[TheForge] MAPP gas vs. acetylene

[jerry Frost]

Thanks Pete but the trickle charger isn't really my idea. Allstates offers
or used to offer a scratch lighter (my term) but like everything else
Allstates it was darned expensive so I tried one of the trickle chargers I
have laying around and it worked. And that's the rest of the story.
sometimes it gets cold enough it will basically stop your battery from
working so putting a few amps of charge on it keeps it warm enough to start
your car. New batteries aren't as susceptible but most of us old timers have
enough trickle chargers for every vehicle we own and a spare or two.

I like gas savers, been using them since I was old enough to hold torch for
Dad, say 9 or so and he used them during WWII. I don't know if "Gas Saver"
is a brand name or not but the tool has been around a long time,
inexpensive, simple and effective. Sweet tool only downsides being: it
limits you to where you can hang the torch and there's an exposed pilot
light. The pilot light is a really minor issue considering you'd be
operating a torch and looking at it every time you hang or pick the torch.
The thing I find the only problem is being stuck close to the bottles, I'm
pretty mobile with the torch and often wish I had longer hoses. 

The melt a cube of steel demo with the Allstates rig is done with 100+psi
oxy. The propane is metered into the torch through a venturi system so
cranking the oxy really pumps the BTUs. The Allstates #5 heater (rosebud)
under more than 100psi oxy will melt a cubic inch of steel in under 13
seconds. A maxed out oxy acet rosebud has a moderate roar, a maxed Allstates
rosebud shrieks painfully loudly, you can't shout a conversation anywhere
near it. If I run the #5 under say 20psi oxy it operates like any other
rosebud with a moderate roar,  quieter than my forge.

Jer
-----Original Message-----
From: TheForge [mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Peter
Fels & Phoebe Palmer
Sent: Sunday, September 21, 2014 10:47 PM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
Subject: Re: [TheForge] MAPP gas vs. acetylene

Your trickle charger ignition is brilliant Jerry.
We agree that for heavier heating and cutting the Harris/Allstates is great.
The thumb valve is nifty, though a $125 gas saver does most of that.
But even the Harris version is quite expensive. It's a big , heavy, clumsy
,HD device.
It lacks finesse and isn't easy to use for smaller work. It cuts thin stuff
fast, but it's a wide, wasteful cut that is restricted to flat arcs and
straight lines. The smallest cutting tip is pretty big.
Speaking of the mock Allstates torch set up. I managed to get a heating tip
set, with Bill's patient advice.
But it's a bit different  than yours in that it uses a conventional
adjustable propane regulator and i think uses a slightly different mixer.
It takes about 30 seconds to bring a 1" cube to yellow, which is a lot
faster than my old heavy rosebud..
That's twice the time you report achieving, but Bill had indicated the
results should be equal. Guess not.
Still curious about the actual part numbers on your mixer, heating tip and
regulator.

On Sep 21, 2014, at 11:16 PM, jerry Frost wrote: