Nortel Major: the 64-port surface-mix bench torch for boro and bigger beads

The Nortel Major is the larger bench burner in Nortel’s line: a 64-port bottom head that throws a bushy flame up to about 1.5 inches across, topped with a Minor for small, detailed flames and independent valve controls for each. It’s the torch you step up to when the Minor or Mid Range runs out of heat and you want to work borosilicate and larger beads without leaving the easy-going Nortel family.

Two flames in one torch

The Major’s appeal is having both heat and detail on tap. The 64-port bottom head is a surface-mix flame built for soaking heat into bigger or thicker glass, while the top-mounted Minor gives you a small, focused flame for fine work — and because each has its own valve control, you can run them independently or together. Like the rest of the Nortel bench line it’s surface mix, so the flame stays clean, quiet, and color-friendly; see surface mix vs premix torches for why that matters.

Who the Major is for

This is an intermediate torch aimed at borosilicate, larger beads, and general work. It’s more burner than a pure beginner needs, but it’s a natural home for someone who’s outgrown a small starter and wants room to push into boro. If your work is still all fine detail, a Minor covers that for less; if you’re heading toward heavier boro, the Major is a credible step up the line. Not sure which glass you’re committing to? See soft glass vs boro vs quartz.

Glass, fuel, and oxygen

The Major comfortably runs soft glass and borosilicate. It burns propane or natural gas with oxygen; Nortel’s suggested regulator pressures are roughly 2–6 psi for propane, 1/4–2 psi for natural gas, and 5–8 psi for oxygen. Those are line pressures, not flow rates — a bigger flame naturally draws more oxygen than a Minor, but Nortel doesn’t publish the Major’s exact LPM, so size your oxygen supply against the work you actually do. See how many LPM does my torch need.

Where it sits in the Nortel line

The Major is the big premix-family — surface-mix — bench burner above the Mid Range. Its 64-port head is the same one Nortel uses on the Multimix 8x8 hand torch. For a different mix of versatility and oxygen efficiency at a similar level, compare the Red Max; for the line’s top-end boro heat, see the Rocket.

Before you buy

Budget for the whole system, not just the torch: oxygen (a concentrator or tanks), the correct propane or natural-gas regulator, flashback arrestors on both lines, didymium eyewear, and ventilation. New to plumbing a torch? Start with the fittings, hoses & connectors guide and the glass torch safety setup guide.

Editor’s note: spec details reflect Nortel’s own materials for the Major (the 64-port head, flame size, and suggested pressures). Nortel doesn’t publish the Major’s exact oxygen flow (LPM) or current pricing, so confirm those specifics with Nortel before purchasing.