Thread: Gas Torches Yet Again

Originally Posted by RayG

I'd be interested in seeing how that Rothenberger unit compares with the Bullfinch 404, both from a cost point of view and performance. The Bullfinch was £89.15 plus Shipping was £35.00 Total: £124.15

Did you find the UK bottle fittings different? The Australian POL thread is different to the UK 5/8 LH BSP

Ray

Hey Ray, how come your Bullfinch is a 404, and mine is a 4100 ?

What's the difference ?

Edit. Looks like just a sales pitch for the same unit. Same 4100 handle and 4104 burner tip etc, just sold as a 404 (kit?) I suppose.

I tried to check EH Cambridge to see what they call them now, but the page doesn't load.

Had mine so long I can't remember what it was sold as.

Rob

Originally Posted by nearnexus

Hey Ray, how come your Bullfinch is a 404, and mine is a 4100 ?

What's the difference ?

Edit. Looks like just a sales pitch for the same unit. Same 4100 handle and 4104 burner tip etc, just sold as a 404 (kit?) I suppose.

I tried to check EH Cambridge to see what they call them now, but the page doesn't load.

Had mine so long I can't remember what it was sold as.

Rob

Hi Rob,

I remember looking at that, they are the same thing, the 404 is the kit number which contains the 4100 handle, 4104 tip etc..

http://www.gasproducts.co.uk/acatalo...Torch_Kit.html

The EH Cambridge page doesn't load for me either?

Ray

Be really interesting to see how Dean's unit goes with GP rod.

Rob

Originally Posted by RayG

I'd be interested in seeing how that Rothenberger unit compares with the Bullfinch 404, both from a cost point of view and performance. The Bullfinch was £89.15 plus Shipping was £35.00 Total: £124.15

Did you find the UK bottle fittings different? The Australian POL thread is different to the UK 5/8 LH BSP

Ray

It appears that my memory was a bit off, after less than one day.

The torch kit was (Damn, my phone has the Pound symbol!) £67.54 (copied Ray's ) Freight was £34.00 and the total was £101.53. (Say What ? I saved £0.01)

This kit does not come with a regulator with it so a separate one is required. I am using the regulator that came with my Oxy/LPG kit which means I have full pressure adjustment and a gauge. The hose went straight on.

It did not do as well as I expected with the brazing rod. What I found is that it was hard to concentrate the heat in the right area. The end of the nozzle is 20mm internal diameter. The flame spreads out from this. This gives a large area of heating.

Brazing Soldering Test Rothenberger Torch.jpg

The silver soldering on 3/4 copper was fine, as expected.

The 2 rods are about 6mm diameter. They brazed together ok, but this only used 1 edge of the flame. A smaller concentrated flame would be much easier.

I am wondering if it would be feasible to make a nozzle? I have seen tips listed for this torch, but I cannot find them.

Dean

I realised the last sentence did not read as intended.

I have seen illustrations of nozzles purported to be for this torch, but have been unable to find them since. I think that was when I first started looking at this torch.

Originally Posted by Oldneweng

It did not do as well as I expected with the brazing rod. What I found is that it was hard to concentrate the heat in the right area. The end of the nozzle is 20mm internal diameter. The flame spreads out from this. This gives a large area of heating.

Dean

Hi Dean,

This is half what I expected.

Lots of guns have lots of output, but it's not concentrated enough to be useful - for hard brazing.

That's why the Bullfinch is in a class of it's own.

I chatted with the EH Cambridge demonstrator at the field days about other guns, and they had tested many, but only the Bullfinch really did the job in their estimation.

In the video below where I demonstrate the unit, it does the brazing job in a little over 30 seconds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGwKuYP-RNo

Rob

I think I may have cracked it.

http://www.rothenberger.com/en/produ...razing-torch-/

Different name. Although the link says brazing torch, and the heading on the page does also, this is a link to a brazing nozzle listing.

Their website is not very user friendly and this seems to carry over to their stockists.

These nozzles are available in 12mm, 18mm and 28 mm diameter which presumably are the ones pictured, because there is also a fourth picture showing 5 different sizes.

Dean