Torch sets

A friend asked about how much a torch kit for small farm use would cost and also to buy the bottles. Please don't get on to one brand over anouther or propane or acetelene. That is not what he needs to know now and over 30 years since I bought mine and tanks for about $220 new but times have changed. Just looking for only a ball park figure as I think he is going to think about half range of actuall costs. I know small propane tanks are cheap but is no good for welding and he would want to be able to weld with it as no electricity for an arc welder. Am I thinking that $800-$1,000 would be in the range for a good unit? High or Low?

Sounds close. The local welding supply can price this out to the penny for you.

I know but he lives in a different state and I do not know what dealers would even be there.

A $500.00 bill will get you a hand full of change for a set of tanks, a good torch set will be a little less. Watch around Christmas time, they usually go on sale then. If he will be doing any heating get a set with the rosebud.

I always had 2 types of tips, the cutting tip and the welding tip, is the rosebud tip the welding tip? And if it gets time for him to get a set he will have to do the legwork but it is kind of hard to go very far when you are driving a one horsepower buggy. Just trying to give him a ball park figure.

Good of you to help out your friend.....sounds like an Amish fellow with the one hp available..(oh, crap, I just misspelled - one hp...used an o after the h...really, no offense intended! But regarding tips- usually several welding/heating tips- ...ie, heating/welding tips available per size of the torch- depending on how much heat you need to generate, from soldering to really big time heating to straighten bent stuff! Or weld it back together. Cuttings tips, again, available in several sizes, are just meant for cutting. Rosebud is the tip you use to generate more extreme heat to heat a bigger area so you can bend a bigger piece of steel- either back to original, or where you want it to be. Each tip has a different operating pressure range, both oxy and acetylene, and comes with the manual to show you how to use it. Some use propane instead of acet....lower cost, but just for cutting up....like scrapping. Cost of torch set? I have no idea- bought my first in 1967, last one in late 80s, when parts were out for the first set. Same with tank costs- first were small so they fit in the trunk of a 65 Mustang, before farming.... 72, started farming, finally had a reral home, switched tanks to the next bigger ones- fit in the SHOP!.

When buying cylinders, MAKE sure you can exchange them for full ones where you bought them and the place has been around for a while. Also make sure that you actually own them and they aren't a lifetime(15 year lease). I say this because a place here used to call a 15 year lease lifetime. That company was bought out by a larger welding supply and the leases were no longer honored.

When getting prices make sure they are for filled cylinders and not empty cylinders. You might think you're getting a deal but then when you get them filled, there's another $200 or so added to the cost. Prices here are: 75 cu. ft. acetylene and 122 cu. ft. oxygen about $570 full, 150 acetylene and 244 oxygen about $740 full. A decent basic torch set starts at about $200 and a contractor set with a decent size rosebud (heating tip) is around $360. A top of the line set with several welding tips, heavy duty regulators and a rosebud is going to be $500/600 and more but you don't need that. Some basic sets come with a rosebud but it's so small you could heat just as much by using a larger tip in the cutting torch. You do need a larger acetylene cylinder with a big rosebud though. For comparison, cylinder leases are about $96/yr for each cylinder, so by the 3rd year lease you would be saving money with the outright purchase.

I would suggest a 75/122 combination and check with the welding supply if you can upgrade to larger cylinders in the future and just pay the difference in cylinder cost and cost of the larger fill. I'd go with a torch set in the $275 to $375 range depending on what you need. Get a name brand torch and make sure they have cutting and welding tips in stock as well as specialty tips for rivet cutting, gouging etc.Ask for a deal if you're buying cylinders and the torch set at the same time. You're estimate is right on the money. Another thing that could save you a little money when you need refills is to set up a charge account with the welding supply. Then you can negotiate a little better deal on refills. You can still pay at the time of purchase if you wish but your negotiated prices will be set up in the computer. Even if they give you a few bucks off of refills, it still saves you some money.

(quoted from post at 20:33:28 11/07/12) is the rosebud tip the welding tip?

Click to expand...

Leroy here is a picture of a rosebud.

Acording I never had a rosebud tip and evidently they probably don't make one for my torch, Think it was made by Victor but their cheaper line but has done me well for over 30 years, had one guage worked on several years ago and just had to have the cutting handle worked on. On my second set of hoses and in next year will probably have to replace them.

Yes, he is Amish and he knows of places to get the gas, just had never gotten to where he had felt the need for one enough for him to take a day off carpenter work to drive around checking prices but after having to learn to do more of the repair work on his old horse drawn machinery he is just starting to think about getting a unit.

Thanks for the reply. Could you elaberate a bit more on tank sizes. I do not know cu ft of mine but the acetlene measures about 35" tall and the oxygen measures 46" tall. What would be the cu ft of them so I have something to compair to. A year ago my company told me that the sizes I have that they can no longer sell to individual customers, only bussiness customers but as long as I have these no problem with getting them exchanged. They will only sell a smaller tank to people like me that are not a business. So how do mine compaie with the 75-122 set or the 150-244 set. That would help me advise him. And he agrees the owning them would make sence.

Here you go.

Acetylene cylinders are a bigger diameter than oxygen cylinders so are shorter. It sounds like you may have a 150 acetylene and a 122 oxygen cylinder. There are differences between cylinder manufacturers. The acetylene should have the capacity stamped on it. A lot of places don't sell oxygen over 80 cu. ft. or acetylene over 40 cu. ft.(B tank).