acetylene reg. guages

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Anyone know of any where to get regulator gauges that are weather resistant?I just bought a new set of Smith regulators a while back and the gauges get full of dust after just a few trips down the dirt roads in my area. Very disappointed as to the quality of the gauges. I had an OLD set of Sears Craftsman that I used for several years and never had dust or water get in the gauges.Trailblazer 302Hobart Stickmate AC/DCLincoln SP 135 TSmith torchSpoolmatic 30A
Reply:I don't know what the regulations are where you are from, but isn't it illegal to transport cylinders without the bottle caps installed?"The reason we are here is that we are not all there"SA 200Idealarc TM 300 300MM 200MM 25130a SpoolgunPrecision Tig 375Invertec V350 ProSC-32 CS 12 Wire FeederOxweld/Purox O/AArcAirHypertherm Powermax 85LN25
Reply:Sortarc - Now that you mention it, I will say that when reading the "heirloom" equipment thread, my experience with Smith equipment's lack of resistance to rough working environments and elements of weather came to mind. However, I didn't comment because I figured the severe service application was irrelevant to most users. Anyway, In my experience with many many  regulators of all brands being used in extreme severe service, it's Harris, hands-down.  I've found that the traditional Harris regulators, and particularly Harris gauge-less regulators, are extremely  weather resistant, shock resistant, and are able to withstand the rigors of continuous severe service and its associated cycling of high flows and pressures, far better than whoever is in a distant second place.It's interesting that one of the most cloned OF equipment designs seems to be Harris.Maybe someone who's familiar with the internals of  various regulators could comment as to why?Good LuckLast edited by denrep; 11-07-2010 at 12:50 PM.
Reply:After many miles of driving in the desert, I've had dirt eventually work its way into the insides of even sealed dash gauges of my vehicle!  I agree with Denrep about Harris being well designed to resist the elements; can't say much about other brands though.You might try covering the gauge assemblies with nylon bags, closed tightly with drawstrings, or even use cheap plastic bags, while driving. That's assuming the cylinders are all closed and gas pressure down to zero, of course; particularly with the oxygen.
Reply:Originally Posted by denrepSortarc - Now that you mention it, I will say that when reading the "heirloom" equipment thread, my experience with Smith equipment's lack of resistance to rough working environments and elements of weather came to mind. However, I didn't comment because I figured the severe service application was irrelevant to most users. Anyway, In my experience with many many  regulators of all brands being used in extreme severe service, it's Harris, hands-down.  I've found that the traditional Harris regulators, and particularly Harris gauge-less regulators, are extremely  weather resistant, shock resistant, and are able to withstand the rigors of continuous severe service and its associated cycling of high flows and pressures, far better than whoever is in a distant second place.It's interesting that one of the most cloned OF equipment designs seems to be Harris.Maybe someone who's familiar with the internals of  various regulators could comment as to why?Good Luck
Reply:Most plastic guage covers pop on so will admit dust. If that's an issue, run a bead of clear RTV inside the edge and pop 'em back on.Gaugeless regs sound like the way to go for outdoor use. When ya think about it traditional gauges are not really very useful since torches are set by flame behavior anyway after rough adjustment per low side guages.That gives me an idea:Next time I bust a guage I'll look into replacing 'em with a plug (low side) and a popup (high side) like the guageless regs use. Beats buying guages. Google "victor vgs 450 thermadyne" and you'll get hits on the downloadable manual with the appropriate part numbers. 1/4" NPT "pipe" thread is standard. Same thread, same pressures, no reason not to switch.Do Harris have a better popup indicator than Victor? I looked up Victor since I have a pile of them, but I don't mind mixing brands.
Reply:The quality of the gauges used on new regulators these day are nowhere near what the once were.  The old glass cover gauges would hold up to all kind of abuse. All of the gaugeless regulators have screw in indicators for the high pressure, but they use the the adjusting knob or an indicator on the bonnet to determine the delivery flow.  If your regulator starts to "creep" , build pressure, there is no way to know until a complete failure accures.You can get a good set of gauges that will not allow any dust or debris in.  These gauges are not specificial designed for regulator, but they will solve your problem.JimOAdoctorwww.regulatortorchrepair.com
Reply:OAdoctor,would you have a link as to where to find these gauges?  I've searched the internet for an hour and not had any luck.Trailblazer 302Hobart Stickmate AC/DCLincoln SP 135 TSmith torchSpoolmatic 30A
Reply:Originally Posted by shortarcOAdoctor,would you have a link as to where to find these gauges?  I've searched the internet for an hour and not had any luck.
Reply:Originally Posted by 4sfedYou can find them at McMaster-Carr.  They have them listed for acetylene and oxygen service specifically.  Any liquid-filled gauge will be sealed against dust . . . but they are not cheap.  Jim
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWI've never seen a liquid filled pressure gauge rated for oxygen service. All the ones I found in McMaster-Carr were atmospheric gauges, not liquid filled. Most liquid filled gauges are filled with either Glycerin or Silicone, neither of which are O2 compatible. Do you have a link for the ones you were looking at?
Reply:Thanks for the links, but after looking at the prices for gauges I think I will just get a new set or regs. and sell the ones I have.Trailblazer 302Hobart Stickmate AC/DCLincoln SP 135 TSmith torchSpoolmatic 30A
Reply:Do not use liquid filled gauges on the oxygen regulator! They are typically filled with glycerine and combined with the O2 gas will almost certainly catch fire.  Use only gauges designed and approved for welding regulator usage.I had a set of Harris gaugeless regulators years ago when I started out.  Hard to tell how much gas is left in the bottle and setting pressure was by a scale on the adjusting cap.  No way to tell what the pressures actually were.  I hated them and traded them off at the first opportunity. Most of the mines around here use Oxweld regulators and gauges.  The environment varies from hot and humid, to water dripping on equipment, to fine dust from blasting and diesel particulates, as well as high air velocities due to ventilation.  Never saw one of these regulators have a problem with any of that."The reason we are here is that we are not all there"SA 200Idealarc TM 300 300MM 200MM 25130a SpoolgunPrecision Tig 375Invertec V350 ProSC-32 CS 12 Wire FeederOxweld/Purox O/AArcAirHypertherm Powermax 85LN25
Reply:We have some recent Oxweld regs at work, and the gauges are the usual style found on Victor etc with the clear plastic covers. Nicely made regs, but the gauges wouldn't be impervious to fine dust off-road.I don't see switching regulators just because the gauges have cheesy covers, since gauges only take minutes to swap out. Perhaps the way to go is collect old-school guages off Ebay equipment.
Reply:Well, so much for guageless!  I checked my prices for Victor indicators (about forty bucks each!) and for that much I can afford to smash conventional guages now and then. I buy the generic Radnors and they hold up as well as the stock guages, so I'll just keep treating them as expendable parts.
Reply:McDaniel Controls has good quality gauges that are about 2x standard welding gauges.Here is a link.http://www.mcdanielcontrols.com/products.htmHope this helps.JimOAdoctorwww.regulatortorchrepair.com