Nortel Mega Minor Glass Torch

The Nortel Mega Minor is, essentially, a Minor turned up a notch. It uses the same 7-port stainless surface-mix layout but with slightly larger ports, which gives it hotter temperatures and more efficient oxygen use, and a flame that runs from a needle point up to about 7/8 inch. The result is a forgiving, versatile small-to-medium torch that’s good for small boro while staying great on soft glass, and that also pulls double duty as the Red Max top fire.

What the Mega Minor gives you

If you know the Minor, you know most of the Mega Minor: it’s surface mix, so fuel and oxygen meet at the face for a clean, quiet, color-friendly flame, and it learns and behaves the same way. The larger ports are the difference, they let it run hotter and lean on oxygen more efficiently, nudging it a step toward boro without losing the easy soft-glass character. For the background on surface-mix flames, see surface mix vs premix torches.

Who the Mega Minor is for

This is a beginner-to-intermediate torch for beads, soft glass, and small boro, a good pick for someone who likes the Minor’s simplicity but wants a bit more heat and efficiency. It handles beads, small sculpture, and marbles up to roughly 3 inches, and it’s a sensible name on our best beginner glass torch shortlist for makers leaning slightly toward boro. Choosing between the small Nortels and a Carlisle? See Nortel Minor vs Carlisle Mini CC.

Glass, fuel, and oxygen

The Mega Minor runs soft glass and small boro, burning propane or natural gas with bottled oxygen or a concentrator. Its more efficient oxygen use is a selling point, but Nortel doesn’t publish an exact LPM figure, so size your oxygen supply against your work; see how many LPM does my torch need.

Where it sits in the Nortel line

The Mega Minor sits just above the Minor and frequently rides on top of the Red Max as its top fire, so the flame behavior carries across the line. When you want a larger main flame, look at the Mid Range or Major; coming from a Minor, our Red Max vs Minor comparison frames the upgrade path.

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 protection matched to your torch and gas supply, didymium or boro-rated eyewear matched to your glass, 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 Mega Minor (the 7-port head, flame size, and its role as the Red Max top fire). Nortel doesn’t publish the Mega Minor’s exact oxygen flow (LPM). The price is the US-dollar figure on Nortel’s own store, read 2026-10-17; Nortel prices in Canadian dollars, so its US figure is a currency conversion that moves with the exchange rate. Confirm current specifics with Nortel before purchasing.