Oxy / Acetylene,.. You guys having "sticker shock" too ?

I have held off on buying a plasma cutter for years,... Yes I have used them and like them, But I have always been a torch guy when it comes to cutting up steel to make brackets,... not to brag, but I have always been pretty good at cutting steel with a torch.

I have two big sets of torches, and a small plumbers set, that has gone with me to to pick up project cars, junkyards & sometimes even a swap meet or two. I went recently to get the little sets bottles refilled,.... And when they told me the total,.. I actually said to the counter guy,... "No that cant be right,.. I didn't bring in my big bottles,..."

He said,.. no,.. thats right !,... I haven't had to refill the big bottles in quite some time,.. I hardly do any gas welding anymore,.. I mostly just use the torches for cutting. So is this going on in your area as well ?,.... Dang !,.. I guess this is how Rip Van Winkle felt when he woke up.

Sorry for the ramble,.... but I think in the long run it will be a lot cheaper to buy a nice plasma cutter.

 

It's getting high around here too. I don't really want to fill mine but I am going to have to bite the bullet and just do it.

 

There will always be a need for a torch, hard to heat and bend things with a plasma
cutter.

 

Two things come to mind. YOu can't take the plasma cutter to the junk yard and you can't just heat anyting with a plasma. Other than that I agree with your accessment of the OA setups being kinda spendy to keep filled.
another one of those "damned if you do/damned if you don't" kinda deals.

Frank

 

We switched to propylene oxide a couple of years ago instead of oxyacetylene

 

I started havin the same reaction when I got mine filled … but then the counter guy took pity on me and told me that if I had a business account it would be less.
Now its about 40 bucks less to fill / trade for full ones.

You should do the same

As for plasma cutters
The consumable parts are very expensive ….. tips - nozzles and such.
5 packs of each can easily cost as much as a bottles refill.

 

The plant that manufactures most of the nation`s calcium carbide which is used to make acetylene blew up and there is a huge shortage,look it up.

 

Just last night I noticed my oxygen was getting low, and I have heard the same thing about the prices climbing high recently. I just called Northern Tool and for the number 4 tanks I have they get $74 for acetylene and $ 34 for oxygen, exchange. I don't know what we paid the last time, but that didn't seem too bad.

What did you pay, Harms Way?

Don

 

http://www.millerwelds.com/resources/communities/mboard/showthread.php?24900-Acetylene-shortage

http://www.bakersgas.com/acetylene-shortage-information.html

 

A calcium carbide plane blew up. So there is a shortage of calcium carbide which is needed to create acetylene.

 

A calcium carbide plane blew up. So there is a shortage of calcium carbide which is needed to create acetylene.

 

10 years ago i bought a propane tip and converted one of mine to propane and never looked back. saved a ton on acet over the years, not to mention haz mat fees because you don't have to get it from a welding shop. you can heat most anything and i have cut 1" plate steel with my propane torch. several months back i refilled 6 propane tanks @ $12 each.
last week i got 2 large o2 refills, size k i think, they were knocking on the door of $30 each. a couple of years back when i was getting refills close to every week i think they were $23 or something. so the price is creeping up on everything. i only use my acet setup for brazing and welding so it last me several years. the small bottle refills always cost more in relation, but they are easier to lug around.
best savings i've found is saving up bottles at once and take then in and only pay one haz mat fee.

 

I work in a very large shop (railcar repair) and we use propane pretty much exclusively. Although they did say that with the lack of acetylene, there is a chance of more people switching to it and driving up the cost of propane as well.

It works just the same as acetylene, cuts just as well, but for some reason it spatters a lot more when you first pull the trigger. Otherwise it cuts just as clean.

 

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/oxy-fuel-cutting.html

 

You guys wait until the bastards decide you can't own bottles, only 'rent' them .. I have a pair of medium size bottles that I have to pay over $300 a year for , and there is no way around it, they won't exchange or fill other companies bottles, so be careful what you whinge about, if the gas companies can convince the lawmakers it's 'safer' to not allow private ownership of bottles (ostensibly so they can control checking cylinders for defects or damage) ,they will , and you will be whinging a bit harder about the costs of the fucking things, no doubt.

 

The Country, that produces our money to buy anything with, has blown up.

 

Crazy expensive here also,and I use the small tanks.

If you think the Oxy/acetylene is costly,check out the price of helium nowadays,my wife almost had a stroke when they dropped of the last tank at her flower shop. HRP

 

i worked in a acetylene plant for a very long time and my friends still do.
now about a year ago the co that makes the carbide did blow up i think a few died, carbide will come back but they are rebuilding the plant that blew up and that will take some time, i worked in one of the bigger plant's in Seattle Wa. now we used to make around 1.5 to 2.0 million cu. ft each month, and from what i hear now they cant get enough carbide to keep up with demand. and the production is down very much. i sure hope they figure out the issue so my friends dont loose their jobs.
and as far as the cylinder, i have not heard anything about that, yes all the cyl. have and will continue to be inspected during each fill, i dont think you guys have anything to worry about , they are yours, and you will get another cyl in return, after all you never get the one you bring in back.
if there is anything else i can help with just ask.

 

Like I said in post 6
Get the business cash account …… all I had to do is stand there and tell the guy my info - name - address
I could have been making it up / no real business…..they don’t care.

Now my welding supply’s are a lot less.
But if youall want to pay more so you can have something to complain about online .. press on I guess.

 

i should of got my tanks filled as soon as they went empty few years back.. i just do not use mine for much.. usually when i start a project and I know ill need them i get my tanks filled.. i have had to pay extra to send my tanks off to get inspected.. iv never got the same tank back.. so i do not see them trying to control the owner ship of the tanks.. the system they have now works..

sigh.. i have the large tanks too.. i guess ill just have to plan on 300.00 in my project budget for my tanks.. could almost buy a plasma cutter with another 400.00 i just dunno how much id use a plasma cutter once this project is over.. will hae to sleep on it... and fear, i pretty sure im gonna have to get my tanks inspected again.. it like every 5 years right? and im not sure of the date on the tanks that mine got replaced.. the one thing i did pick up years ago.. i picked up a truck load of metal coat hangers... price was free, and i used them with my torch.. figured yay life time supply. then all of sudden they stop making metal coat hangers for evil plastic ones.. i know some of the old times were in shock. its one of them items that had so many uses around the house.. just like duct tape.. rednecks cried the day the metal coat hanger died off.. at least the muffler shops will not have to see it anymore yeah? heh.

chris.

 

down the road ill probably usesing your service.. i have a axle/spindals/split wish bones i have no idea if is strait or not. this was given to me figured i could just use it for mock ups etc.. then i saw it was part of your drop axle service.. score.. i like using the old stuff when i can.. its carbon foot print has been paid for already.. so why just throw the shit away.. seems like a piss poor attitude. if something works and in some cases probably better than what can be made today? so, i thank you in advance for your service.. it made me smile thinking i could use this axle i was given so many years ago. ( been planing on building a tbucket for ever.. finally, said hell with it i better get on it or i may run out of time when my health went to shit over last couple of years due to a accident.)
chris.

 

No tax ID # - occupational license - required ??

 

$25.00 for 5 Gallon Propain Bottle here $41 for Acytlean #136 Bottle it lasts longer
Propain was cheaper $26.00 for a #220 Oxygen
you can fill your plumbing bottle from the large bottle of oxygne
do not do acytlean

 

Nope
They could be doin it wrong for all I know but here’s how it went down.

I go threw a bunch of gas with my BIG rose bud …… 5 axle drops and they are empty. So im in there a lot and see the price going up fast (nearly doubled in 6 months)


Finally it hit $120.00 to fill / exchange I pair and I kinda went off on the guys at the counter ….. “WTF ? how in the hell am I suppose to run my business? ….. I didn’t factor this in for what I charged people …. Your rippin me off here”
That’s when they offered up the account and the price went from $120.oo for the pair to $70.oo.

I post this to try and help people out not start an argument ….. Its worth a try

 

I agree!

 

For the Oxy & Acetylene bottles for the small plumbers set it was $47.00 and some change,... When I asked about my big bottles, they said for the pair it would be between $120.00 to $135.00. I found a counter bill from 15 months ago to fill a large set,.. and it was under $60.00.

 

Price 'up north' is still about $90 for both bottles.
Some places charge more for oxygen ($30) and less for Acetylene ($60) but the outcome to fill a pair of large bottles is still right around the $90 mark. The cheapest I ever got oxy was $20 large bottle and acetylene was $60 for the big bottle or $80 for the pair.

A buddy of mine Gave me a full bottle of Acetylene a few months ago, can't complain about that.

For the guys that are trumpeting the value in going Propane, you use ~2 to 3 X as much oxygen to operate with propane so there is usually no real cost savings. Maybe that has changed for those effected by the calcium carbide shortage. (no shortage here)


.

 

Just got my plumber size Acetylene filled

Fill $28.58
Ciyl. surcharge $2.50
Hazardous mat. charge $4.00
Total $37.08


Cut up old H-beam, around 1100 lbs. $14.00 hundred lbs. = $160.00

So I'm ahead.

 

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=574178&highlight=acetylene+plant+explosion

 

you need to be pals with the guy that drives the gas truck, like i am, i get full size bottles for 20 a piece. i even buy him a bottle of the other accelerant at christmas time