Guide library
Glass Torch Guides
Independent, plain-language guides on choosing, using, and understanding glass torches. Start with the buyer's guide, then dive into the topic that fits your bench.
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Start here
A History of Glass Torch Making
From Venetian lampwork to GTT's patented surface-mix torches — the story of how the glass torch evolved and built the modern flameworking community.
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Start here
How to Choose a Glass Torch: The Complete Buyer's Guide
Confused about which glass torch to buy? This buyer's guide walks soft-glass and boro artists through mix type, oxygen, fuel, and budget to the right torch.
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Flame & mix technology
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Soaking vs Penetrating Flame: How Torch Heat Actually Works
Soaking vs penetrating flame explained: what makes a flame drive heat through glass or bathe it gently, which torches do which, and which work each suits.
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Surface Mix vs Premix Torches: Which Is Right for You?
Surface mix vs premix glass torches explained: how each flame works, noise, heat, color-friendliness, cost, and which suits soft glass vs borosilicate.
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Oxygen & fuel
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How Many LPM Does My Torch Need? Sizing Oxygen for Your Glass Torch
How many LPM does your torch need? How oxygen demand scales with torch size and jets, where to find your spec, and how to map LPM to a supply that won't starve it.
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Oxygen Concentrator vs Tanks for Lampworking: Which Supply Should You Run?
Oxygen concentrator vs tanks for lampworking: how torch LPM demand decides it, purity and flow ceilings, costs, safety, and the best supply by torch size.
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Oxygen for Lampworking: Tanks, Suppliers, and What It Actually Costs
Where to get oxygen for lampworking, lease vs buy vs cylinder exchange, common tank sizes and runtime, how to negotiate with a gas supplier, and ballpark US cost ranges.
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Propane vs Natural Gas for Torchwork: Which Fuel Is Right for Your Studio?
Propane vs natural gas for lampworking: heat and energy density, supply and cost, plumbing, portability, and safety — how to pick the right fuel for your studio.
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Craft & background
Studio & safety
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Glass Torch Safety Setup: How to Build a Safe Lampworking Station
A glass torch safety setup checklist: flashback arrestors on both lines, correct regulators, leak checks, didymium eyewear, ventilation, secured cylinders, and shutdown order.
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The Quietest Glass Torches for Shared and Public Studios
The quietest glass torch is a surface-mix design — calmer than premix/combo torches like the Carlisle CC, which run loud and can pop. Here's why, and what to pick.
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Choosing & comparing torches
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Bench Torch vs Hand Torch: Which Setup Fits Your Glasswork?
Bench torch vs hand torch explained: how each mounts, hands-free vs handheld work, scale, ergonomics, and which setup beginners and pros should choose.
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Best Beginner Glass Torch: Forgiving First Torches That Won't Hold You Back
The best beginner glass torch has a forgiving flame, runs soft glass on modest oxygen, and fits your budget. Top picks: Carlisle Mini CC and Nortel Minor.
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Bethlehem Alpha vs Bravo vs Champion: Which Bench Torch?
Bethlehem Alpha vs Bravo vs Champion compared: three quiet, strong swivel bench torches. The Alpha starts you, the Bravo balances, the Champion scales up.
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GTT Cheetah vs Lynx: Which Triple Mix Detail Torch Wins?
GTT Cheetah vs Lynx compared: both Triple Mix surface-mix bench torches. The Lynx is the pinpoint-detail torch; the Cheetah packs more heat. Which to buy.
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GTT Lynx vs Bobcat: Which Surface-Mix Torch Should You Buy?
GTT Lynx vs Bobcat compared: both surface-mix bench torches. The Bobcat is the versatile starter; the Lynx is the multi-jet detail torch. Here's which to buy.
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GTT Mirage vs Delta Elite: Which High-End Triple Mix Torch?
GTT Mirage vs Delta Elite compared: both high-end Triple Mix torches on the Lynx center fire. The Mirage is the do-everything torch; Delta Elite goes bigger.
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Nortel Minor vs Carlisle Mini CC: Which Beginner Torch Wins?
Nortel Minor vs Carlisle Mini CC compared: premix vs surface mix, flame character, glass range, cost, and which beginner bench torch is right for you.
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Nortel Red Max vs Minor: Which Affordable Torch to Buy?
Nortel Red Max vs Minor compared: both affordable classics. The Minor is the easy first bead torch; the Red Max adds range and versatility. Which to buy.
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Soft Glass vs Boro vs Quartz: COE, Working Temps, and the Torch Each One Needs
Soft glass vs boro vs quartz for lampworking: COE (~104, ~33, near-zero), working temperatures, the torch power and oxygen each needs, eyewear, and when hydrogen comes in.
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More guides
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Glass Lathes: What a Glassblowing Lathe Is and How Torches Fit In
A glass lathe spins tubing between two synchronized headstocks so it heats and shapes evenly. Here's what it's for, how torches mount, and who actually needs one.
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GTT Compressed Air & 4-Way Mix: Tuning Flame Temperature Without Changing the Flame
GTT's compressed-air option injects air into the fuel system so you can lower flame temperature while keeping the same flame chemistry and type — the documented 'fourth way' behind GTT's 4-Way Mix torches.
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GTT Triple Mix Technology: How Surface-Mix and the Lynx Center Fire Work
GTT Triple Mix is a patented surface-mix design that injects oxygen down the fuel stream for a hotter, cleaner, independently adjustable flame — built on the Lynx center fire.
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Herbert Arnold Concentric-Ring Burners: The Zenit and Its Quiet, Precise Flame
Herbert Arnold's Zenit is a noiseless concentric-ring surface-mix burner: a single twist grip takes it from pin-point to bushy, with a stabilized, quiet flame favored for precise scientific and bead work.
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Lampworking Torch Fittings, Hoses, and Connectors: How to Plumb a Glass Torch Safely
Lampworking torch fittings explained: B fittings and left-hand fuel threads, Grade R vs Grade T hose, Y connectors for oxygen, single- vs multi-stage hookup, plus a parts checklist.
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