Micro torch won't ignite

Jewelry Discussion
1

I would appreciate any help you can give me…My Roburn micro torch
Model MT 770 decided to quit working right in the middle of my
current project.

It’s only 10 months old…full of butane…and had been working
perfectly.

Any ideas?

2 
I would appreciate any help you can give me...My Roburn micro
torch Model MT 770 decided to quit working right in the middle of
my current project.

Nozzle is probably blocked

3

I am a tool junkie. I use Oxy/propane, oxy/acetylene, acetylene/air,
propane/air and butane/air. I have at least half a dozen mini butane
torches and have had only one problem. It was caused by dirty, cheap
butane (my best guess) that clogged the tiny orifice of the
mini-torch. I am not sure if you can clean the tiny hole with forced
air backpressure or by using a tiny wire to clean or not. I took mine
back to the store for a replacement. By the way I love these mini
butane torches for everything from small parts annealing to cr=E8me
brulee. by the way, Harbor Freight sells a cheapo bright orange
version for $5 to 6.00 on sale.

marlin

4 
It was caused by dirty, cheap butane (my best guess) that clogged
the tiny orifice of the mini-torch. I am not sure if you can clean
the tiny hole with forced air backpressure or by using a tiny wire
to clean or not.

I clean my torch tips (Little Torch) in an ultrasonic. This works
particularly well with the smallest tips that have a synthetic ruby
orifice.

Joel Schwalb
@Joel_Schwalb

5

Just in case Marlin is right about “dirty” butane (the existence of
which was called into question in another thread), I will note that I
bought a can of butane “filtered 5+ times” at my local “chef’s
store” for considerably less than the stuff sold as lighter fluid,
and for half the price of the Blazer butane sold at the local bead
store. The butane at my neighborhood hardware store was marginally
cheaper, but said nothing about filtering. (No, I haven’t compared it
with the prices at Home Depot, but I don’t go there… as it were.)

Maybe another reason (along with Joyce Chen shears) to shop out of
the box.

Lisa Orlando
Aphrodite’s Ornaments

6 
      By the way I love these mini butane torches for everything
      from small parts annealing to creme brulee. by the way,
      Harbor Freight sells a cheapo bright orange version for $5 to
      6.00 on sale.

  I'd be very careful with the Harbor Freight butane torches.
  I've seen 2 of them catch on fire from leaks.

Dave

7

Hi Liz and Jim,

The Micro Torch has an air adjustment. When this is closed (no air
getting into the mixture) the torch won’t light.

You could also have a bad pizeo element. This generates the ignition
spark which you should be able to see from the front of the unit.

Martin Buchholtz

8 
By the way I love these mini butane torches for everything from
small parts annealing to creme brulee. by the way, Harbor Freight
sells a cheapo bright orange version for $5 to 6.00 on sale.

I have a Blazer torch that I purchased about 10 years ago. Still
works great and I use it often.

I recently purchased one of those bright orange torches, from
Princess Auto in Canada, its probably the same as the one from
Harbor Freight. The flame control on the orange torch is terrible. I
find it almost impossible to do any type of soldering with it as I
am too busy using my solder pick hand to continually adjust the
torch flame.

The orange torch cost me about $9.00 (cdn) and the Blazer torch was
about $70.00. The Blazer has been worth every dollar I paid for it.

The cheepo orange torch is close to useless… hmmmm…maybe I
should learn how to make creme brulee!

Milt Fischbein
Calgary Canada

9 
You could also have a bad pizeo element. This generates the
ignition spark which you should be able to see from the front of
the unit.

FWIW, I have a propane torch with a piezo ignition that recently
stopped working. I mucked about with a bunch of things and then
finally took a look at the spark while it was firing (uh, gas turned
off SVP) and realized that the spark was arcing off to the side
because of carbon buildup on the spark side of the nozzle. I cleaned
that area, the spark now fired normally and so did the torch. Flame
on!

Cheers,
Trevor F.
in The City of Light

10

I bought a Blazer Hot Shot at Makens Jewelry Supply for $25–I see
them on line for under $20 (you need to supply a tax id number,
since they are for “professional use only”). It is mostly plastic,
smaller than the original Blazer, and doesn’t have as fine a flame
control, but I talked to someone at the company and they swear this
torch won’t melt. It was an impulse buy for me, since I’d intended
to find a small propane torch, but, so far, I don’t regret it–its
miniature quality suits my still-nomadic life.

Lisa Orlando
Aphrodite’s Ornaments