Well, merry fuckin' Christmas to me, I had a visit from a couple of tweakers. Cut the lock on my shop with bolt cutters, and ripped off about a grand worth of assorted tools, but the worst thing is, they got my 35 yr old Victor gas torches/regulators. I have been using those things my entire adult life, and was really attached to them. Looking for recommendations as to a quality set I can replace them with. Don't care if they are made in Nebraska or Siberia, so lets not turn this into another anti-Chinese rant, but I am looking for a good quality set of torches that I can buy new. What have you got recently that you liked/didnt like and why?
I had a Dockson torch that I liked real well. But I am still partial to Victor. Maybe they are called Victor-nox now I think they were for awhile. If it makes you feel any better I just got my annual letter from Social Security saying that I am no longer elligble. At least this year it didn't come on Christmas Eve. OK so more bitching from me. I am still partial to Victor, I have one in the garage as we speak. Sorry you got hit. Let me know if there is anything that I can do for you.
So the new Victor stuff is pretty much the same as the old stuff? I will check it out. A lot of the stuff that got taken was just "tools", modern sawzall, a 1/2" chuck drill, couple good old grinders, but nothing I was really attached to. Most of my good hand tools are hung on pegboard, so it takes them too long to pull it all down and load it, that was untouched. There was a box of my dads whitworth under the bench, they didnt touch that thank god, cause you cant replace it, and we wouldnt be able to restore the Vincent or Ariel if that was gone. They did grab a tool box that happened to be full of pullers, theres some good stuff in there that might be hard to replace, probably hard to sell too, as most mouth breathers wont even know what that shit is for. Could have been alot worse, theres a $1000 floor mount drill press and a band saw in there. Best part is, thes fucking losers grab this drill thats worth about $80, RIGHT beside it on the bench was a 1050 Dominator worth about $500, dumb-asses never touched it! But losing my torches really hurts. It took me a day to realize they were gone. Before that, my attitude was kinda "oh well, thats life" But when I realized the torches were gone, that HURT. And sorry to hear about the social security. Wanna come over to my house? I think we'll be having peanut-butter sandwiches for Christmas dinner, while I figure out how to pay for all this stuff.
I was looking at one of those before, but kind of thought its so different from what I'm used to, there might be a learning curve there. But hey, maybe this is a hidden opportunity to try something new?
I have an old Victor that has been my main torch for about 45 years. Then about 5 years ago, I bought one of the Dillion, Henrob or Cobra (DHC) or whatever you would like to call it. I seem to use it more and more. I've welded stainless and aluminum with it, along with sheet metal. I remember when these first came out in the 1970's, I had a few friends that bought them but didn't like them. I wished that I can bought one of them years ago. There are several places that sell them, here is one of them: http://cobratorch.net/
See if you can find someone who has one and give it a shot, they are really eaiser than you would think. Hell i cought on to one really quick and if i can anybody can. one other thing they don't seem to use as much gas.
I was actually going to ask the other guy about welding aluminum with the Henrob, good to know. It looks, well, kinda wierd, but hell, so do I, so I shouldn't let that put me off. Got your pm, too, yes, if you want, give me a call, mid-day on Christmas is probably good, I will be there all day.
You guys are starting to sell me on the idea. I've never tried one, but I had heard a lot of good things about them, maybe its time for a change.
I sell Welding Supplies for a living.. Send me a PM and let me know where you are money wise. I can get Victor, Harris or Smith. I like Smith because alot of their stuff has Lifetime warranty. I also have a Harris Torch that needs Regulators used... if you don't mind those "Cheap Chinese" regulators I can make you a sick deal and ship right to you from my work. Up to you but P.M. me and I will try and take good care of a Hamber....
I bought a set of Harris stuff from Lowes a few years ago and have been happy with them so far. Sorry you got Jacked. That blows.
Thanks guys, it will be a couple months, we are taking a month long overseas vacation in January, so I will be broke for a while. B1rdman, I will drop you a line in Febuary when I return from vacation. I have been looking at the henrobs and cobras on-line, neat, but pricey. Maybe I can talk the old man into going halfs, as he is living at my place, and we are sharing the shop. I can live without a sawzall for a while, but no torches sucks huge.
Watch the local classifieds, Craigslist, Kijiji, pawn shops for a used set. You'll probably go find a set and realize they're yours anyways -
I'm a little scared to do that. Not sure I trust myself enough, might cost me more in the long run...Legal fees and so on...after I beat the f*cker half to death with a bat...
So for you guys who are welding aluminum with the Henrob/Cobra, are you using hydrogen or acetylene? How thin is the material you are welding? What are you using for regulators? I am close to sold on the idea of ponying up the extra coin for the Henrob.
Rusty New Yorker beat me to it with the pawn shop deal... Both times my house got hit in the twenty five years I have lived here I just simply patrolled the local pawn shops and found my stuff within 24 hours. the first time I involved the police and it took quite bit of genuine dicking around to get my stuff back. The second time I simply paid the pawn shop owner to give me the names and stated adresses of those that sold him the items and some friends and I handled it ourselves... The second time was much more satisfying, believe me!
I think it will probably end up at one of the local flea markets. Theres 3-4 around here, maybe I will check a couple out.
Been using all VICTOR equipt. since 1951.--A quality mfg. for all purposes in welding/cutting---You get what you pay for---Support USA!!
Sorry to hear that. The gauges I use are older than I am and were part of a set that I bought from a farmer/rancher neighbor who was retiring a couple of years ago complete with full tanks. I have my Harris torch hooked to that though. I need to get the Harris gauges repaired one of these days. I'd go for the Smiths or Victor simply because replacement parts or extra pieces are available from so many sources.
I was just talking to the counterman at my welding supply shop. I asked about Victor and there quality. The heavy duty professional series, were still very decent. I asked because I heard the Victor mgf outfit, went South of the border. A couple of years ago, we picked up the heavy duty professional torches/regulators. I panicked when I seen the new pieces, but really I've never had a complaint about 'em. Sorry to hear about the tweakers..
My very first set Dockerson lasted 20 or so years till the stem/shaft in the oxy torch broke had them rebuilt once. Bought a set of Smiths and going on another 20 years. Bought a real small smith welding handle and tips to do sheetmetal I didn't like the feel of oa HenRob. Pat
I have tried many torches over the last thirty plus years having welded in lots of shops, I cant say there is a lot of difference in any of them. Far more important is the gauges. You will find that if you use good quality multi stage regulators you will have a steady flame. I do all my bodywork welding with gas and I do it full time... Its more about using the correct technique and settings than any fancy torch. David
There are two things that have really grabbed my attention about the Henrob/Cobra deal. One is the reduced gas consumption, the other is how well its supposed to perform on thin aluminum with acetylene as opposed to hydrogen. I am still looking for some feedback on #2, but that would be a big plus for me. Oh yes, and Mindover, that IS a NICE friggen weld!
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