Today I went to check my acetylene/oxy little torch. I have not used my torch in about 10 years. The hoses crumbled when I picked them up and need replaced. No surprise there…
But to my surprise! I expected them to be rubber under the nylon colored covers. Instead I found the tubing is likely clear polyurethane. After hours of unsuccessful searching locally to find a quick replacement I went to my “Old Source”.
Below is the description for the Replacement Hose Set for Smith® Little Torch™
The hoses in this set replace worn out fuel and oxygen hoses on your Smith® Little Torch™ system. Each hose carries fuel (or water) from your tank to your torch. The red fuel hose is compatible with acetylene, propane, propylene, MAPP® or natural gas; the green oxygen hose is compatible with oxygen or compressed air—never both. The hoses have a nylon weave over polyurethane to provide strength and durability. Each hose is eight feet long and has a brass collar and 9/16" ‘B’ fittings. The set includes a connecting tool for easy replacement installation on Little Torch handles.
My guess is this old tubing is polyurethane tubing as the above description states. So I’m thinking I can salvage the fitting and replace the tubing with the same size, id and od… I looked at aquarium tubing.
Seems some aquarium tubings are polyurethane some, silicone and some, something else. But only the silicone tubing is marked silicone. I bought 25 foot of Aqua Culture Standard Airline Tubing for about $4. Should be plenty to replace the damaged tubing. However, I’m not sure if it is polyurethane, silicone or something else. The distributor says the information is not in their database. But, I suspect it is polyurethane due to it being more rigid than the tubing marked silicone.
According to my research I think this will work.
If you have researched this what is your opinion?
Has anyone used this themselves?
Thanks Much!
Debra
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Yes, you can make up to it with pieces that you find from various sources, but I would suggest that you just buy a new hose set, then you will know that you have a safe solution and have not wasted time on a solution that already exhists. A torch is a primary tool and one that I would go into debt to replace if I had to. Spend your creative time on other tools that are less essential and where solutions are less likely to be a fire hazard. Good luck…Rob
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Many years ago (1980-something), my first Little Torch was sold with unprotected aquarium style plastic hose in two colors, red and green. I assume that fire safety liability issues are why they switched to the current covered hoses. I agree with Rob. Best to buy a new covered hose set up.
Otto Frei (and maybe others?) sells a fire resistant Little Torch replacement hose that is much less expensive than the Smith version.
Best of luck!!
Jeff
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Additional Note: If I do try the Aquarium tubing I will be using/reinstalling the nylon covering also. all fittings are in good shape too.
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That’s a really interesting idea. If you do that let us know how it works out.
Jeff
If you do use aquarium or other clear plastic tubing it might make sense to leave the red & green nylon covering off for a while to see how the tubing reacts.
If it gets frosted-looking inside or shows other signs of reacting with the fuel then It would make sense to replace the tubing. You might not notice a problem until it got bad if you covered the tubing right away.
The nylon coverings look nice, different colors make it easy to tell fuel & oxygen lines, but other than that I’m not sure how good an idea it is to cover things up. Sure for protection from abrasion, but hoses should be treated gently anyway.
My 2 penny’s-worth (soon to be discontinued? To be replaced with “nickel’s-worth”)?
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How often should we replace the Primo fire resistant hose set? I’m not using the Meco regularly and I always check for leaks before lighting the torch, but I think these current hoses are about 7 years old.
Neil, Good idea. I still need to attach the tubes to the torch… will tape the covering in place instead of a permanent solution to check. I plan to check my regulators for any unusual loss of gas too.
All looks good so far. The hardest part was removing the old broken tubing from the dirty nylon covering. The nylon cleaned up nice!
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jnoslop,
Sorry! I don’t know the answer to the question of how long the Primo or Little Torch hoses last? I’ve always had to replace my Little Torch hoses eventually, but I don’t remember exactly how long they lasted.
You could reach out to Otto Frei or somewhere that sells the Primo hoses and check with them.
Jeff
I replaced my original LT last year. It was over 40 years old and I think the hose set was replaced twice before I bought the new torch. I used the LT casting tip yesterday and it was as fast as the Paige MX on my Meco. By the way, has anyone heard from Paige?..Rob
Please, please make sure you have the braided covering. My last boss replaced aquarium tubing at 9 feet long, with a 3-foot. I had just come back from vacation and was unaware of the change. Usual set up…10 minutes later, exploded 10” from my head, where my wrist would’ve been if I were holding the torch. I now work for myself and feel much safer.
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Thanks for letting us know that info NicoleR69180!
Jeff
That must have been a very scary moment. It is why I, and many others, are so diligent about how we manage our torches. Coming up with your own workaround for a problem is fun, but it shouldn’t be dangerous. We have enough danger in our lives just walking out the door…Rob
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I’ve had a setback with getting this to work. I am loosing acetylene. Not sure where yet. Will update at a later date.
I’m sure you know this, but I have to say it. Open flames and acetylene leaks are nothing to fool around with. Gas leaks are usually easy to figure out where they’re coming from with either commercial gas leak detection fluid or diluted dish soap and water.
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After a lot of research I ended up buying a Chinese knockoff at Amazon torch included 29usd instead of the 50 usd original ( works fine ) after all the original I bought a few years before didn’t last that long anyway
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Nandalek, Thanks much for that info. I’ve had one in my Amazon cart for several days from the TOAUTO store. They look like a respectable source. It should arrive Friday.
