Short answer: These are two mid-band, surface-mix bench burners for a maker stepping up from an entry torch, and they solve the “more flame” problem in opposite ways. The Nortel Major gives you two flames on one torch: a big, bushy 64-port bottom head for volume, plus a top-mounted Minor for fine detail, each on its own valves. The Carlisle Wildcat gives you one well-behaved 19-port surface-mix fire and keeps things simple. If you want range and detail on a single torch, lean Major; if you want one clean flame with published oxygen and pressure numbers to plan around, lean Wildcat.
Both sit in the same rough price neighborhood ($492 for the Major, $612 for the Wildcat as reference figures), both are Surface mix designs, and both run propane or natural gas with oxygen. The difference is in how they hand you more capability, and that is really the whole decision. If you are still deciding whether a bench torch is even the right form factor, start with bench vs hand torch; if the surface-mix idea itself is new, surface mix vs premix torches covers why most of this catalog works the way it does.
How each torch is built
The Nortel Major is a large surface-mix bench burner built around a 64-orifice bottom head. That head is the same 8x8 pattern Nortel uses on its Multimix hand torch, and it is what produces the Major’s signature broad, bushy flame. On top of that bottom head sits a full Nortel Minor burner, the same 7-port surface-mix head that so many beadmakers learn on as a standalone starter. The two heads have independent valve controls, so the Major is really two torches stacked into one body: a volume flame below and a detail flame above. Nortel counts it as a two-stage torch (2 stages) for that reason.
The Carlisle Wildcat takes the opposite approach. It is a single-stage surface-mix burner with a stainless tube matrix of 19 fuel ports surrounded by oxygen porting. One head, one flame, one set of valves. Carlisle documents a separate ring of 12 ports cut into the front brass casing, which it presents as part of a “Vortex” cooling system that draws air through the casing using oxygen flow. Some resellers describe those same 12 as oxygen ports; the sources disagree, so we count the 19 fuel ports only and do not sum them to a larger number. The Wildcat’s stand seats the head at a 45-degree angle, which Carlisle frames as an ease-of-use choice.
Flame range and workflow
This is where the two torches feel genuinely different at the bench.
The Major’s bottom head throws a bushy flame up to about 1.5 inches across at full opening, which is a real jump in melting capacity over an entry bench torch, and it is well suited to borosilicate in Nortel’s own positioning. But the reason many makers reach for the Major specifically is the Minor top: when you need a small, precise flame for stringer work, sharp details, or finishing, you throttle the big head down and work off the Minor without swapping torches or tips. Two flames, two jobs, no reconfiguration. The trade-off is that two heads mean two sets of valves to learn, and getting a clean handoff between the bushy bottom and the fine top takes some time on the torch.
The Wildcat’s single flame is the counter-argument. One surface-mix fire that behaves predictably across its range is less to think about, and for a maker who mostly wants “a bigger, steadier flame than my starter gave me,” that simplicity is a feature, not a limitation. Carlisle aims the Wildcat at borosilicate work, and its catalog glass profile is boro-focused. You lose the built-in detail head, so very fine work happens by throttling the one flame down rather than switching to a dedicated small burner.
Gas and oxygen appetite
Here the two makers publish very different amounts of detail, and it matters for planning your supply.
Carlisle publishes numbers for the Wildcat. Its documented standard usage is roughly 3 LPM propane and ~15 LPM oxygen, which Carlisle describes as extremely economical for the flame you get, at recommended operating pressures of about 2 PSI fuel gas and 5 PSI oxygen. Treat those as the maker’s own standard-usage figures rather than a hard ceiling: real draw is tip- and flame-dependent, and a wide-open flame will pull more than a working one.
Nortel does not publish an oxygen LPM figure for the Major. Our catalog oxygen field for it is empty, and we are not going to invent one. What Nortel does give you is pressure guidance: the Major’s suggested settings are propane around 2 to 6 PSI, natural gas around 1/4 to 2 PSI, and oxygen around 5 to 8 PSI. Because the Major carries a bigger bottom head than the Wildcat’s single matrix and adds a second flame on top, plan for it to want at least as much oxygen as the Wildcat and likely more when both heads are lit. That is a directional statement, not a measured one: size your oxygen from the manufacturer’s pressure guidance and your own concentrator or tank output, and confirm with Nortel before you commit to a supply.
| Nortel Major | Carlisle Wildcat | |
|---|---|---|
| Mix type | Surface mix | Surface mix |
| Mount | Bench | Bench |
| Fuel ports | 64 (bottom head) | 19 |
| Second flame | Top-mounted Minor for detail | None (single flame) |
| Oxygen (maker figure) | Not published | ~15 LPM standard use |
| Published pressures | Propane 2 to 6 PSI, NG 1/4 to 2 PSI, O2 5 to 8 PSI | Fuel 2 PSI, O2 5 PSI |
| Reference price | $492 | $612 |
Fuels and supply
Both torches run propane or natural gas with oxygen, so either fits a typical concentrator or tank studio. Our catalog lists the same two fuels for each, so fuel type is not a point of difference between them; run whichever gas your studio is already set up for and size the oxygen to match the flame you actually work.
Whatever you run, match the torch to your oxygen source honestly. The Wildcat’s published ~15 LPM standard use gives you a concrete number to check your concentrator against; the Major asks you to work from pressures and err on the side of more oxygen headroom, especially if you intend to run both heads at once. Fit the flashback protection your torch and gas supply actually call for, sized to your setup rather than a blanket rule, and read flashback arrestors explained before you plumb anything. The manufacturer’s manual for your specific torch and gas is the authority on pressures, fittings, and protection; this article does not replace it.
Price and what you get for it
The Major’s reference price of $492 is a street figure and the Wildcat’s $612 is a starting “from” price from Carlisle’s own web store, so treat both as ballpark rather than a fixed quote, and expect options and tips to add cost. Read plainly, the Major is a touch cheaper and comes with a second full burner built in, which is a lot of torch for the money if you will use both heads. The Wildcat costs a bit more for a single head, but you are also paying for Carlisle’s published usage numbers and a design tuned tightly around one economical boro flame. Neither is “more torch” in the abstract; they are different torches at a similar price.
Which one for a maker stepping up
If you are coming off an entry bench torch like a Nortel Minor and you want both more melting power and a dedicated detail flame on the same torch, the Major is the natural step: you keep the exact Minor head you already know how to run, and you gain a big bushy head under it. It rewards makers who work across scales in a single session and do not mind learning a second set of valves.
If your step-up is really about one bigger, steadier, economical flame for borosilicate, and you would rather have published oxygen and pressure numbers to plan a supply around than a second head to manage, the Wildcat is the cleaner answer. It is the simpler tool, and for a lot of makers simple is exactly the upgrade they wanted.
Both are honest mid-band surface-mix bench burners from makers with long track records. The right pick is less about which is “better” and more about whether your work wants range and detail on one torch, or one well-mannered flame you can size precisely. If you have not mounted a torch of this size before, torch mounting and bench angle covers the setup, and best beginner glass torch frames where an entry torch leaves off and a step-up like these begins.
Editor’s note: Carlisle’s ~3 LPM propane / ~15 LPM oxygen and 2/5 PSI figures are the maker’s own standard-usage numbers and vary with tip and flame; Nortel publishes no oxygen LPM for the Major, so we quote its pressures and do not estimate a flow. Prices are reference figures (the Wildcat a starting “from” price, the Major reseller-derived) and move with time and options. Confirm current specs, configuration, and pricing with the maker before you buy.
Related guides
- Surface mix vs premix torches
- Bench vs hand torch
- Best beginner glass torch
- Flashback arrestors explained
- Torch mounting and bench angle
Sources
- Nortel Glass, “Major” bench burner: https://www.nortelglass.com/major/
- Nortel Glass, “Minor” bench burner: https://www.nortelglass.com/minor-bench-burner/
- Nortel Glass, “Multimix 8x8” hand torch: https://www.nortelglass.com/multimix-8x8/
- Carlisle Machine Works, “Wildcat” bench burner: http://carlislemachine.com/as_benchburners/wildcat.php
- Lampwork Etc., “Pre-mix vs Surface mix”: http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=191042
- Lampwork Etc., stepping-up / bench burner discussion: https://www.lampworketc.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-66482.html