Help with Lynx

[Denise K]

I recently bought a Lynx and read on a thread here that my blue (top) knob should always be open a little bit but when I open this (even the tiniest bit or a lot) I get a red glow inside, is this the orange glow GTT warn about. The glow does not go if I turn up the propane or oxygen or both only when I turn the blue knob off. I am working with the blue knob off at the moment until I hear that I am not damaging it. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Denise

[ValorieCox]

Originally posted by Denise K
... I get a red glow inside...

Denise, could you describe your problem a little differently, I'm not quite understanding what you mean. 'Inside'?

Val :)

[Denise K]

Sorry Val, describing things is not one of my strong points, so I'll insert an image.

Thanks,
Denise

[Mike E etc]

Denise,
the ports/holes need to be cleaned with the wire that came with the torch. A little three jawed holder works great for holding the wire so you can push the wire in and out to clean the torch.

I think you need to run longer candles to start with and yes use the blue knob. After you get the flame near what you want it, finish the setting by turning the blue knob on a little bit, this is one of the things to do to keep the torch clean. I now only clean my torch once in awhile just for the heck of it.

Val or someone will come along with a clear explanation...lol


Mike, if fingers had brains..., E

[Lenda]

Denise, you must use the blue knob while working, it's what keeps your ports COOL and clean. If you are getting ANY kind of glowing on the ports, they're dirty. Usually I just knock off any kind of red with a rod of glass, never use metal tools because you'll bend the ends of your ports. If you have glowing, you shouldn't have ANY so you need to clean. The wire is for getting down inside the ports, just be carefull using that because you don't want to break it off in the ports.

Always turn your torch on with the red and green knobs, get your flame the way you want, then open the blue knob just a small bit, it actually tightens your flame just a tad. You really need to play with the 3 knobs, learning to adjust them all for different flames. When I want a tight, small flame, guess which knob I turn down? It's the green one. That gives me a precise fine flame. Sometimes I turn off the green one and only run the blue and the red knob if I want a really tiny precise flame.

You must always use the blue knob, if you let your face glow red for long, that's NOT A GOOD THING!

[MikeAurelius]

You are running too much of a reducing flame and building up carbon on the ports. You need to either add more oxygen if you are using tanks, or cut back on your propane if you are using a concentrator.

You should also be running your flames at least 5" long until you become more familiar with the operation of the torch.

Fine tune your flame by using the side valves for propane and oxygen, then open the top valve and add additional oxygen to sharpen the flame. This top valve should *ALWAYS* be open at least slightly.

[wamII]

I'm not sure why everyone is saying that the blue knob MUST be open. I have a Mirage (inner Lynx) which I have used extensively for over two years. I only use the inner oxy (blue knob) when I NEED it. I have no problem with the ports glowing. And my torch is in perfect condition.

I use a wide range of flames for everything from Moretti to boro, solid and tubing.

[NeofossiL]

According to Willy and Wally, you don't need to open the blue valve unless the candles are less than 1/2 inch. When working with a smaller flame, it is important to open the blue valve to keep the torch cool. If you have a torch top marver take it off for awhile. You might want to buy or borrow the GTT video. And you can always call GTT. They will be happy to answer your questions.

[MikeAurelius]

Originally posted by wamII
I'm not sure why everyone is saying that the blue knob MUST be open. I have a Mirage (inner Lynx) which I have used extensively for over two years. I only use the inner oxy (blue knob) when I NEED it. I have no problem with the ports glowing. And my torch is in perfect condition.

I use a wide range of flames for everything from Moretti to boro, solid and tubing.


Go back and read the instruction sheet and watch the video that were supplied by GTT for the torch. I have a Mirage as well, and the top blue valve NEEDS to be open to help keep the internal plumbing of the torch cool. This is the way the torch is designed.

If you don't believe me, give Willy a call!

[Lenda]

I didn't get any instructions with my Lynx, so I called and talked to Willy, and I believe he told me to always have the blue knob cracked, regardless of flame size to help cool the torch.

[wamII]

I have studied all of the information that came with my torch, such as it is, and gone to Willy/Wally's house for one-on-one instruction. I don't doubt that they have changed their rhetoric, but they key point they conveyed in that past is that the torch MUST NOT be adjusted so that the ports glow. Glowing ports are THE indication that the torch is hot. In the absense of this condition the torch will not be damaged. As a side note, Robert Mickelsen violates this altogether with his Delta and routinely runs a flame with very small outer candles making the ports glow like Chernobyl.

As mentioned above a problematic flame would be when the candles are too short i.e. less than 1/2 an inch.

[MikeAurelius]

Originally posted by wamII
<snipped>

As a side note, Robert Mickelsen violates this altogether with his Delta and routinely runs a flame with very small outer candles making the ports glow like Chernobyl.

As mentioned above a problematic flame would be when the candles are too short i.e. less than 1/2 an inch.

Well, as my mother used to say "If your friend jumped off the house, would you jump off the house too?"

Robert Mickelsen has tens of thousands of hours of experience with torches. He knows what he is doing. This is not something that is recommended "rhetoric" or not. In fact, I find it somewhat disturbing that you would classify the statement of the engineers and designers of the torch as "rhetoric". Far from it.

[wamII]

My intention in bringing this up was to help dispell the myth that these torches are so fragile. I don't believe they are. My statement about Robert was not to suggest that anyone do the same, only to underscore my point.

You are right, rhetoric may have been too strong. But I know you have met W/W know what I mean. I am a design engineer (as are you) and know too well about technical sales. It's not always about the facts. W/W want happy customers and so they advise a conservative tack. They emphasized to me that even when customers had run the torches for hours with the "wrong" settings and sparks were shootin out, they were able to restore them by simply taking a "skim" off the face. Which brings us back to my original motivation (with which I'm confident they'd agree).

BTW, everytime my mother told me that, I jumped and I'm still here to tell you about it:)

[MikeAurelius]

:D

[Denise K]

Thankyou everyone for your advice. After reading Mike E & Lenda's posts yesterday I cleaned the ports and it was a bit better, it still glows when I just crack the blue knob but if I turn it a bit further it stops. It is brand new and I have used it less than a week so I didn't think to clean it, but will now clean it at least weekly.

I didn't get a chance to read the other posts until this morning (It's 10am here). When I run the torch, the flame is about 8" to 10" long, I turn the oxygen until it starts to hiss and turn it down until it just stops hissing, should it be hissing? I am working with the candles just under half inch.

Thankyou so much for all your help, before I bought this the only torch I had ever seen was a Hothead, I haven't even seen videos (although I do have 1 on order). I don't know where I'd be without this forum.

Thanks,
Denise

[ValorieCox]

Originally posted by wamII
BTW, everytime my mother told me that, I jumped and I'm still here to tell you about it:)

:) Thanks for offering another point of view wamII, always appreciated!

Denise, sounds like you've got things under control, keep us posted, and have fun!

Val

[Lenda]

Denise, when it is hissing, that's telling you that it's an oxygenating flame, not a neutral. The yellow cones on the tips is a reducing flame, although when using a larger flame, the cones will have yellow tips in a neutral flame.

If you've only had it one week, congratulations, it's a nice torch. It will take you a while to get used to it, be patient, you'll love it.:D

[wamII]

What are the gas and oxy pressures you are using?

[Denise K]

wamII,

It is set to GTT's recommendations, I can't remember the pressures (it doesn't help that my oxy gauge doesn't show psi, it has our Aust. equivalent). I can't check at the moment I am at work and when I get home I have family staying with us (my uncle just had a stroke and is not expected to live), so I'm not sure when I will be able to post, but it is somewhere within GTT's recommendations.

Denise

[kbinkster]

Denise,

I am so sorry to hear about your uncle!
~Kimberly