Subject: Re: cylinders

From: BILL PATE <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 09:50:09 -0400 (EDT)

<I have one from some smaller O2 cylinders, just right for a bell. If 
<you use these cut them with a hack saw in case they had something 
<flammable (read explodable) inside.
<-- 
A friend gave me a small acetylene plumbers setup, from her late father's
shop. The tank is too old to be useful so I was thinking about making her
a bell from it, just for nostalgia reasons.

I know these things have some kind of core, but can I saw it open and just
dump the core out?

Bill Pate.

---

From: Steve Herrick <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 12:14:48 -0700 (PDT)

NO, NO, NO... These cylinders contain a poruous material that depending on
the age of the cylinder could be ASBESTOS. If you have ALL the neccessary
safety equipemtn and hazardous material disposal stuff then go ahead. The
cylinders that ring are the high presure ones. Not the acetylene
cylinders.
Sorry about the shouting, but I tell this the same way to my welding
students also....

Hrolthgar -   [email-masked]
           Steve Herrick

---

From: Tom Vincent <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 21:31:45 -0500 (CDT)

Many years ago I saw the result of trying to cut into a gas cylinder 
withot a *nitrogen blanket*, which was explained to me as that one should 
have the tank bled (if possible) and even if assumed empty, refilled to 
some degree with nitrgen. Has anyone else heard of this?

---

From: Steve Herrick <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 21:07:18 -0700 (PDT)

Again don't do this with an acetyelene cylinder, but for conjecture, CO2
workes much better than nitrogen, it's heavy than air so it will displace
air, it has fire extinguishing qualities, and it's almost as cheap as
nitrogen.