OAC Welding Tanks

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I need some help with Tank size. I am welding at home, doing some cutting. I just bought a Victor Super Range Kit. What size tanks should I get?Thanks.
Reply:get the largest tanks you have room to keep.  You'll be amazed how fast you use up gas when you're cutting.
Reply:I agree.  Get the largest tank you can safely transport and that you have room for.  The average gas cost per CF will be much less and you will need fewer trips to the supplier.  If you need mobility, that's a different issue, but folks tend to think they want to be more mobile than they actually need.Smithboy...if it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'.
Reply:I'd suggest nothing smaller then 80cf 02 or 75 cf acetylene trade up after you figure how much you use.  If you know you are going to do a lot cutting then get a large as you can get, especially O2.I find other ways to cut and use o/a or o/f for bending, light forging, brazing and occasional welding, so gas last me quite a while.
Reply:I aqcuired some 280ish cuft tanks.  After about a  year of intermittent, but not infrequent use, I've got ~1000psi in the oxygen and 120 psi on the acetylene.  I'm not looking forward to refilling them because I don't have the money at the moment and it cost me $140 the last time I did it.
Reply:Wow!  I think mine are about the same size (280ish on ox, and big as I can lift on ace...#5 tank I think).  It cost me $85 to fill both.  I forget the split on price.Smithboy...if it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'.
Reply:I paid $35 for 02, the rest was acetylene and hazmat fees.  I got a 10% student discount, too.
Reply:Maybe it was $115 total, I don't remember.
Reply:That's the problem with large cylinders for the hobbiest.  If you don't have that much money to spare and you just need a little C25 for some weekend welding, then a large cylinder can be a financial drain on the fun budget.I'm growing all my smaller cylinders to 150CF (step up a size each time I fill).  I've found the 150CF aren't too hard to manhandle, so I 'spect I'll start using 250s sometime soon.There are some rules of thumb for oxygen and acetylene cylinder sizing.  If you're doing mostly welding then get roughly equal size cylinders, if you're doing mostly cutting, get an oxygen cylinder twice the size of the acetylene cylinder.  Also, one should never drain more than 1/7th the size of an acetylene cylinder per hour, so a larger cylinder may be needed for a rosebud or larger cutting and welding tips.  For example, the smallest heating tip I can get for my torch is a #6 which has a max flow of 35CFH which would require atleast a 250CF acetylene cylinder.  I shudder to think of the setup I'd need to run a #13 heating tip which has a max flow of  300CFH.For those that are confused by cylinder size and can't get any help from the gas suppliers wierd proprietary nomenclature then try Worthington Cylinder:http://www.worthingtoncylinders.comThey have specs with CF ratings for all the common cylinders:20/40/55/80/110/125/150/220/250/300 for high pressure gas and10/40/75/145/210/250/310/397/420 for acetylene.Not all gas suppliers stock all the cylinders.  I know that 55 and 220 are a bit rare and I'm not sure about 300.-Heath
Reply:HeathThanks for the info.  Good stuff.