[Source] Hypo tips for Meco

Does anyone know of a source for those tiny hypodermic tips for the
Meco Midget (Oxy/Propane)?

Or… is this something I am just going to have to make myself? If I
am going to have to make them… any tips on needle sizes, affixing
to torch body, etc.

Thanks!

Or.. is this something I am just going to have to make myself? If
I am going to have to make them... any tips on needle sizes,
affixing to torch body, etc. 

Old automatic pencil feeder tube is what you need. They come in
0.5mm and 0.7mm. Larger sizes also can be obtained. Ball point pen
tubes are good as well. Drill tip to the outside diameter of a tube
and solder any length you want. If desired, tubes can be re-drilled
to slightly larger diameter.

Leonid Surpin

Brent,

I have modified both Meco’s, the Gentech “Compact” torch ( big
brother to the Little Torch), as well as all our Hoke-style torches
to the hypodermic tips you speak of. I find they are far superior to
the slow to remove and adjust Little Torch tips, or the Meco and
Hoke’s limited sized threaded tips.

Rio, or a number of other supply houses carry the hypo tip sets,
which come with a male-threaded adapter. I’ve found this adapter only
fits the Hoke torch, so you will have to weld or solder on the
adapter to the Compact or Meco torch neck. It takes a little work,
but having the quick-change tips in such a huge variety of sizes is a
big plus for me and my students.

I have these hypo tips in every size from nearly too-small-to-light,
up to a massive 3.4 mm. They all fit onto the adapter with a quick
quarter turn by hand. The thing is, the Gentech “Little Torch” and
“Compact” torch have fairly restrictive internal plumbing, so you
can’t take advantage of the larger tip sizes to produce high heat as
you can with the Hoke or Meco, which have larger, more robust
plumbing inside. With the right tips, you can make a small flame with
a larger capacity torch body, but you can’t push out a larger flame
with a restricted sized torch body. Or maybe you just have different
torches for different sized melting and soldering jobs.

Jay Whaley

Jay,

I have these hypo tips in every size from nearly
too-small-to-light, up to a massive 3.4 mm. 

There is a kit with 5 tips and an adapter for Hoke hypo tips. The
Contenti Co. took over Progress tool site and shows the hypo tips as
yellow dot, green dot, red dot, blue dot. Not much info on the site,
or the Contenti site, what do you know about these?

Richard Hart G.G.
Denver, Co.

Hi Jay,

Rio, or a number of other supply houses carry the hypo tip sets,
which come with a male-threaded adapter. I've found this adapter
only fits the Hoke torch, so you will have to weld or solder on the
adapter to the Compact or Meco torch neck. 

I have a very old Hoke torch. I bought the adapter kit with 6 tips.
The adapter will not screw all the way down, only about 1/2 of the
threaded portion, which is about 1.3mm. Suggestion?

Have you ever tried using a tap to thread the base of a little torch
after removing the copper tip? Trying to figure out the thread size
for tapping. Used taps I have, but a bit too big, and I think not the
correct thread count per inch.

Richard Hart G.G.
Denver, Co.

Richard,

Too bad about your tip adapter not screwing all the way into your
Hoke torch. I think all of my tip adapters fit well into my 6 Hoke
torches. However, I’m never averse to grinding off the threads and
just friction-fitting the adapters into place, and silver-soldering
them in. As long as they fit tight and are soldered in well, they
won’t leak.

Although I’ve changed out my Gentech Compact torch to the hypo-type
tip adapter by soldering it in, the Little Torch has too small of a
neck to do so. The adapter would look ridiculous on the end of the
torch’s thin neck. No, I’ve just kept the original tips for the
Little Torch, and change them out with a wrench when needed.

One of my private students, who uses the Little Torch exclusively
for the Argentium chain links she fuses together, always asks me to
change out the tips on the torch for her when required. She is
uncomfortable changing them herself, as they require a bit of
finessing to tighten as well as orient the tip in the correct
position. A ridiculous design for a torch needing removable tips, if
you ask me.

Jay Whaley