Refurb O/A cutting head

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Last year I got two or three (or four? in a pile in the back) old oxy/fuel sets cheap - but good old stuff. I got them home and gave them a test and found that _all_ the cutting heads leak at the tips regardless of new, used, whatever tips I try. Ie. lots of popping and unpleasantness. Now I'm not a great O/A but it looked like a torch problem. Can't recall if the welding tips worked - maybe they're bad too.It's been about a year and now that I have time, I have limited funds and I'm wondering if it's possible to "lap" those tips in like people used to do with car valves; but I don't want to destroy the tool. I ask because this is a low budget lotsa time project moment, not "pay-to-fix-it-quick-and-perfect". After a brief search last year it looked like the proper reamers were $250 ea - and IIRC I would need at least two. If there's no decent home-brew fix I'll just leave 'em until I got an important need or more $$ and go make a local refurb guy a little money; but not right now.Cheers, Rufus
Reply:What brand?Harris flat seat - maybe.Victor, Airco - not so easy.You could press and twist to check contact pattern.Smith - probably not an issue.Rego - goes to the river. Good Luck
Reply:The caveat on valve grinding compound is that even water-base isn't recommended for oxygen or oxygen-rich systems.For as little as they cost to rebuild (around 60 bux usually) sell all but one if money is tight then have the best one rebuilt.I suggest digging them out and posting what they are (pics even better) for sound advice on what to keep. OADoctor frequents these forums and runs a regulator/torch rebuild business. His advice is excellent.
Reply:What ever you do, do not use grinding compound.An individual purchasing a head reamer is not practical.  The average cost for a head reamer is $400.00.  There is a "Redneck" way to reseat a torch tip.   With Victor, Purox, Oxweld and Concoa (Airco)  it works OK. Harris not so much.  PM if you would like to know the steps.As to Rego, I am with denrep, the bottom of the river is a perfect place for a Rego torch.One think to consider, many repair shops may be willing to repair one of the units for trading-in some or all.  It will just depend on the make and model of what you have.  I take trade-ins all of the time.Let me know if I can help.JimOAdoctorwww.regulatortorchrepair.com
Reply:I take trade-ins all of the time.
Reply:Thanks for the comment. Sell/trade some, fix one (or two?) sounds promising. Shoulda thought of that. But OADoc I'm always curious about fix-it hot-to's. PM on the way. I'm at a buddy's for a few days and I'll try to gather the pieces for a pic or two next week. IIRC, they're Victors; I don't remember any flat seats and _do_ recall bevels.  I'll say reamers aren't for the layman!Rufus
Reply:rlaggren - This is not a home repair unless you're in the Congo.  If these are brand name torches, go [find] the regional repair depot, via a real welding distributor.  25 years ago I had a Victor cutting head reseated, while I waited, for $10.00 - because they had the tool.    Opus
Reply:Right tool often does it fast and easy. True.But I've found over the years the very often as good and better results can be had by the fellow who has the _time_ to spend and the interest to proceed very carefully with the resources he has until he gets a good and proper, even superior, result.Saw a post above about home brew "mag" drills tacked on to the work piece often working better than a real mag drill. Kinda like that. Everything always depends more on the shooter and the situation than the gun.Anyway, we can't automatically dismiss the ad hoc, home brew or amateur solution. Doesn't always pan out, of course, but that's why there's questions asked here, experiences shared. And that's why I'm looking for specific info and details - I got time and interest but might not want to get into this if it's too problematic  cuz I got a bunch of other stuff that I could work on that I know would move the world in the right direction.Thanks for all the comment.Rufus
Reply:Originally Posted by farmallInteresting. (Looks over at mound of Victor regulators gotten at auction...)Maybe throw up a post here or page on your site showing what an "acceptable core" for rebuild or trade looks like vs. a bad core, and how much a good core is worth against a rebuilt unit of the same type for popular equipment?