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How much are you paying for acetylene?

Thinking around $35 for a short tank.

I recall asking my uncle (who is a nearly retired farmer) why he used propane and oxygen instead of acet and he simply replied: costs less and still gets the job done.

I believe he is correct, acetylene is just faster.
 
yes unless you are brazening allot propane is cheap and works fine some times it take a bit of a knack to get the flame right but for the savings to pay back big you do need to change you hook up and you torch tip but most gas shops have all the know how on that. i think my lass small bottle was about 65 but that was two years ago. i have a small set of bottles that i own i just take them in and they give me another bottle no contract i can sell them at any time . it has paid back in spades i know i have left them unused for up to a year at a time but they are there when i need them and it has paid off. other wise in Ontario you pay about 100 bucks a year and gas on top of that.
 
Hello,
This is why I use propane for my torch! 20lb BBQ bottle will make about 9 "K" bottles of oxygen! $24+exchange, for a bottle at just about any store that sells BBQ bottles! Some are 24/7 too! I've cut a lot of thick, heavy stuff with my torch, with no problems! I don't know what the problem is with brazing, I do it all the time. No problems! The biggest problem with a propane cutting torch is you have to have everything adjusted just right to get the most out of it. You want it to roar, at least thats what I was told and how I've always set mine up to run. I also don't see much difference most of the time on pre-heat time between propane and acetylene.

Thanks!
Richard
 
Propylene, which is similar to MAPP, will last about forever too, and its dirt cheap as compared to acetylene. For burning, oxygen is the major expense and I've noticed the supply houses here continue to jack up the prices on it regularly as well. Compressed gases have got to be the modern day equivalent of a money machine. There's a supply house within a couple hundred yards of our shop that's part of a large chain which was recently purchased by Airgas. When you walk in there and see the number of employees who are wandering around doing nothing or sitting at desks doing nothing, the only conclusion you can draw would be that the selling price of bottled gases is about 90% gross profit. 20 years ago, this same outfit had about 1/3 the number of people they have today, and there was easily twice as much industry in the area as there is today.
 
We use propane for everything. We have a cutting table that works fine up to seven inches thick, that is the thickest pattern we have attempted to cut.
re
 
Although propane is cheaper per cu/ft or pound, you need to run at least 3X more oxygen. Then add the extra time it takes to get the same cut that could be done with acetylene, savings are not as great as first expected, if there are any. Although it is a bit safer to handle.

Never run acetylene in torches and hoses made for propane!!!
 
Me, I pay whatever it costs- its not like I can order it mailorder.

They got you over a barrel.

One thing to remember though, is that welding and cutting uses are something like 5% of industrial gas consumption nationwide- in other words, we are such a tiny part of their market that we dont really matter. Welding usages certainly dont affect prices, and prices are not set based on our tiny consumption.

Gas extraction plants are expensive- $100 Million is not rare- and so they build em next to a big customer- that means a plastics plant, or food packaging, or a similar industrial usage that will use hundreds of thousands of cubic feet a month.
Then, as an afterthought, they will pull off a bit of oxygen, and argon, and so on, for welding use.

So welding gas prices are based on how far you are from the nearest big plant, and when it was built, and how much it makes for its owners.

One good reason to buy a plasma cutter. These days, I only use Oxy-Acetylene for spot heating, as I have a whole arsenal of cheaper, easier to use tools for cutting steel. Course, I dont cut much 2" to 8" plate, for which Oxy-fuel still rules.
 
Both

I keep both acetylene and propylene in my shop. I like the acetylene for cutting and propylene for rosebud heating and silvaloy brazing. 6 weeks ago I paid $32. for a W size cyl. of acetylene and $109 for a 100# cyl. of propylene.
 
Remember about 25 years ago, the price of acetylene jacked up, and they said it was because it is used to make vinyl siding, and sales of siding was going up. So now, the housing market has gone bust, and there is much less construction of houses taking place. Seems like the price of acetylene should go down a bit.

How much $ is it to fill a 145 cu ft tank? I have one that needs a fill.

Anyone here use carbide to make their own acetylene? My dad talked about a blacksmith that had a tank with a cup inside. He would put water in the tank, and then carbide in the cup. Then put the lid on and turn the tank over to mix it.

But the last time I checked and calculated it out, it seemed to me to be more expensive to buy carbide than acetylene already made to fill a tank.
 
No comparison on cost for us, period. Oxygen pressure setting is a mute point in comparison because for same effectiveness on cutting its only about 10lbs or so. Be sure you are using a propane tip, thats critical for proper operation! Speed, not a problem. Get a good neutral flame going and cut away. I believe I can lance 3/4" round in 1/2 minute or so with propane. Just did one an hour or so ago along with cutting (11) 5/8" bolts across the nuts to remove a wrecked chassis part . I really wonder if I could even do better with Acet. We run em both around here.

For general lancing, heating, and demo work Propane is whats used. One BBQ bottle usually lasts quite a while too. The only welding I've done with propane was by accident, if you know what I mean.:D Most of the time I find that gas welding is generally too slow anyway. Now if your welding something artistic, thats another story.
 
I just got a #3 swapped out a couple weeks ago for $31. Hydro needed on the old tank, so that was $36. I got a 80cf of O2 at the same time, also needed hydro. O2 cost me $15 and 11 for the hydro. I walked away for $100 for a pair of current full tanks.

Crazy what they're charging you guys for gas. Even a #4 is still only $65 here.
 
I don't remember the exact amount but the last time I needed my Argon bottle filled I thought I was going to have a heart attack.

Turns out my welder friend pays approximately 25% of what I was charged. Now I just take my tanks over there and he backfills them for me gratis. :D

Too bad he doesn't use acetylene. He also uses propane. :rolleyes:

Michael
 
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