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Trucker
02-21-2002 20:12:37
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Re: Oxy/Ac Safety. in reply to Chopper, 02-19-2002 05:11:59
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I think I would buy some for the lines.Being a beginner theres a lot of stuff you want to learn and remember.Dont turn that acetalene over 15 pounds of pressure on the working side,allways back the gauges off to zero. Release the pressure on the lines after you turn off the tanks.Dont wear any blue jeans that have fringes when using the torch or you will catch on fire.Allways wear good leather gloves when using the torch,allways wear goggles,with the right shade for a torch,which is about 4,allways keep the fittings clean,dont use any oil on the fittings for the lines or anywhere on the torch.Its best to wear cotton clothes without fringes or holes in them,dont ever wear those real thin shirts that are made out of nylon because they will catch on fire.Wear boots,not tennis shoes,maybe even invest in some leathers as if you are under something cutting its about the only way to keep sparks off of your arms,and maybe even one of those welding helmets with a flip up clear lens if you plan on cutting underneath something to keep sparks from falling down your shirt,and in your ears.Be aware of what is going on around you,keep your tanks chained in a dolly,or if you dont have one, chained to a wall or post or smoething,if a tank gets knocked over and the valve knocked off its a deadly missile.Allways watch for fire,and you need a fire extinguisher,and keep it filled,and know where it is before you start using the torch.If you dont know what you are doing,ask somebody that might have done it before.Know what every gauge,knob,tip,line,fitting is before you ever even light it.It sounds like a lot,but it is serious,you do not want this piece of equipment to get out of hand with you.It sounds worse than it is,but it can start a fire or be in an unusable condition very easily.Never drive over the hoses,or in any way put them in a situation that they might get cut or even frayed,if you get the lines on fire I dont know what you would do,you see you have to treat it with respect.Its a great tool,and used with common sense it will last a long time and save you many dollars and hours of time you would have spent with a hacksaw or chisel trying to take something apart.Used wrongly,and mistreated it can be very dangerous,and you might not even know that you are mistreating it if you dont learn as much as you can about it.When you think about it you dont really want to skimp anywhere on your torch,you want to look at it like its a Mercedes or something,You wouldnt want to drive a Mercedes around with the front fender off of it,so you dont want your torch lacking in a safety device that might keep you alive someday.I dont know what those valves cost,but they were about 15 bucks years ago when I bought mine,I think that would be fairly cheap to keep the line from catching on fire inside.You might get a burn back and not even know it.I dont even know if those valves would completely insure that you wont.You want to treat it like it could happen even with the burnback valves and you will be a lot better off.
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