Cylinder purchasing.

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What do I need to know before I purchase my own cylinders, other than keep the reciepts! I'ld like to get my own torch and still don't know what size of cylinders I'll be using either. I like the portability of the midsize tanks, but regardless, who needs to inspect tanks, and at what interval?City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:I think the interval is 10 years, but in my lifetime, I have never had a single tank that needed it while in my possesion.  With trade-ins, I always end up with a tank with plenty of time...or, nobody ever noticed anything when I traded in.  I asked once, and the folks at my local gas supplier said I just have to pay a fee if it is out of date and they trade the tank in as usual.  The way I understand it, the folks that fill the tanks do the testing.  Sometimes that is also the local supplier, sometimes there is a central location that does the filling and the local supplier is just a storefront...they take the (small) chance it won't pass, I guess.Tractor supply does gas supplying.  I do business with them on some of my gas because they are a bit cheaper on some sizes I have.  They never so much as look at the date.For oxy/ace, I forget the size I have (maybe 280 cf)...the oxy tank is about 5 feet tall, the ace tank is about 4 feet (I think it's called a #5).  They are too big to move around easily...those you have to bring the cutting to the tanks.  If portability is really important, the 120 cf tanks are about as big as I personally would go on the O2.  Any bigger and you will be talking some real weight.  I am not sure how large a tank of ace would be right for that size, though.Last edited by smithboy; 08-24-2007 at 12:01 AM.Smithboy...if it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'.
Reply:It is every 10 years, and only once did I have a tank expire in my possession, I want to say it cost me an extra $25 or so to hydro test. No big deal. Now I check more carefully for the dates on exchanges. The place I get my gas usually delivers the same quality and date as that which was brought in. In other words if I bring in a nice pretty tank with 6 years left, they try and get me a nice pretty tank with at least 6 years left.KevMiller 210 and 140 MigsBernard Q-Torches on bothMiller Syncrowave 200Spoolmate 3035 for sale, excellent condtion- PM for detailsThermal Dynamics 38XLShop OutFitters 20/20 Bending SystemLots of other cheap and not so cheap tools Still have LOTS to learn, but got some nice stuff to learn on!
Reply:Thanks for that! I kind of figured as much.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Most welding gas suppliers use 150 cf tanks for customer owned. They are either built with a plain ring on the top or they will say "customer owned". I own two 150 cf argon cylinders and no one has ever asked me for rental or questioned anyhing about them since I bought them 15 years ago. Certainly you are not getting the same tanks back but the only difference is that you don't pay rental for the cylinder. If you exchange them periodically, you will never pay a separate fee for hydro-testing since the supplier will do them as they require it. I guess they build this in to the price of the gas. I guess you can also buy larger tanks but I don't know how those are marked.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:FWIW, 25 years ago, I ran the hydro station at a dive shop. The inspection is actually a destructive test. It is called a hydro because you fill the cylinder with water and then pressurize it.  The pressure depends on the cylinder and what it is made of.  For steel cylinders it is about twice the working load.  So for a 2400 psi bottle, the hydrostatic pressure would be 4800 psi.  After filling the bottle with water, you measure how much it will hold.  Then you pressureize it. Once the pressure has been taken off, you measure the volume of the bottle again.  If the bottle expands and does not come back to within 10% of the original volume, it fails.  It also fails if the bottle ruptures.  Since it is filled with water, (which is incompressible) a rupture will not cause an explosion.  It will get everyone in the room soaking wet!
Reply:You will need to check what the largest size you can get filled is.  For me that was 80cf.  The 80cf tanks are a nice size as far as "portable" but if you are doing a lot of cutting you will want more than one set, since they go fast.  I do not exchange my tanks, they get filled from a bunch of larger tanks at a local welding shop that has an agreement with the LWS.I would also recommend that you look into propane, everyone that has run it that I have seen likes it... ?  And it is cheap and easy to get.Me!
Reply:I pump propane, we sell that. I wanna get an OA set that is truck portable, the 80 size tanks are doable, I am gonna look around for a torch kit first, the LWS supply sells 'em for $240.00 give or take. Then there is the competition down the street, I gotta pay them a visit! They sell Radnor and Victor torch kits. I don't wanna hear what HF or Sears sells, not interested...Actually if the boss wanted to spend more effort (pronounced 'money'), we could use Oxy-Propane around the shop. But, I'm the new guy (in the service bays) and spending money makes the boss grow a single eyebrow and his knuckles start to dragging the ground, he don't like that.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:"am gonna look around for a torch kit first, the LWS supply sells 'em for $240.00 give or take."  Google search for "free victor torch" and click on the PLASMA CUTTER site that talks about free torches.  If you buy a Thermal Dynamics plasma cutter they throw in a free Victor torch set.  Would the boss buy the story that it's better to have both OA and plasma?TeddCoHTP Microcut 400 & Invertig 160DC  Smith Dual Guard MD-510 OA Rig  Lincoln SP135+  Hobart Stickmate LX 235/160
Reply:Considering that this would be for my personal use...no.Edit:- At this point, I would not own a T------ D------- plasma cutter. Sorry. The boss already owns a TDPC and torch.Last edited by tanglediver; 09-05-2007 at 02:44 AM.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny