DIY butane torch?

[Captain Jaz]

Hey guys n gals, I am in Cape Verde, and they don't sell Butane torches here - neither a hose torch or ones for a disposable bottle (my previous one died, but they don't sell refill bottles anyway). What are your thoughts on making one from scratch to attach to my butane bottle? It is currently fitted with a standard low pressure regulator (camping gas). I have a bronze ball gate valve and copper tubing, and the means to fabricate stuff. What measures could I take to prevent the flame backing up the tube? Or would the regulator prevent that? If there is something I am missing then please explain what and give suggestions to overcoming the problem. Thanks.

 

[SloopJonB]

Just have someone hold your beer and watch you.

 

[Captain Jaz]

Lol, already got drink holders  I have my priorities straight 

So my proposed idea is ok then? I guessed it might be, but wanted to check.

 

[Marcjsmith]

Part of getting the gas to burn is the proper fuel/air ratio

and getting that is a proper Venturi effect that blends the air and fuel.

gonna be a lot of trial and error to get it right. Plus if you look at the tips of most torches, it’s not usually a straight tube...

so while getting the fuel to burn is not that difficult,  getting to burn right is the hard part.

take pics

 

[Captain Jaz]

Part of getting the gas to burn is the proper fuel/air ratio

and getting that is a proper Venturi effect that blends the air and fuel.

gonna be a lot of trial and error to get it right. Plus if you look at the tips of most torches, it’s not usually a straight tube...

so while getting the fuel to burn is not that difficult,  getting to burn right is the hard part.

take pics

Yea, I have seen that the tips of most torches have holes in them, I assume for air mixing. I plan to have a 80 degree bend or so for ergonomics. I'll take pics when I start the project.

 

[zenmasterfred]

Can I be written into your will if this doesn't go well?  Maybe you will qualify for a post humous Darwin award. :wub:

 

[SloopJonB]

So my proposed idea is ok then? I guessed it might be, but wanted to check.

In case you didn't get the joke, your idea is very bad.

Hillbilly engineering a butane torch is a very good way to blow yourself up and/or burn your boat to the waterline.

Don't do it.

 

[Captain Jaz]

In case you didn't get the joke, your idea is very bad.

Hillbilly engineering a butane torch is a very good way to blow yourself up and/or burn your boat to the waterline.

Don't do it.

Thanks for the advice. But that is why I was looking for people with knowledge. Please explain why. I am not a hillbilly engineer, I have experience with metal working. But I need to know what the issues I am facing are.

If there are specialist parts I need I may be able to get them locally ie. parts for a stove etc. I am willing to accept that it might not be possible, but I want details to be able to make that decision myself. So if it is beyond your expertise please don;t bother commenting. Thanks

 

[Captain Jaz]

No, I didn't realise you were joking, because I asked that only people that knew what they were talking about comment.

If you're of the opinion that only shop brough items are any good, you won't last long if you ever go cruising in third world countries. If I wanted to just stick a pipe on the end of the hose and call it good, I wouldn't be here asking questions.

Unless you can explain why, then your opinion is just that, and not what I am looking for.

Honestly, I left Cruisers Forum partly because I am sick of people who don't have any knowledge on the subject in question offering "advice". Next person that does it gets blocked. If you can't be useful then stop wasting my time.

 

[Zonker]

I've cruised a lot in 3rd world countries but sometimes the answer is you can't get it here and wait until the next country. Find a welder with an oxy/acetlene torch and use a low flame if you can get whatever off the boat you need to heat up. Use a soldering iron if it's a smaller fastener that needs heating. Borrow a backpackers little gas stove. 

If you come asking for advice and people are genuinely concerned about you not blowing yourself up, don't be an asshole either. 

 

[Bristol-Cruiser]

I agree and have cruised extensively in third world countries. This seems like a very bad, dangerous idea.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

And the reason I also don’t patronize CF is that it’s a shitshow, I agree.The nice thing about SA is that the morons are generally sent away. If you want validation for a bad idea, here is not the place. And yours is a bad idea, especially since you have to ask an Internet forum how to do it. Welding goes on in the 3d world, they buy their stuff somewhere 

 

[Captain Jaz]

And the reason I also don’t patronize CF is that it’s a shitshow, I agree.The nice thing about SA is that the morons are generally sent away. If you want validation for a bad idea, here is not the place. And yours is a bad idea, especially since you have to ask an Internet forum how to do it. Welding goes on in the 3d world, they buy their stuff somewhere 

Your comment seems reasonable, but what I am hearing is that people don't have the skills to carry out this project themselves so therefore neither do I. Generally, that may not be an unreasonable assumption, but they know nothing about me. I have lived on a ship for most of my adult life, and worked in marine salvage and boatbuilding, in countries where there are not the resources to do things "properly", which requires engineering and fabrication know-how. So please do not doubt my fabrication skills. The issue is that I do not have experience with this particular job. I know how to do research, but I also value first-hand knowledge. 

As for these other commenters - yes, I get it, mummy said don't play with fire. Kindly take your gold star and gtfo.

 

[Captain Jaz]

I've cruised a lot in 3rd world countries but sometimes the answer is you can't get it here and wait until the next country. Find a welder with an oxy/acetlene torch and use a low flame if you can get whatever off the boat you need to heat up. Use a soldering iron if it's a smaller fastener that needs heating. Borrow a backpackers little gas stove. 

If you come asking for advice and people are genuinely concerned about you not blowing yourself up, don't be an asshole either. 

Unfortunately those ideas are at two different extremes from what I require, which is paint striping and loosening rust from stuck bolts - a soldering iron would not be hot enough, and oxy-acetylene would be over-kill. Thanks for the input though, I guess I should have made my intended use clearer. I live on a steel hulled ship btw, just in case you were worried I was going to use it to strip paint from a plastic boat

Yes, I tried very hard to be polite, but the comments assumed that I was unskilled, meanwhile I have probably 10x more skill and sail miles than 90% of the people here. But I try to be humble, though it seems that I am going to face exactly the same bigotry here as I did on CF - I am 40 years old, and not 60, and therefore my experience is less valuable then their ignorance. If chinese children can build these torches, so can I. What I am asking for is what I need to consider to do so safely. If people don't know, fine, but that doesn't give them the right to leave a derisive comment.

With all due respect, I earned the right to be confident in my skills, so I don't feel the need to allow other people to talk down to me. I appreciate the fact that I am able to speak my mind here though, as unpopular as that may be. 

 

[IStream]

Unfortunately those ideas are at two different extremes from what I require, which is paint striping and loosening rust from stuck bolts - a soldering iron would not be hot enough, and oxy-acetylene would be over-kill. Thanks for the input though, I guess I should have made my intended use clearer. I live on a steel hulled ship btw, just in case you were worried I was going to use it to strip paint from a plastic boat

Yes, I tried very hard to be polite, but the comments assumed that I was unskilled, meanwhile I have probably 10x more skill and sail miles than 90% of the people here. But I try to be humble, though it seems that I am going to face exactly the same bigotry here as I did on CF - I am 40 years old, and not 60, and therefore my experience is less valuable then their ignorance. 

With all due respect, I earned the right to be confident in my skills, so I don't feel the need to allow other people to talk down to me. I appreciate the fact that I am able to speak my mind here though, as unpopular as that may be. 

I don't think those words mean what you think they mean.

 

[Captain Jaz]

I don't think those words mean what you think they mean.

If you look at my original comment you see that I was polite, and asked only for answers from people that knew what they were talking about. Being humble does not mean that I shouldn't be honest about what my skills are, although clearly I should have made it clearer in my original post.

 

[CriticalPath]

Unfortunately those ideas are at two different extremes from what I require, which is paint striping and loosening rust from stuck bolts - a soldering iron would not be hot enough, and oxy-acetylene would be over-kill. Thanks for the input though, I guess I should have made my intended use clearer. I live on a steel hulled ship btw, just in case you were worried I was going to use it to strip paint from a plastic boat

Yes, I tried very hard to be polite, but the comments assumed that I was unskilled, meanwhile I have probably 10x more skill and sail miles than 90% of the people here. But I try to be humble, though it seems that I am going to face exactly the same bigotry here as I did on CF - I am 40 years old, and not 60, and therefore my experience is less valuable then their ignorance. 

With all due respect, I earned the right to be confident in my skills, so I don't feel the need to allow other people to talk down to me. I appreciate the fact that I am able to speak my mind here though, as unpopular as that may be. 

Carry on, Captain Jiz, you got this...

Cheers!

 

[snubber]

1. You can use oxy-acetylene to heat stuck bolts, without cutting or melting them. Heat them orange-hot, then quench them with a shot of water. Usually breaks them loose. You probably already know this.

2. I have tried this process with a propane cylinder without luck. Cannot heat the bolts to orange, just to frustration.

3. There are gasoline and kerosene fueled blowtorches. They are sold as antiques in the US, but you might find them where you are.

SA used to have a fun hazing ritual for noobs. It involved the old timers insulting the noobs. Noobs with thin skin sulked off.  Those with knowledge and skills stayed. It resulted in an ecological/intellectual space populated with smart people who demonstrated their knowledge via the content of their answers, not by citing how far they had sailed or what boat they owned. Acquiring wisdom is a subtle process.

Snubs

 

[Captain Jaz]

And the reason I also don’t patronize CF is that it’s a shitshow, I agree.The nice thing about SA is that the morons are generally sent away. If you want validation for a bad idea, here is not the place. And yours is a bad idea, especially since you have to ask an Internet forum how to do it. Welding goes on in the 3d world, they buy their stuff somewhere 

Anyway, I guess I should have also pointed out that this is not for welding, but paint striping and loosening rust. I do not have access to a machine shop, but  I can do some pretty good fabrication with the tools I have. I am not seeking validation for a bad idea, I want to know what is required to do this properly, and then I will make my own judgements as to whether or not I can achieve that with the tools and supplies that are available to me.