Burn Baby, Burn….

I've been meaning to show you this slick little Berzomatic pencil torch I got awhile back.  I use it for soldering silver, copper and brass.  Back home I use a Smith torch which uses acetylene and air.  Over here I would have to buy an acetylene tank the size of the Empire State building and well, that doesn't really evoke a comfy settling feeling in my little studio—even if I drew a smiley face on the side of it.   I was thrilled to find this option and it runs off propane-everyone loves a short stubby tank that you don't need to chain to the wall, right?  If you live in the States, you can use those cute cannisters they sell for camping grills.  The bonus is you can buy them almost anywhere (this is nice when you run out of gas Sunday afternoon and you're hot to finish your project).  I think I paid around $40 (plus shipping) for the torch and then small cannisters are around $6 or $7 so it's pretty cost friendly. 

It's great for small pieces and simple jobs like soldering an ear post.  I have noticed for slightly bigger pieces like a brooch, I need to build up my fire bricks to make a little oven so the piece can stay hot, but that's no biggie.  If you are thinking about soldering, try this torch.  Accessible and small, I give it a 10.