Pros and cons of converting from acetylene to propane for...

Acetylene has gotten sooooo high lately and expected to continue to go higher. For $18.00 I can get a propane tip and understand the only thing to do is connect my gauge to a propane bottle and go. Seems like a win-win situation to me

Well I hate using propane in a cutting torch so take that into account. They usually cut slower as they do not generate as much heat. You can not braze or weld with propane. You also will use more oxygen cutting the same amount of stuff as you did with the Acetylene.

Propane works better in an entire propane cutting head not just changing the TIP.

More than likely the majority of the guys on here use propane as it is cheaper on the fuel side.

Since I bought a Plasma cutter I do not use the torch as much so my tank coast is low anyway.

It depends on what you are wanting to do. There are many articles on the subject. One example is:

http://www.cousesteel.com/AndysPlace/PropaneAcetylene.html

What are you doing with your torch?

If using the torch a lot chopping up scrap iron to preferred lengths for the scrapyards, I can see your point.

If for more limited/precision work, NO WAY.

Or, if making a lot of precision cuts, how about a plasma cutter?

Just like everyone else has said, it has its pros and cons. I have a full acetylene tank on my torch cart, along with a propane tank. I only use the acetylene for when I need to do neat and more precision cuts, or blowing broken bolts out. That's where it excels since it has so much less preheat time than propane. I just swap the tips back and forth between the propane and acetylene, and leave the adapter screwed right into the propane tank, so I just need to move the regulator from on to the other as well. I use the propane for rough cutting, or just hacking up scrap iron, but like JD Seller says, it uses quite a bit more oxygen. I don't know if I'd go so far as to say it uses twice as much oxygen, but probably 1.5 times as much oxygen with propane than I would with acetylene.

Ross

When I was very young, area farmers took their cutting and welding jobs to a local character. Then most farmers got their own welders, but we didn't have any torches at home. I took a job while still in high school and learned on-the-job how to use an oxy-acetylene torch. When I got my own torch set I was talked into MAPP gas. Some mixture of propane and something else. Just a little cooler. Lots cheaper, and very long lasting. I hated it. I didn't think that bottle was ever going to run out, because when it did, I was switching to acetylene. So long as acetylene is available, that's what I'll have. Just used it to heat and save a sprocket, and cut pulleys and bearings off three shafts on the back end of a fertilizer spreader.

I switched back in the 90's knew about it in the 80's since I made the swap I have never used up the bottle of Acetylene I have and doubt I ever will... 95% of what I do is heat from brazing tips to rosebuds Propane works for me...Using brazing tips can be aggravating with propane but its doable... I would wager 80% of what I do is with a brazing tip exhaust nuts and such...

I brought an induction heater it has its place but it never will be a torch... I can get into some tight places with brazing tips...

I doubt once to get the hang of it you will regret it... Worst case you have a back up plan when you run out of Acetylene...

try cutting 3/4 inch plate steel with propane then get back to us

I am sorry JD I hit the wrong button , that was meant for open forum

if I remember right, the propane uses about 3x the oxygen than acetylene does. my old welding supply house use to give me the propane because they were able to make more selling me oxygen. I would think filtering and compressing air would be pretty cheap for the supply houses.

Works fine with the right tip. Only pain is getting started. If you take a chisel and make a chip to light it off with its much faster.

I?ve been propane only since 1998 or so. Can buy 3 fills of oxygen for a bottle of actylene here. I might use an extra 20% oxygen with the longer pre-heating. BBQ tank of propane lasts forever.

It takes practice, different to set your flame than acetylene. I can cut through 1/2" stuff no problem. I have cut through 1" pieces and even 2" solid round stock. When I was in high school welding class, they had acetylene. I couldn't figure out how to use dad's propane torch. Propane is all I use now.

I cut 1/2 all the time on propane the trick is you have to up size the tip if you use a #2 on acetylene I use a #4 on propane been that way for 20 years

ken don't turn on the oxygen just the gas then slowly open your oxy I run my flame all the way down to the tip then open oxygen

You guys are all wrong! My neighbors are Big scrap dealers. They run their big torches on liquid oxygen and a 1000 gal lpg tank. Run 3 hoses third hose is tank pressure. Can cut a railroad engine or car from one side. Motor and electric motors are out. Also don't think they would use lpg if wasn't cheaper. They run a class operation. Also on a traveling torch you can turn the gas off. Saw a guy make a flywheel starter gear to put a 855 cummins in a a4T 1600 MM.

I switched to propane 3 years ago and had dad switch last year.
We probably save $ 200 / year each just on the tank rental for acetylene. Plus I alwas ran out on Sunday. I have two O2 tanks so that solves that. And 4 BBQ propane bottles and at dads we have a big 4' tank from running the torpedo heater.

Yes propane uses 1.5 x more O2 and takes a bit longer to heat up.... but not too long.
I just took a link out of my excavator track. No trouble heating the bushing to make knocking the pin out easier and the dead link I cut through the 1 1/4 " pin and the bushing on the link to remove it.

It's not as pretty or accurate as acetylene but that's what grinders are for.

In my mind, I wish we had made the switch 10 years ago.
Grant

Propane will also destroy the actylene hose. At least back when I had my shop they sold different hoses for propane and actylene.

I use propane for my torch. As much as I use a torch, propane serves me well.

I switched with propane 35 years ago and am still using the same hoses.

Propane is only good for metal cutting, not welding.

Been using propane 40 years , learned to braze with it and can braze anything that will take brass . It is harder to light brazing tip once you figure that out no problem. 5 gallon bottle will last through 3 oxygen

Airgas and Praxair have the market cornered where I live and neither will exchange/fill my acetylene tanks so I use propane. I've thought about driving over to Greenville with my tanks to see if there's any place that want's to fill or exchange my customer owned tanks. Only mom and pop I'm aware of is Electro-Tech out on 66 at 69. Where do you get your supplies?

Here's some facts (not just opinions) that might help you with your decision. Acety-oxy mix burn's at max 5,700F, Propane-oxy mix burn's at 5,100F max. That's 10% difference. Once metal is preheated and cut has been started,the fuel can be turned off (acety or propane make's no difference) and you can finish cutting a 48" plate as long as you don't lose the cut. The ONLY reason an acetylene regulator doesn't work as well with propane as it does with acety is if it's an"idiot proof regulator"that will not adjust higher than 15psi. If you aren't familiar with 1/10th and 1/15th draw rate for acetylene,look it up before using a rosebud or large tip. That doesn't apply to propane but for heavy and continuous use,have a backup tank handy incase pressure drop's too far to support flame. High quality grade R hose work's and last's just fine with propane. The rub is that standards for R hose alow's low quality hose to meet standards and be sold. T grade standards are much higher for flame resistance,breaking strength and such so you will not find sub-quality T hose for sale anywhere that carrier's insurance. If your hose is on it's last leg,for goodness sake replace it with Grade T even if using acetylene. It's not that much more expensive than QUILITY R hose. There's no need for a special handle unless you want one of those 4 foot long scrapper's outfit. Acety tips don't work worth spit with propane,buy 2 piece tips and for precision cuts,don't oversize tip. Flame adjustment is different. There is no smoke or black nasties floating through the air so start with small flame,add oxy,add acety,add oxy back and forth until flame whistles(a little practice will show you exactly how) then set to neutral. During pre-heat and cutting,hold tip farther away from metal,(again a little pratice and experimenting will let you see where to hold). If you get excess doss,use more oxy pressure.

These are opinion,check them out for yourself. Half the people that say propane sucks are using acety tips,don't do that,you won't like the results. The other half say it sucks because it isn't hot enough to weld. That's not even half true. Heat has nothing to do with it,the problem is that unlike acety,propane doesn't shield puddle. Welding with propane is akin to peeling all the flux off a 6010 rod then attempting to make a suitable weld. It is true that propane is usless for welding but anyone that tell's you it won't braze is wrong,I do it often.

Don't forget to tell me about friendly gas suppliers up you way,I need to start trading with someone besides my local Airgas.

Some work for both,some don't. At least that's how it was.

I've used both. Right now using propane.Been there for 20+ years. Dad has an acetylene torch. I use them both. I solder with propane all the time. Don't know that I have tried brazing with the propane. Don't braze much. If it will weld i do that. For accurate cuts the tip make more difference than the gas. I cut some pretty tight tolerance holes and such with propane. I've cut some inch plate many times with propane. So the BS you can't cut more than 1/2 inch is nonsense.

Don?t remember when I switched to propane. My instructor at a welding course recommended it to me. I know I switched about the time my welding supply started only offering one year tank leases, and raising the price every year.

I have more problems controlling the cut with my shakey hand and poor vision than I can blame on the difference in fuel gas. Brazing is no problem for me, and pretty much anything that gets welded around here is now done with a MIG. Every one else in a while I want to do a leak free weld in thin steel, that is when I miss the acetylene. I usually jus MIG and use some sort of sealer if it won?t hold.

(quoted from post at 18:32:20 01/21/19) try cutting 3/4 inch plate steel with propane then get back to us

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Yeah farmer, like how many of us are ever going to cut 1/2 inch let alone 3/4?

Ran out of acetylene trying to heat a 3/4" bar to bend it to shape. Had a propane tip, so put the regulator on the grill tank. The propane heated that bar up to glowing red in a fraction of the time I'd been trying to heat it with acetylene. Works good enough for me.

look up US GAS & Supply they are one half the price as Airgas, at least they are in my area, that is on the Mississippi coast

I did for years for financial and accessibility reasons. Now, some 35ish years later I'm back, both problems solved, and glad of it. Just works better.

I like to gas weld so I stick with acetylene . Gas is not that expensive here.

(quoted from post at 09:06:04 01/22/19) look up US GAS & Supply they are one half the price as Airgas, at least they are in my area, that is on the Mississippi coast

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UNBELIEVABLE! I sent them an e-mail and within 20 minutes I heard back from the store manager AND sales rep of their location 18 miles from me. Never heard of nor noticed their place until today. In the event anyone else in N. Tx is interested,113 Industrial Blvd,McKinney Tx Phone: 469.617.7840
Fax: 469.617.7837 Thanks farmer

I live just south of Greenville about six miles, I got a tip from
Lektro- Tech there on 69.

Started using propane nearly 3 years ago when I switched jobs. Still find myself having to turn up the flame to cut anything.