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Propane vs Acetylene for cutting?

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Danny

03-01-2003 08:50:12




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Does anyone have any experience using propane instead of acetylene with your torches? I have been told that some of the scrap yards do this.




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Danny

03-07-2003 20:37:26




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
Gee! Thanks for all of the input. I think that I will stick with what I know and use the acetylene.



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mike

03-02-2003 12:03:35




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
well it seems like propane is the winner. I will put in my two cents. Unless you are going to be doing a lot of cutting, use acetylene. It preheats faster uses less oxygen and is safer. Let me explain safer. Yes acetylene can explode if over 15 psi, or shocked with a sledge hammer like impact.And it can explode violently if mixed exactly right with pure oxygen.But, propane is heavier than air, and if there is ever a leak it will settle to the floor and concentrate their. And unlike acetylene which has a very narrow explosive mixture range, propane has a very wide one. Acetylene is lighter than air and rises and dissipates if there is ever a leak. The reason the big companies use it is because they do a large amounts and have good safety programs to keep people on there alert. If I started out with propane I guess I would never know how much better acetylene is and gotten used to it. There is not a whole lot of difference but there is some noticible temperature difference. Heck, look how much it costs to fill up your gas tank. Do you refill your bottles every week? If so then propane would be very attractive. If your like me and refill them couple of times a year ( I own them which helps a whole lot), then go with acetylene. my two cents, take or leave it regards, mike

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Farmer /Paul

03-02-2003 03:54:19




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
I have used Propane to cut and have had no trouble at all, if set properly on clean steel it will cut almost as good as a plasma cutter. I have used it to braze and to weld aluminum sheet metal.



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KEG

03-01-2003 19:36:04




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
Please explain a little more. So...if I want to cut with propane, I need to get a standard torch outfit, change the tip, get a 20# propane tank, and an oxygen tank? Seems so simple, and cheap, that I'm surprised more people aren't using it. Thanks for the help.

KEG



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Paul Janke

03-01-2003 20:21:04




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 Re: Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to KEG, 03-01-2003 19:36:04  
If you are buying a new outfit the propane one will have a little different regulator. Acetylene is not to be used at over 15 PSI. Propane regulators allow higher pressures. It's safer to use acetylene regulator with propane than the other way around.



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Barry

03-01-2003 17:58:16




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
Propane is a lot cleaner burning, I'm not sure about a cleaner cut.



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Paul Janke

03-01-2003 14:28:26




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
Propane takes longer to get the metal hot enough to start cutting. I've been told it is a cleaner cut. You can't weld with propane because it isn't hot enough.



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Jon Hagen

03-01-2003 10:08:38




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
It works great,the only new part you need is the cutting tip designed for propane. The acetylene regulator has the same tank fitting and works fine. I wish I had converted mine 20 years ago I added another pad on the front of the welding cart between the oxygen and acetylene tanks for a 20# propane tank. Makes the cart more stable and makes for a quick change back to acetylene for a gas welding job. Most of my work is cutting and am still on the first bottle of propane in the time that I would have used 2-3 tanks of acetylene.

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Alan

03-01-2003 19:00:35




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 Re: Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Jon Hagen, 03-01-2003 10:08:38  
I agree. I have been using it for twenty plus years. Works great and more economical. You can braze with it, just get the right tip and flame and some low temperature welding rod.



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Russ Smart

03-01-2003 09:21:10




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 Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Danny, 03-01-2003 08:50:12  
must be the cheapest way to cut steel. our local new steel supplier uses it to cut lenths.



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MPK

03-01-2003 20:46:48




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 Re: Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Russ Smart, 03-01-2003 09:21:10  
I have used propane for about 30 years for mostly cutting and like it fine. All I did was get a new tip. The tip lasts a lot longer too. So much easier to clean the tip too. Like One guy told me you can clean the tip with a jacknife.



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Richard Fazio

03-02-2003 08:51:37




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 Re: Re: Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to MPK, 03-01-2003 20:46:48  
What's the difference with the tip? Is it a bigger tip or smaller?



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Big Mike

03-02-2003 14:03:41




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Propane vs Acetylene for cutting? in reply to Richard Fazio, 03-02-2003 08:51:37  
The tip for propane is a two piece tip.The outer piece is copper and the inner piece is brass.They are available in the same cutting orfice sizes as the acetelyne tips. Lots eaiser to clean. I use a piece of broken tapemeasure and slide it down the grooves to clean them...Big Mike



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