A Blowpipe for Gas
Blowpipe Connection to the Ordinary Illuminating-Gas Main for Hard and Soft Soldering
Every experimenter who has a gas connection within convenient distance of the workbench should provide a 4 or 5-ft. length of ¹⁄₄-in. rubber tubing, terminating in a brass tube through which air may be blown in order that a clear blue flame may be available for either hard or soft soldering. The brass tube should be 4 or 5 in. long and fitted at one end with a removable nozzle having a ¹⁄₁₆-in. hole in it. A hole is then drilled in the side and a piece of smaller brass tubing, bent as shown in the sketch, is soldered in place for the air supply. A piece of soft-rubber tubing about 1 ft. long is then provided and one end slipped over the projecting end of the air pipe and the other fitted to a hard-rubber, or amber, mouthpiece. By regulating the gas supply and blowing to the proper degree, a pencil of blue flame may be produced, anywhere from 1 to 4 in. long. For heating large surfaces, the nozzle tip should be removed.
This method of soldering not only makes a better connection than the usual copper, but is instantly available and does not disarrange the several pieces where, as is often the case, it is not practicable to pin or hold them in place.