Short answer: Buy the Nortel Minor if you are starting on soft glass beads with one oxygen concentrator; buy the Nortel Red Max if you already know you want larger work and can feed a bigger flame. The Minor is a single seven-port surface-mix burner that Nortel aims primarily at soft glass and says one 5 LPM concentrator runs, at about $325. The Red Max is two burners stacked: a large lower head with a flame up to 1.25 inches wide, and a top fire you choose (a Minor, a Mega Minor or a Premix head), at about $894 for the version with a Minor top. Nortel gives no oxygen guidance for the Red Max, so plan its supply generously.
If you are still mapping the bigger decision, start with the complete glass torch buyer’s guide; the Nortel lineup guide places both torches in the full line.
The one-line difference
A Red Max with a Minor top is, in effect, a Minor sitting on top of a much bigger burner. Everything the Minor does, the Red Max can still do on its top fire. What the Red Max adds is the lower head: broad heat for bigger pieces, which a Minor cannot produce at any setting. What it costs is more money, more hose and regulator plumbing for two burners, and an oxygen appetite Nortel does not put a number on.
Nortel Minor: the starter Nortel sizes to one concentrator
The Minor is a seven-port surface-mix bench burner running natural gas or propane with oxygen. Forum threads have long called it premix, a recurring confusion in community discussions such as Lampwork Etc.’s premix vs surface mix thread, but Nortel’s own listing reads “Surface mix, 7 port”. Nortel’s store listing aims it primarily at soft glass, for beads, small sculpture and marbles up to about 3 inches, and ships it with a cleaning needle and your choice of barb or B fittings.
Its strongest selling point for a first home studio is the oxygen statement. Nortel says one 5 LPM concentrator runs a Minor, and its torch comparison page describes one concentrator for starting, two for hotter, faster and larger work, and bottled oxygen for faster melting still. That is a clear upgrade path that never requires a different torch. Our catalog’s oxygen figure for the Minor, ~9 LPM, is our own comparative estimate, not a Nortel number.
The Minor’s limit is size. A seven-port head has a ceiling, and borosilicate past small pieces is where it shows. If that is where you are heading, also look at the Mega Minor, which keeps the seven ports with larger openings; Nortel Minor vs Mega Minor covers that smaller step.
Nortel Red Max: two burners on one stand
The Red Max’s lower head is what you are buying. Nortel labels it a 45-port burner and describes it as a center ring of 16 ports inside a ring of 27, which adds up to 43; we report Nortel’s label and the discrepancy rather than pick one. Nortel gives its flame width as up to 1.25 inches.
On top sits the burner you choose: a Minor, a Mega Minor, or a Premix head that takes Nortel’s N11 (eleven-hole) and N3 tips. The Minor and Mega Minor tops keep the whole torch surface mix; the Premix head is the only premix element, and it is an option, not part of the base torch. Nortel’s page lists 3/8 inch or 5/16 inch hoses.
Our catalog counts the Red Max as 2 stages because the two burners each have their own valves, not because one head has two controlled rings. In practice you run the top fire for detail and bring in the lower head for heat.
What Nortel does not publish matters for planning: no regulator pressures and no oxygen guidance on the Red Max page, and no glass types. The catalog’s use cases (soft glass, inside-out work, general bench work) and its intermediate skill level are our reading of where it fits.
Side by side
Figures come from Nortel’s own pages where we have them and are labelled as estimates where they are ours. Confirm the current spec with Nortel before you buy.
| Factor | Nortel Minor | Nortel Red Max |
|---|---|---|
| Burners | One, seven ports | Two: a lower head Nortel labels 45-port, plus a top fire |
| Mix | Surface mix | Surface mix with a Minor or Mega Minor top; Premix top optional |
| Flame size (Nortel) | Not stated on Nortel’s page | Up to 1.25 inches wide |
| Oxygen guidance (Nortel) | One 5 LPM concentrator runs it | Not stated |
| Glass (Nortel) | Primarily soft glass | Not stated |
| Price (Nortel’s US listing) | $325 | $894 with a Minor top |
| Fuel | Propane or natural gas | Propane or natural gas |
Both prices are Nortel’s own US-dollar figures, which are conversions from its Canadian list and move with the exchange rate.
Which should you buy?
- First torch, soft glass beads, one concentrator: the Minor. Nortel sizes it to exactly that supply, and the money you save goes into glass, a kiln and eyewear.
- You already work boro or larger soft glass pieces: the Red Max. The lower head is the only way to get broad heat in this pair.
- You want one torch to grow into and can budget for oxygen: the Red Max with a Minor top keeps the Minor’s detail flame available while you learn, and the lower head waits until you need it.
- Undecided: start on a Minor. It stays useful as a second torch or a teaching torch, and the Red Max can be bought later with a Minor or Mega Minor top.
Oxygen, fuel and protection
The Minor’s one-concentrator rating is the clearest number either torch carries. For the Red Max, assume the full lower flame wants well beyond one small concentrator and size the supply for the biggest flame you intend to run; our oxygen sizing guide shows how. Neither page lists hydrogen; both run propane or natural gas with oxygen.
Both torches are surface mix with a Minor or Mega Minor top, which is a different flashback picture from a premix circuit; if you fit the Red Max’s Premix head, that circuit has its own requirements. Set up the flashback protection your torch and gas supply call for, follow Nortel’s instructions, and plan ventilation before the first light.
Editor’s note: Nortel’s model pages were read on 2026-10-06 through an owner-supplied web read and its US-dollar prices on 2026-10-17; our tools cannot open nortelglass.com directly. The Red Max port count is reported as Nortel labels it, with the ring arithmetic beside it. Confirm configurations, prices and oxygen needs with Nortel before you buy.
Related guides
- Nortel torch lineup, model by model
- Nortel Minor vs Mega Minor
- Nortel Minor vs Carlisle Mini CC
- Best beginner glass torch
- How many LPM does my torch need?
Sources
- Nortel Manufacturing, Minor bench burner: https://www.nortelglass.com/minor-bench-burner/
- Nortel Manufacturing, Minor bench burner store listing (glass, work size, included cleaning needle): https://www.nortelglass.com/product/minor-bench-burner/
- Nortel Manufacturing, Red Max (port label and rings, flame width, top options, hoses): https://www.nortelglass.com/red-max/
- Nortel Manufacturing, Red Max with Minor top store listing (price): https://www.nortelglass.com/product/red-max-with-minor-top/
- Nortel Manufacturing, Which torch is right for me (concentrator guidance): https://www.nortelglass.com/which-torch-is-right-for-me/
- Lampwork Etc., “Pre-mix vs Surface mix” (community discussion): http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=191042