When’s the last time you acetylene welded?

[gears]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately?

 

[Geo-TH,In]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately?

I rarely use my touch. When I replaced AC compressors I would use silver solder and my acetylene torch.
I use a stick welder more than a mig welder.
When I was a kid I saw my dad repair the bell housing on a Farmall H, I think he used brass rods.
The pipe loader broke the bell housing.
His repair never failed.
My brother used coat hangers to weld with. I can't remember what he used for flux.
I think the acetylene torch was the first welder other than using a forge and the strongest welder.
I could be wrong.

 

[stoughtonfarmboy]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately

I rarely use my touch. When I replaced AC compressors I would use silver solder and my acetylene torch.
I use a stick welder more than a mig welder.
When I was a kid I saw my dad repair the bell housing on a Farmall H, I think he used brass rods.
The pipe loader broke the bell housing.
His repair never failed.
My brother used coat hangers to weld with. I can't remember what he used for flux.
I think the acetylene torch was the first welder other than using a forge and the strongest welder.
I could be wrong.

A good friend of mine fixed many a dented dirt bike pipe with a torches and a coat hanger. He has a set up to plug both ends of the pipe and add about 15 lbs of air pressure. Heat badly dented pipes with a rosebud tip and the dents usually popped back out. Occasionally a seam would tear open. Grab a coat hanger and patch it back together.

 

[SkipperII]

I rarely use my touch. When I replaced AC compressors I would use silver solder and my acetylene torch.
I use a stick welder more than a mig welder.
When I was a kid I saw my dad repair the bell housing on a Farmall H, I think he used brass rods.
The pipe loader broke the bell housing.
His repair never failed.
My brother used coat hangers to weld with. I can't remember what he used for flux.
I think the acetylene torch was the first welder other than using a forge and the strongest welder.
I could be wrong.

Wild guess would be borax for flux. I believe it was an old WWII Seebee that told me they used it.

 

[SkipperII]

I still gas weld, braze, and silver solder. Got to teach a newby, fresh out of welding school, how to braze recently.

 

[gears]

I never did like brazing, always refused to stick where I wanted it.

 

[stdsch40]

Silver brazed tungsten carbide to steel with a torch many times. Adjusting the flame was always fun, 2 ft long black soot flame then turn the O2 on and get some real heat.

 

[Ol 54']

I haven't braze welded in quite sometime, but used to umpteen years ago, and had fun doing it. I had a teacher once tell me just how strong braze welding really was. My father was always brazing up or arc welding his farming equipment when I was a youngster, I would be looking out the house window while he would be in the shop.

 

[randyrenfro7]

I use a tig for brazing sometimes where you don't want a lot of heat migration.

 

[Geo-TH,In]

Wild guess would be borax for flux. I believe it was an old WWII Seebee that told me they used it.

I think he did use 20 mule team borax. Keep in mind I'm 76 and this happened when I was a kid, but I think it was borax in a small box like baking soda comes in.

 

[MarkB_MI]

I gas weld or braze every now and then, but mostly I use my brazing tips to apply heat to stuff too small to use the cutting head on. Small fasteners, brake bleeders, etc.

 

[caterpillar guy]

I have not done it in a while now. I don't find gas welding to be very efficient since you have to get things hot then melt your coat hanger or what ever is used for it. It is just faster to use the welder and know what the rod is and what strength it will be versus a coat hanger and some unknowns. Brazing was always sort of a maybe it will stick and maybe not. IT has to be clean and free from oil and other debris to work well and some times ti has to act like it needs a tinning sort of deal to work. Never liked brazing much. And solder ing is the same principle as brazing. I find solder ing much easier to do . Can't explain why the difference when both have the same characteristics. I find flux is a pain that seems to make the brass rod not stick when trying to braze. Just makes a clear coating on the item so usually never use a flux to braze.

 

[sms]

I have always used a torch for welding thin material and brazing.

 

[Ultradog MN]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately?

I don't have mig or tig so for light stuff i still weld with oxy/acet though not real often. I use my torch more for brazing.
A friend brought over a cast part off a Ferguson industrial recently and I wasn't really sure if it was cast iron or cast steel with a spark test so out came the torch and brazing rod.

 

[Welding man]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately?

I gas weld, braze or silver solder something about every week. I have people come in my shop all the time saying, I wish you would teach me to TIG weld. I say, can you gas weld with a torch? Most say NO. I say go learn to gas weld and come back and I will show you how to TIG weld. You will have to learn on your own. If you can weld with a torch. Tig welding is very easy to learn. Takes the same basic skills. Only the heat source is different.

 

[JOCCO]

Actually I do it quite often mostly small or simple items nothing to major.

 

[wjytexas]

I don't gas oxy/act weld but I do forge weld. Sometimes with Borax and sometime with a flux/filings mix.

 

[Loosehandle]

I don’t know about you guys but I don’t often use my torches except to “loosen” things. I picked up my MIG about 30 years ago and it’s my go-to welder. Really HD stuff I might use 7018 and stick...

Picked up a 40 yr old VW Jetta and the manifold pipe had more holes than a flute!

I kept chasing holes through the rust when I remembered fabricating whole sections of dirtbike exhaust with my friend’s dad’s torches and several coat hangers...

First time I took the cutting tip off that I can remember. Amazing how much smoother real welding rod flows compared to coat hanger wires.

Anyone else torch weld lately?

Like most just for heating now, tanks have gotten expensive to fill. Plasma cutter can cut most things I would torch cut.

 

[560Dennis]

Interesting post ! thanks
Bought some thin crs from cutoffs at hardware store to practice oxya to pract ,got to find it and try it out . Thanks

 

[gears]

I gas weld, braze or silver solder something about every week. I have people come in my shop all the time saying, I wish you would teach me to TIG weld. I say, can you gas weld with a torch? Most say NO. I say go learn to gas weld and come back and I will show you how to TIG weld. You will have to learn on your own. If you can weld with a torch. Tig welding is very easy to learn. Takes the same basic skills. Only the heat source is different.

That is good to know WM, my new welder is a multi process (Lincoln MP210) and for the past 3 years I have been meaning to put the TIG torch on and try my hand at it. Trepidation and time have kept me from it.