up or call/email/chat the equipment manufacturer for the specifics on what you want/need to do to the equipment for what you want/need to do with the equipment.


To the OP, you have to define a bit better on just WHAT you want to cut/heat. Material AND size. That determines to a large extent just what 'size' torch you will need to get and specifically what size tip(s) you will need to get with that torch.

Oxy-propane can be used to heat most materials. Oxy-fuel can be used to cut 'plain' steel, but not cast iron or stainless steel or aluminum or some alloy steels (although those materials can be melted into slag ).

bubinga (and everyone else) :

The 'limit' with acetylene is that you are not supposed to withdraw (fuel flow rate) the acetylene at a rate higher than 1/7 of the fuel cylinder capacity so that acetone (the solvent in the acetylene cylinder that has the acetylene dissolved in it) actually stays in the cylinder and doesn't end up in the regulator (bad for the regulator and the hose).

example: you have a 40 ft3 B-sized acetylene cylinder. You should not have a fuel flow rate any higher than 40 / 7 = 5.7 ft3/hr with the tip size you are using. So no using an acetylene rosebud heating tip with that size tank.

There is no such cylinder size versus flowrate limit with propane. Although you might 'freeze up' a small propane cylinder with a larger tip.

 

[PugetDude]

I want to be able to cut and heat to be able to bend steel. Any recommendations.?

Oxy-Propane.

If all you're doing is cutting, heating, and bending steel...

 

[brownbagg]

if you talking tanks, buy them from your gas supplier, torches, not really much differnt, mainly price, new or uses, harris, victor both are good.

 

[n20junkie]

This set for $245 is a nice set. Comes with nice regulators, cutting and welding torches and tips, a rosebud hoses and more!

https://www.weldersupply.com/P/332/VictorMediumDutyPerforme

I paid $150 20 years ago for just the torch, which was way more than what you can get now.

That kit is all you need besides tanks and a cart (I use medium sized tanks that fit nicely on a slightly modified HF hand truck). Small package that I can store easily. The HF torch cart is a bit bigger, but is a pretty nice cart for the money if you have a little more space.

 

[sberry]

Yes, that is a good set and sized right for this crowd. Get "S" bottle of O and 140 Acety if you can for the heating tip and 25 more ft of hose.

 

[metalmagpie]

New Victor stuff is made in China. If it doesn't say "Made in USA" don't buy it. Also, be very leery of anything "by Victor" e.g. Medalist. Medalist stuff is made in Brazil.

Old Victor stuff is fine. I prefer Airco but that's just because I came out of a shipyard background where Airco ruled the roost. Victor was used in uptown construction.

I very rarely use acetylene. I nearly always use oxy/propane now. At least an order of magnitude cheaper, works fine for brazing, heating, and cutting. Just not welding. For that you still need acetylene. Same regulator, different cutting tips. Most welding/brazing tips will work about the same on either gas.

92 cf oxygen tanks are all owner tanks.
150 cf oxygen tanks are all owner tanks.
125 cf oxygen tanks can be either owner tanks or rental/lease tanks. Beware!

metalmagpie

 

[srr]

AND don't keep the thing in your garage! If the Acet. tank decides to blow a safety plug...well very bad fire will follow.

 

[bubinga]

AND don't keep the thing in your garage! If the Acet. tank decides to blow a safety plug...well very bad fire will follow.

0MG is that very common?

 

[GMCGarage]

If you have the money get a petrogen. I would not want a tank of Acetylene sitting around. Propane would be ok too.

 

[MJD1]

Never seen or heard of a plug popping in 30+ years of welding. I think having a disposable propane cylinder rusting thru is more likely to happen.

 

[trackwelder]

If you have the money get a petrogen. I would not want a tank of Acetylene sitting around. Propane would be ok too.

Why. Nothing wrong with Acetylene

 

[GMCGarage]

Why. Nothing wrong with Acetylene

Acetylene is flammable from about 2% to 81%. Gas is about 1.5% to 8%.
Acetylene is stored at about 250 psi, and can decompose explosively if hit by a shockwave (tank falling over?)
Tanks need to be hydro tested I think every 10 years.

I use Oxy-Acet alot. I just prefer the petrogen. They can use almost any fuel, and is easy to use, get the fuel, etc.

 

[exranger06]

If you decide to use propane, make sure your hoses are Grade T! Most oxy/acetylene hose sets are Grade R, and are only suitable for acetylene. Using propane will deteriorate the rubber from the inside out. Grade T hose can be used with pretty much anything: propane, acetylene, MAPP gas, etc.

 

[EVOLVO]

I like oxy/acetylene

 

[dr_clyde]

Some mis-information in this thread.

First, acetylene is perfectly safe if handled appropriately. While un-stabilized acetylene is explosive over 15psi, the acetylene in the cylinder is dissolved into acetone to keep it stable. I would have no problem keeping acetylene in my home garage. A cylinder falling over will not cause an explosion.

Second, the plug in an acetylene cylinder is a fuse plug, and is not pressure related. It is made of a metal that will melt in a fire to release the acetylene to prevent an explosion. If a fuse plug goes, the house is already on fire.

For occasional use, acetylene or propane will work fine. Be warned, you can't weld with propane. You will also need rated hose, tips, and regulators. Most kits come setup for acetylene. I'm a pro welding shop, and I use up a cylinder of acetylene once a year or so. I use a 8" diameter cylinder, which is fairly decent size.

I would get the medium size setup from Miller/Smith. I have one, and it works really well for general shop torch work.

As far as own vs lease, it seems like that's the wild wild west still. Every single welding supply has its own rules and they're all different. Airgas AFAIK will not sell a cylinder, they lease only, at least with the sizes I use. I won't do business with any welding supply that dicks around people on cylinders, and airgas is really good at being a bad welding supply. A mom and pop local shop is far more likely to be a good welding supply for the small guy.

I get the largest cylinders I can handle. The gas is far cheaper in quantity, and I hate changing out every 20 minutes.

 

[John in OH]

I think the concerns expressed here regarding the safety of oxy/acetylene sets is being blown (no pun intended) way out of proportion.

Every farm in my community has a set of oxy/acetylene cylinders in their workshop and in 68 years I have never heard of any of them having a fire, explosion, or any other accident as a result of keeping the tanks in their shops.

Maybe fires or accidents due to the misuse of the torches themselves, but not because of the tanks.

 

[PugetDude]

AND don't keep the thing in your garage! If the Acet. tank decides to blow a safety plug...well very bad fire will follow.

Is the sky falling?

 

[like2wheel]

Is the sky falling?

Yes.
Again.
Seems to happen all the time around here...

 

[2oolhound]

Getting back on topic here is some photos a member posted here several years back. I tried but couldn't find the original post but I saved these pics of his cart and hope the original owner/poster doesn't mind me reposting these photos. It's a nice cart.

 

[Samh]

Yes.
Again.
Seems to happen all the time around here...

To avoid this, I keep my Acetylene tanks outside and just plumb through some pvc lines inside

 

[Rewind97]

What a timely post. I was trying to heat some rebar to bend and my little Bernzomatic wasn't getting the job done. Like the O.P. I only need a set-up to heat, cut and bend. I will only use it VERY occasionally, like once a year or so.

 

[BukitCase]

There's been a fairly recent change in Acetylene withdrawal rate recommendation -
https://www.thefabricator.com/article/safety/fuel-your-safety-knowledge

Even at the older 1/7 rate I found I could ONLY run a SMALLER rosebud with the LARGEST acetylene tank, so I've had this set(recently added the hose reel) since the 70's... Steve

 

[dr_clyde]

To avoid this, I keep my Acetylene tanks outside and just plumb through some pvc lines inside

Hahahaha

 

[R. Deschain]

Getting back on topic here is some photos a member posted here several years back. I tried but couldn't find the original post but I saved these pics of his cart and hope the original owner/poster doesn't mind me reposting these photos. It's a nice cart.

That is a **** cart!

 

[like2wheel]

To avoid this, I keep my Acetylene tanks outside and just plumb through some pvc lines inside

Genius!

 

[brownbagg]

0MG is that very common?

no
not common

 

[850xpeps]

I use oxy/propane. Uses more oxygen then oxy/acyt but no big deal. Works fine with proper tip. I use the acetylene gauge and it works fine. Do all my work on our trucks and trailers and any steel cutting and bending with it. Works fine. I have oxygen in xpr tank so more expensive gauge but more in same size tank so it last longer. Then just a 20lb propane tank.