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[Smokey 11a]

I'm using a Mapp gas bottle from Toolstation.

Thanks.

[DLH]

Hi I work for Rothenberger and suggest you try your local plumbers merchant as we sometimes do deals with the gas in a package (hot bag)
 or even look on line.
Hope this helps
David

[Gritstoner]

I have a Bullfinch, it has a long flexible pipe and runs off a propane bottle.  They're expensive new but you could probably get a secondhand one off Ebay for a good price.

[G-Mack]

i have different experience with rothenberger mapp torch, had 2 stuck studs in exhaust and the mapp couldn't shift them! took it to my friendly mechanic who gave it 3 to 5 seconds with oxy/ecet and it was off!! it's still a nice torch though for less stubborn stuff!!

[582LTR]

Just to let people know where I went in the end. I had to balance cost/amount of use/usefulness. I hadn’t appreciated just how different MAPP was - but do now. The amount of use this torch would get as a hobbyist couldn’t justify the more expensive torches. Tool station had an offer on a torch with two nozzles and gas. I went with this and managed to release the stuck item.

Thank you for your advise.

Martin

[rosinante]

How about freezer spray for delicate parts , a garage owner chum of mine used it for stock spark plugs with success , we used to use it on pcbs to  stress test suspect joints ,avionics systems ,
Chris

[Kernowcam]

I have a rothereberg torch , really good but I have added the fine tip nozzle which makes it much more useful. Not sure if you can get them now? Love the click to fire up button.

Just wondering if a cooks tiny unit may be the answer for controllability?

[Porkscratching]

The tiny pinpoint torches are useful for some stuff, I got one a couple of quid off ebay, refillable from cig lighter gas,  i actually wanted it for small soldering jobs on model railway parts ( but thats another story!) ...it has been great on occasion to accurately heat a single bolt for instance without having big flames everywhere!

[GlenAnderson]

The problem I have always had with torches that use disposable gas bottles, is that they’re always empty when I go to use them. I think they make sense if you need the portability and use them regularly, but if you’re an occasional user then they can work out expensive and tiresome.

I have a Bullfinch torch, on a hose, that connects to a propane bottle. A 15kg one in the workshop has lasted about 15 years so far, and a 5kg bottle provides portability when needed. The key thing being that the bottles have their own isolating valve.

[agg221]

I have access to a couple of other torches at work. We have a big bullfinch  type connected to a gas bottle, with various sizes of nozzle, plus oxy-acetylene.

In the end I decided that I couldn't justify the space and hassle of lugging a big bottle type torch around. I also liked the increased heat intensity of the MAPP torch - smaller flame with higher temperature meant less extraneous heating and a quicker job. Oxy-acetylene would be the ultimate on this but not very practical for the domestic user!

I didn't know you could get a fine nozzle for the Rothenberger torch. I will have to see if I can find one. In the meantime I use a chef's blowtorch, refilled with lighter gas, for fine work. I have used that successfully for lead burning, being hugely more convenient up on a roof so long as you pick a still day. It will also do a decent job when re-tinning parts which were originally tin electroplated, such as the fuel tank float.

Alec