Torches, International unstandardisation

Hello all

I had a dilemma a while back about getting my Little Torch to work
in Europe after leaving the US and wrote to Orchid (collective gurus)
for help. I couldn’t bring my tanks with me due to shipping
regulations, I can’t use my brand new regulators because of the
different tanks here, and I have to now change the nuts on my torch
hoses/buy a new torch, and buy new regulators.

This is firstly a belated thanks to the helpful people on Orchid who
told me of their experiences, and a big thank you to Rio Grande and
Smith, for their help and advice. One person asked me to say if I
could find a solution to a similar problem she had had. Well, this
leads into part 2 - a bit of a frustrated rant. There is no solution
apart from the above. I’m kind of surprised that no adaptors exist
which would let me use the regulators I have, when I think of all the
other devices and children of genius minds out there. I also am
pre-frustrated because I know I am going to have to move continents
again, and go through this same expensive saga.

Can we start some kind of international movement to harmonise?? I am
only semi-joking.

Anyway, thanks for the help and for listening,

Zee

Well, I moved from Germany to France in 2004 and discovered that I
could not use my Oxy/propane kit bought in Germany as there were no
tanks for it. Was I surprised?!! To top it off, I recently saw the
same kit being sold in France five years later. I didn’t check the
fittings to see what tanks were used. Talk about unstandardization!
So much for the European Union.

PS: When I went to register my car in France at that time the French
wouldn’t accept the inspection from Germany, a country which seems
much more stringent in that matter. I had to pay for another
inspection.