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This torch allows a small and concise flame that is about one quarter to three eights of an inch long.The manufacturer quality seems to be excellent.The attachments are intended for the use buy a hobbyist and should be considered a consumable if used more than occasionally.
I just couldn't master it, always melting the silver or making glass of the flux. This is my second one, I wore out the first, then I tried the duel fuel Gentec. For the price, convenience and performance this is the torch I choose. This little propane torch is great if you don't want to mess around with the fuel-oxy kind. Very simple yet hot enough for my jewelry making. The oxy bottles were about $10 and didn't last very long.
The torch is easy to light, but I'd like to mention some safety procedures my rocket scientist son taught me, which are not clearly indicated in the package directions. This tool is a great addition to my studio. But the nice small handpiece of this torch, which feels a lot like the handpiece of my flexible shaft machine, is ergonomically designed and very comfortable to hold, offering greater control. It takes less than a minute, but that's how he was taught to do it in his college labs, so this extra step seems like a good idea to me.
When you are done soldering a piece, turn off the handpiece first, then the tank, reversing the way you turned it on, which was tank first, then torch. The torch is so easy to light with a striker that I've become completely comfortable using it, and use it many times each day. Combined with an inexpensive firebrick, a solder-rite board and/or charcoal block set on top of a shallow pan full of some heat-resistant material, which could be set on a rotating lazy susan type thing, all set on top of a heavy workbench covered with a big sheet of welding steel (less than $15 at your local home center), this torch will perform as well or better than a much more expensive two-tank system. Before I got this torch, I was using a Blazer with triple-refined butane to make sterling, copper, and brass bezels. The pointy flame is a dream come true. This is a fantastic torch setup for your bench at home.
It is easy and inexpensive to replace your propane tanks, which you won't need to do very often. I have tried the torch tips and hoses available at the big box home centers, and they do not work nearly as well, though both work well enough to melt hard solder easily. After you turn off the tank, open the valve on the handpiece, wait for it to stop hissing, and then close the handpiece valve. That works great, but this is even better, and it works fast -- be prepared for that solder to run sooner than you think it will. Don't let the low price fool you. I work in my basement with a window open.
This exhausts any gas remaining in the hose.
I am using it 4-6 hours a day. It has limited power but it is light and easy to use + it has a pencil tip that just makes the cleanest solder for silver and copper. BERNZOMATIC ST900D Mini Torch #019527 This is the answer. I love this little torch. It does not work on gold.I may get another just to have a backup.
I was surprised to see that the tips were stated to have a catalytic element that under optimal condition may last as much as 10 hours use. The kits are not sold most places that sell the torch. I will be looking for another supplier and may well send the ST900D back to Amazon. When I got my torch from Amazon, I read the instruction booklet. The other was a small butane model whose filler receptacle failed. Since, they make a big deal about it going 30 hours on a single tank of gas, you might think it would be mentioned that your tips won't last that long. The is no mention of any of this on the Bernzomatic website.
The tips are only sold as a kit and that is if you can find it. I get the sense that Bernzomatic doesn't actually have any interest in supporting their products. So, when I saw the ST900D, I was not too sure about another Bernzomatic. They are not sold individually, You must buy a "kit" with all 3 tips ($15 each). This is a throwaway tool that is not likely to last the 30 hours that your propane tank does.Longer version:This is my second Bernzomatic solder tool. But, given the features, the use of a user supplied propane take and interchangeable tips, I decided to go for it.
I assumed that I could buy a box of the solder tips. Buy it, use it a few times, throw it away and buy another one. Short version: The 3 tips provided last a maximum of 10 hours use and must be replaced. Sadly, Bernzomatic does nat provide any repair or replacement parts for this. but no.
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