Herbert Arnold Torches: Zenit, Big Arni, and Hand Torch Lineup

Short answer: Herbert Arnold makes three bench burners in our catalog: the Zenit, Big Arni and Arni. Its three hand torches are the Mini Hand Torch, Premix Hand Torch and Zenit Hand Torch. Start with the job: boro tubing on a bench, bead work, or handheld detail. Each burner must be ordered for its intended fuel.

If you want the design story behind the quiet flame, read Herbert Arnold concentric-ring burners alongside this lineup guide; that article goes deep on the ring face, this one lays out the whole range model by model.

The Herbert Arnold lineup at a glance

Six models, bench burners first, then hand torches. Mix and mount come straight from our catalog. Arnold’s own list price is in euros excluding VAT, from its 02/2025 price list, as a range across fuel versions and heads; the US figure is our reference price, not Arnold’s.

Arnold’s burner catalog (page 35) names surface mix for the Arni; the Big Arni’s table on the same page names no mix system, so surface mix for it is our reading.

Who Herbert Arnold is

Herbert Arnold is not a torch boutique. It is a long-established German glass-machinery company: Herbert Arnold started it as a one-person business on 1 October 1950 in Weilburg, Germany, developing production technology for glass and later quartz, and it is today part of the Arnold Gruppe. The firm describes itself as a maker of burners, glassworking lathes, tools, and turnkey production systems for glass and quartz-glass processing, with customers in fiber optics, semiconductor, and solar work as well as the studio. For the Zenit specifically, Arnold emphasizes low-noise operation, a stable flame and continuous adjustment through one twist grip. These are the maker’s design and performance descriptions, not an independent comparison with other torches.

Construction varies by burner. Arnold describes a solid, scale-resistant stainless-steel head for the Zenit. Its separate quartz-burner collection uses electropolished stainless gas-contact parts and quartz heads or jets; that statement does not describe every torch in this guide. The gas and construction specifications belong to the exact model and version ordered.

How to read Herbert Arnold specs

A few conventions before the model blocks, so the numbers mean what you think they mean.

Surface mix versus premix. Most of this line is surface mix: fuel and oxygen stay separate until they leave the burner face and combust at the surface, which is the forgiving, backfire-resistant arrangement. The two small hand torches are the exception: Arnold lists both the Premix Hand Torch and the Mini Hand Torch as premix (Mischgassystem), where the gases combine inside the torch before the tip for a sharper, more concentrated, less forgiving flame. If those terms are new, surface mix vs premix torches explains the trade-off.

Concentric ring heads. The Zenit bench burner, the Zenit Hand Torch, and the two bead burners all use concentric heads (Arnold gives the bead burners’ jet-ring diameters, 11.7 mm on the Big Arni and 6.6 mm on the Arni): jets arranged in rings around a common center, all firing into one coordinated flame. Arnold describes continuous adjustment of the Zenit through a single twist grip. Its reviewed burner catalog and Zenit brochure do not give a jet count for the Zenit heads; ring geometry alone does not establish one.

Oxygen figures are converted maximums. Herbert Arnold publishes maximum gas and oxygen consumption in cubic meters an hour. Three of our six records carry a rounded LPM conversion: the Zenit and Zenit Hand Torch on the 40 mm propane head, and the Premix Hand Torch. These are maximum-consumption figures, not measurements of a typical working flame. The reviewed burner catalog gives no consumption figure for the Mini Hand Torch, Big Arni or Arni, so those fields remain blank.

Prices are reference figures. The dollar figures below are US reference prices, not a Herbert Arnold US price list. Arnold’s own price list, dated 02/2025, is in euros excluding VAT, and we quote it beside each model rather than convert it. Use the dollar figure to place a model in the range, then confirm the current number with Herbert Arnold before buying.

Editor’s note: Herbert Arnold publishes its burners in metric, with head sizes and gas flows in m3/h, and configurations vary by head size and gas. LPM figures are rounded unit conversions; dollar figures are US reference prices, not currency conversions, and the manufacturer’s own current data sheet takes precedence over anything here.

Bench burners

The three bench models covered here are the Zenit and two compact bead burners.

Zenit

~$3,300 (pro band) · concentric ring head · 1 stage · ~58 LPM max O2 (40 mm propane head, our conversion of Arnold’s maximum) · surface mix

The Zenit is a surface-mix bench burner built around a concentric-ring face, made in 40 mm, 50 mm, and 65 mm head sizes that Arnold rates for boro tubing of about 80 mm, up to 100 mm and over 100 mm. In Joe Blanchard’s sixteen years on the distribution side of the glass industry, the 40 and 65 mm were the Zenits he encountered most often; the 50 mm was uncommon in his experience. Arnold describes a flame-stabilization system that lets it run on surplus air for a cooler flame, and a single twist grip takes it from a sharp pinpoint to an intensive flame. It runs gas and oxygen, with optional compressed-air injection on the propane and natural-gas versions, and Arnold builds it as three burners by fuel: 114/1 PSL (propane), 114/2 ESL (natural gas) and 114/3 WS (hydrogen), the last also rated for quartz. The oxygen figure, about 58 LPM, is our estimate from Arnold’s maximum consumption for the 40 mm head on propane; the natural-gas version is rated higher (around 73 LPM), and the 50 mm and 65 mm heads climb from there, which is why we treat it as an estimate.

Arnold’s 02/2025 price list runs from EUR 2,289 (40 mm, hydrogen) to EUR 3,846 (65 mm, propane), excluding VAT. Its recorded US reference price is near $3,300, in our pro band. If sound level is a priority in your studio, judge Arnold’s low-noise claim on a demonstration burner under the conditions you expect to use.

Big Arni

~$1,095 (mid band) · 28 mm head · 2 zones · surface mix

The Big Arni is smaller and less expensive than the Zenit: a bead burner (126/11), surface mix by our reading since Arnold’s table does not name its mix system, for propane at 50 mbar or natural gas at 22 mbar, with oxygen at 0.5 to 1 bar, for beads and small or large glass handicrafts. It has two-zone adjustment on a compact head (28 mm head diameter, an 11.7 mm jet ring), weighs about 1.76 kg. Arnold offers supply ready for connection; confirm what is included in the ordered configuration. The reviewed catalog page does not verify the legacy 15-jet count, 40 mm working limit or cast-iron base claim. It also gives no oxygen-consumption figure for the Big Arni. Follow the model’s setup instructions, and fit the flashback protection Arnold recommends for its burners.

Arnold’s 02/2025 price list carries the natural-gas version at EUR 856 excluding VAT. At a reference price near $1,095 it lands in the mid band. The smaller Arni costs less in Arnold’s euro list, so the Big Arni is not the lowest-priced Arnold bench burner.

Arni

EUR 398 propane, EUR 372 natural gas (Arnold list, ex VAT) · 20 mm head · surface mix

The Arni, model 126/12, is the Big Arni’s smaller sibling on the same catalog page: a surface-mix bead burner with a 20 mm head and a 6.6 mm jet ring, weighing 1.25 kg, which Arnold describes as a fine flame for bead details. It runs propane at 50 mbar or natural gas at 22 mbar with oxygen at 0.5 to 1 bar. Arnold offers ready-to-connect supply; confirm the configuration when ordering. The reviewed catalog page gives no jet count, stage count or consumption for the Arni, and we hold no US price. Its published fine-flame purpose makes it a candidate for bead details or other small work.

Hand torches

Three hand torches round out the line, each sold in propane, natural gas and hydrogen versions per Arnold’s catalog and its 2025 price list. Two are small, detail-focused instruments; the third puts the silent Zenit flame in your hand.

Mini Hand Torch

~$420 (mid band) · 0.5 and 0.8 mm jets (0.3 and 0.5 on hydrogen) · 1 stage · premix

The Mini Hand Torch is an oxygen hand torch sold in propane, natural gas and hydrogen versions, built for the smallest glass and quartz, with a fine needle flame. It ships with two curved copper jets with stainless inserts, 0.5 and 0.8 mm bore (0.3 and 0.5 mm on the hydrogen version), and Arnold sells replacement jets from 0.3 mm, jewel-insert jets down to 0.18 mm and a two-jet distributor.

Arnold’s catalog lists it as premix (Mischgassystem), model 126/20, at EUR 304 excluding VAT for each fuel version. At a reference price near $420 it is a mid-band specialist tool, most at home in detailed quartz and small-scale work rather than general beadmaking.

Premix Hand Torch

~$649 (mid band) · three exchangeable jets (0.8 / 1.0 / 1.3 mm) · 1 stage · ~2.8 LPM max O2 (our conversion) · premix

The Premix Hand Torch, Herbert Arnold’s model 126/22, is a premix hand torch for gas and oxygen. Arnold describes its flame as sharp and hot, with a fine needle valve each for gas and oxygen (earlier listings describe a brass body; Arnold’s current catalog page does not state the material). Its upper part comes off with a union nut, and the torch ships with three jets in 0.8, 1.0, and 1.3 mm: groove jets on propane and natural gas, single-hole jets on hydrogen. Arnold also rates it as a sealing burner.

The propane version runs 50 mbar gas and 0.5 to 1.5 bar oxygen and draws at most 0.17 cubic meters of oxygen an hour, about 2.8 LPM. Like the Mini it is premix, so its flame is sharper and more concentrated than the surface-mix models but less forgiving, which suits its job of fine detail and sealing. Reference price is near $649, in the mid band; Arnold lists it at EUR 400 (EUR 378 on hydrogen), excluding VAT.

Zenit Hand Torch

~$3,695 (pro band) · 40 mm concentric ring head · 1 stage · ~58 LPM max O2 (propane, our conversion) · surface mix

The Zenit Hand Torch applies the silent Zenit principle to a handheld burner: the burner head is separated from the control part, with gas fed through flexible hoses, so you get the same quiet, stabilized surface-mix flame in a torch you can move over the work, on hoses 1,600 mm long. Arnold builds it with a 40 mm head as 114/21 PS (propane), 114/22 ES (natural gas) and 114/23 WS (hydrogen, also for quartz), for reworking borosilicate; its catalog lists no compressed-air connection, unlike the bench Zenit. The propane version draws at most 3.5 cubic meters of oxygen an hour, about 58 LPM, and weighs 6.1 kg in total with 1.2 kg at the head. Arnold’s 02/2025 price list gives EUR 2,719 for propane, excluding VAT. Its US reference price is near $3,695, in our pro band. The handheld head and separate controls suit assembly and reworking passes where moving the burner is more useful than moving the work.

Which Herbert Arnold torch fits your work

Choose for the work and available supply. Arnold rates the Zenit 40 mm for boro tubing of about 80 mm and the Zenit 65 mm for work over 100 mm. Those were the sizes Joe encountered most often in distribution; his experience is not a market-share measurement. For beads and glass handicrafts, consider the Big Arni, with the smaller Arni for fine bead detail. For bench work in scientific glass and boro tubing, compare the Zenit head sizes and oxygen requirements before choosing. For handheld detail, the Mini Hand Torch covers the smallest glass and quartz instruments; the Premix Hand Torch covers sharp-flame detail and sealing. Both are premix: the Mini has smaller supplied jets, while the Premix has separate needle valves and optional multi-jet distributors. And for the Zenit flame in the hand, on boro assembly and rework, the Zenit Hand Torch is the specialist answer. If you are still deciding between a fixed burner and a handheld one, our bench vs hand torch guide walks through the trade-off, and soft glass vs boro vs quartz helps match a torch to the glass you actually work.

Buying a Herbert Arnold torch

Herbert Arnold torches are German imports, so a few practical points matter more than they would for a domestic maker. Arnold publishes a euro list price excluding VAT; the dollar figures here are US reference prices, not a published US list, so confirm the current number and configuration with Herbert Arnold before you buy rather than treating our figure as a quote. Head size, gas type, and included tips all change what you get and what it costs, particularly on the Zenit, where nine fuel-and-head combinations run from EUR 2,289 to EUR 3,846. Connections are model-specific: the Zenit catalog table lists R 3/8-inch left-hand fuel, R 1/4-inch oxygen and R 3/8-inch air threads. The separate US adapter set lists G-thread connections on the burner side and 9/16-inch US connections; confirm the exact matching set with Arnold.

Arnold’s published October 2015 terms apply to business customers and set a 12-month defect-claim period with stated exceptions (sections 1(3) and 8(15) to 8(17)). That is not a universal consumer-warranty statement; confirm the terms of your order. Arnold recommends protection against reverse gas flow and flashback on its burners, so set up the flashback protection your torch and gas supply call for, following the maker’s own manual over any general rule of thumb. If your work is scientific, quartz, or precision boro, this line is built for exactly that; if you want a mainstream soft-glass or boro bench torch with easy North American parts and service, weigh the import friction honestly first.

Related guides

• Herbert Arnold concentric-ring burners
• Surface mix vs premix torches
• Bench vs hand torch
• How to choose a glass torch
• Soft glass vs boro vs quartz
• Herbert Arnold Big Arni vs Bethlehem Bravo
• Herbert Arnold Zenit vs GTT Mirage
• Herbert Arnold Zenit Hand Torch vs GTT Delta Elite
• Carlisle Universal vs Herbert Arnold Mini Hand Torch
• Herbert Arnold Premix Hand Torch vs Nortel Twin Fuel

Sources

• Herbert Arnold: burners overview
• Herbert Arnold: company
• Herbert Arnold: for glassblowers
• Arnold Gruppe: burners data sheet (PDF)
• Arnold Gruppe: Zenit data sheet (PDF)
• Arnold Gruppe: burner price list, 02/2025 (PDF)
• Arnold Gruppe: terms and conditions, October 2015 (PDF)