Short answer: Yes, a GTT Lynx can run on an oxygen concentrator, and how much of its flame you get depends on the machine. GTT’s own flow rate chart puts the Lynx at ~9.5 LPM of oxygen at its largest usable flame on propane, so on paper a single 10 LPM concentrator covers the full flame and a 5 LPM unit runs it at a smaller one. The less obvious catch is pressure: GTT documents the Lynx at a higher oxygen pressure than the Cricket and Bobcat, and concentrators are low-pressure machines, so check a concentrator’s rated output pressure as well as its LPM. Keep a conventional flashback arrestor off the concentrator line; GTT’s concentrator instruction puts one on the fuel source instead.
For sizing any torch against any concentrator, the general oxygen concentrator LPM guide is the companion to this Lynx-specific one.
What the Lynx oxygen figure actually means
The Lynx is a single-stage bench torch with a 7-jet head built on GTT’s patented Triple Mix design (catalog mix type: Surface mix), and the standard bench model lists at $525 on GTT’s own store, with the hand-torch version priced separately. Its oxygen number comes from GTT’s Flow Rate Chart, which lists the Lynx at 3 cubic feet per hour (CFH) of fuel and 20 CFH of oxygen, with fuel at 5 to 8 psi and oxygen at 10 to 15 psi. The chart gives the oxygen figure in liters per minute as well, and that is the ~9.5 LPM our catalog carries.
Two lines in GTT’s own footnotes decide how to read it. First, “flow rates are measured using the largest usable flame the torch will produce.” Second, “actual usage will depend on the type and size of flame that is run and actual usage is usually much lower than the published numbers.” GTT says the figures exist to calculate the fuel and oxygen needed for the largest usable flame. In other words, the number is a ceiling for the torch opened all the way up, not a floor you must supply before the torch will light. GTT does not publish a minimum oxygen flow for the Lynx, and we do not estimate one.
Editor’s note: our catalog labels the Lynx oxygen figure as an estimate. It is GTT’s largest-usable-flame number from the flow rate chart, which GTT says it rounded “to the nearest usable measurement”, measured on propane. Your real draw depends on flame size, valve settings and the work in front of you. Confirm current figures with GTT before you buy a supply around them.
Here is the Lynx beside its neighbours on the same GTT chart (pressure is GTT’s chart range; flow is the catalog figure drawn from that chart).
| Torch | Oxygen pressure on GTT’s chart | Oxygen at largest usable flame |
|---|---|---|
| Cricket | 5 to 10 psi | ~5.5 LPM |
| Bobcat | 5 to 10 psi | ~8.5 LPM |
| Lynx | 10 to 15 psi | ~9.5 LPM |
| Phantom | 35 psi | ~16.5 LPM |
The flow step from the Bobcat to the Lynx is small; the pressure step is the one to notice.
Running a Lynx on a 5 LPM versus a 10 LPM concentrator
Start with plain arithmetic on the catalog figure. A 5 LPM concentrator supplies a little over half of the ~9.5 LPM GTT lists for the largest usable flame. A 10 LPM concentrator covers that figure, with only a small margin. Neither calculation accounts for pressure, and neither accounts for purity: community reports collected in our LPM guide describe concentrator purity falling as a machine runs toward its rated maximum, so a unit working flat out all day is the worst case.
On a 5 LPM machine, expect to work the Lynx below its largest flame. GTT’s Lynx instructions give a useful map of what the torch is doing at each end. Red (fuel) and green (main outer oxygen) alone are “good for most bead working.” Adding the blue valve (secondary inner oxygen) with all three open is “good for larger bead and marble work and for borosilicate work,” and GTT says to use all three when you need a very hot flame. The instructions also describe a small, sharp red-and-blue flame, from about 1 inch up to about 10 inches long, for detail work. Our reading, not GTT’s statement: the smaller settings are where a 5 LPM supply fits naturally, and the big three-valve flame is where a small concentrator becomes the limit.
Two GTT warnings matter when you are fitting the torch to a modest supply. The instructions say never to run a soft, low or short flame because it overheats the burner, and that jet orifices glowing orange mean the green valve needs opening further. So a smaller flame on a small concentrator should still be a tight, focused one with enough oxygen for the fuel you are running, not a big fuel setting with the oxygen held short. If the flame goes lazy, sooty or unsteady when you open it up, that is the classic sign of an oxygen-starved flame, which how many LPM does my torch need describes in detail.
On a 10 LPM machine, the flow side of the full flame is covered on paper, which leaves pressure as the open question. Two 5 LPM machines in parallel add up to roughly 10 LPM of flow. They do not add pressure: the combined output sits at the pressure of the strongest single machine. That distinction is already laid out in how many LPM does my torch need, and it matters more for the Lynx than for a Cricket or Bobcat, because pressure is exactly where the Lynx asks for more.
Pressure: the part LPM does not answer
GTT publishes two oxygen pressure ranges for the Lynx, and they are not the same. The Flow Rate Chart lists oxygen at 10 to 15 psi. The Lynx instruction sheet says to set the oxygen regulator to 15 to 25 psi, and the propane tank regulator to 5 to 8 psi. The sources disagree on the oxygen range, so we report both rather than pick one. Either way, both sit above the 5 to 10 psi the same chart lists for the Cricket and Bobcat, which are the models GTT pitches at small concentrators.
The instruction sheet reads as written for a regulator on a cylinder, which delivers whatever pressure you set. A concentrator is different: it produces oxygen at low pressure compared with a tank, and output pressure varies from model to model (our concentrator brands comparison lists what the makers publish). Before you rely on one for a Lynx:
- Read the concentrator’s rated output pressure from its spec plate or manual, not only its LPM rating. A machine can meet the flow figure and still fall short on push.
- Compare it with the Lynx figures above, and treat a gap as a real limitation that a second machine in parallel will not fix.
- Confirm with GTT that the Lynx will run the flame you need at that pressure.
Flashback protection on a concentrator setup
This is where a common mistake happens, so be precise. GTT states that its flashback arrestors need roughly 5 to 7 psi to open. GTT also says not to fit them on an oxygen concentrator’s output, where they may not open at all and will severely restrict the flow you are already short of.
GTT’s instruction for a concentrator setup is to put the flashback arrestor on the fuel source. For the low-pressure device, GTT points to a flame arrestor rather than a conventional flashback arrestor. GTT also describes its surface-mix design as nearly eliminating flashback in normal use and treats arrestors as an optional extra layer on it, while recommending them where several torches share one gas supply.
The right framing is the flashback protection your torch and gas supply call for, set out in the Lynx and device manuals. For the full picture, including why a check valve alone is not an arrestor and where each device sits, read flashback arrestors explained.
Running the Lynx on natural gas
The catalog lists the Lynx for propane and natural gas. Two points from GTT’s chart matter here. The chart’s footnote says its testing used propane at the recommended pressures, so the ~9.5 LPM figure is a propane figure. The same footnote says natural gas consumption is approximately 2.5 times the amount of propane listed, which is a statement about fuel use.
The chart also lists the Lynx’s fuel pressure at 5 to 8 psi, where the Cricket and Bobcat rows start at a quarter of a psi. Household natural gas arrives at low pressure, so if you plan to run a Lynx on a house line, ask GTT what fuel pressure it needs on natural gas before assuming it behaves like the smaller models. It is the other half of whether a concentrator-and-house-gas setup works for this torch.
When tanks make more sense
A concentrator is the convenient choice for a Lynx doing beads and detail. Cylinders start to earn their place when:
- You live in the big flame. If most of your time is on the three-valve flame GTT describes for larger beads, marbles and boro, you are working near the chart’s ceiling, where a single small machine runs out.
- Your concentrator cannot reach the pressure. A cylinder regulator can be set to the range the Lynx instructions call for; a concentrator gives what it gives.
- Power is unreliable. A concentrator stops when the power does. Tanks keep going; see backup power for glass studios if you would rather keep the concentrator.
- You plan to step up. The Lynx is the center fire GTT builds its larger multi-stage torches around (see GTT Triple Mix technology). The next torch up the same path, such as the Phantom at ~16.5 LPM on the chart, sits beyond a single 10 LPM machine by simple arithmetic. If you expect to move up the line, size the oxygen for where you are going.
The trade-offs of cylinders (refills, transport, storage and handling) are covered in oxygen concentrator vs tanks for lampworking.
Editor’s note: every figure here comes from GTT’s flow rate chart, Lynx instructions and flashback arrestor page, or from our catalog. Concentrator output varies by make and model. Your torch and device manuals take precedence over this guide; confirm your setup with GTT.
Related guides
- Oxygen concentrator LPM for lampworking
- How many LPM does my torch need?
- Flashback arrestors explained
- GTT Triple Mix technology
Sources
- Glass Torch Technologies, “Lynx” (model page): https://www.glasstorchtech.com/lynx
- Glass Torch Technologies, Flow Rate Chart (largest-usable-flame fuel and oxygen figures, chart pressures, propane testing and natural gas footnote; PDF): https://www.glasstorchtech.com/_files/ugd/0f433e_940fa1536d544665a118116eb9542e62.pdf
- Glass Torch Technologies, “Triple Mix Torches”: https://www.glasstorchtech.com/triple-mix-torches
- Glass Torch Technologies, “Flashback Arrestors” (opening pressure, concentrator and flame-arrestor guidance): https://www.glasstorchtech.com/flashback-arrestors
- Glass Torch Technologies, “Instructions for Lynx Torches” (regulator pressures, valve functions, flame guidance; PDF): https://www.glasstorchtech.com/_files/ugd/0f433e_2cc690cf1a864891b9bab3e0d745bb89.pdf (our archived copy: /manuals/gtt-lynx-instructions.pdf)