First attempt didn't go well!

[Tonyb]

Hi,

I switched on the oxycon and lit the Nortel minor this morning for the very fist time this morning. I tried melting some soda glass into a ball, just to practice but I couldn't get the glass hot enough. It never glowed red and just drooped. I tried increasing and decreasing the oxygen and propane levels but still no joy. My flame was about 3 inches of blue and then a foot of yellow. I must be doing something wrong but not sure.

Any help gratefully received.

Thanks

Tony

[Rascal]

Hi, I don't do Boro glass and I'm sure someone will come along with more detailed advice but the mix of oxygen and gas sounds too gas rich to me for working with soft glass, the flame sounds much to big. It may vary from torch to torch but my blue flame is only about 1cm and the other part of the flame is more like 3 inches of visible flame but it isn't rich yellow. I normally have the OxyCon set to about 4 to 5 but I cant remember what the psi of the gas is on the regulator as that needs to be the right number. I don't think the flame is hot enough if it's too rich in gas. I light the torch with just the gas valve open on the torch, have the OxyCon set to 4 ish and then open the oxygen valve on the torch and adjust the gas until the flame is described as above. If it light it and introduce oxygen too quickly it blows the flame out. I'm not that experienced so someone may give better advice but good luck.

[Rascal]

Sorry, just saw your other post relates to Boro so my above answer may not be relevant.

[jammie]

You should have hardly any yellow just a touch at the tips, have you followed the instructions on here for adjusting and setting levels for oxy and gas? Cant find a link just now but I think Seans set up  instructions are on a sticky on the forum.

[Kalorlo]

Sounds like your propane is way too high - like they said, you shouldn't have any yellow.

Here's a video from Double Helix showing neutral, reduction, heavy reduction and oxy-rich flames on a Minor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqCPyAi68mE

Oh, and are you making sure you've let the oxycon run for a few minutes before lighting the torch?

[Redhotsal]

Here's a pretty fool proof way of setting up a minor:

First make sure all the torch valves are off, Then turn on your oxycon and then open up the oxy valve (the silver one on the right). Adjust your oxygen flow to about 4.5Litres/min on the concentrator. Let the oxygen flow through the torch for about a minute. Don't worry unduly - it's not high pressure oxygen so for this short amount of time you should be okay. The reason for doing this is to make sure all the air (as opposed to oxygen) is flushed out of the oxycon and hosing.

Now turn the oxygen valve off (leave the oxygen concentrator going) and turn your attention to the propane side:

I usually set the propane regulator fully open (screw it clockwise to open - even propane regulators are left hand thread), crack open the propane cylinder valve on the bottle about 1 turn. That's usually enough propane. If you then light the propane flame (red knob on the torch) you want about a hand's length of billowy yellowy flame (about 7 inches?), so adjust the red knob until you get the correct length.

Now go back to the oxygen valve and gradually turn it on (knurled top moves towards you). You should see the billowing yellow flame get steadier and brighter. Keep going until you get all blue. Resist the urge to fiddle with both propane and oxygen knobs at the same time. Look at the base of the flame. You should see umpteen little blue cones. These should be nicely defined. If you have too much oxygen you will hear a rushing sound and the cones will be very pointy with darker areas in between the flame. Turn your oxy down until the cones are just rounded and the torch isn't really making any sound. If the cones look quite bushy and are quite long then turn down your propane (red knob). You should be getting a nice blue flame - 5-6 inches in height. The cones should be about 7-8mm in height. This is a neutral flame. If you cones are bushy and the flame is yellow, you have too much propane and you must turn it down to match the oxygen output. If the cones are pointy and make a hissing sound you have too much oxygen. (Note - you usually have a situation where you have too much propane rather than too much oxygen!!)

When you start with dual gas torches make sure you only adjust one knob at a time as it is usually impossible to know what's going on when you fiddling with both!

If you can't get a situation where you have a good neutral flame it could be that you have a problem with your oxygen. Don't forget to let it flush through before you light the torch. If you still can't get a decent flame it is possible that although the oxycon appears to be functioning it may not be producing oxygen - it may be just pumping air through the torch. This is usually caused by an internal leak in the oxycon - a pipe coming loose or developing a hole. This can sometimes occur during transit. Worth checking if you can't get a decent flame.

When you have a decent flame don't be tempted to jam a glass rod straight into it as you may end up picking bits of hot glass out of your face! Introduce the rod at the very tip of the flame and as it starts to begin to glow start gently moving it down. The normal working area of the torch is about 1.5 - 2.5inches above the base of the flame. Don't go into the cones ever with the glass as it will "burn" and the surface will be scarred with black/brown marks. You shoudl be able to get a normal soda glass rod (about 4mm thick) to glow within a few seconds if the flame is adjusted correctly.

Hope this helps? 

[Tonyb]

Hi,


Thanks to everyone for the great advice. I now know that 12 inches of thundering yellow flame isn't good!

I had another go yesterday evening and managed to get it running with just a 6 inch blue flame and then did manage to melt a rod into a few blobs. Great fun!

Thanks again.

Tony

[Redhotsal]

Thanks to everyone for the great advice. I now know that 12 inches of thundering yellow flame isn't good!

hehe - we've all been there. It's an impressive sight tho' 

[Margram]

Lol, Sal!