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Quote: Originally posted by TOYRAV on 27/3/2009

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Sounds a good reason, but if butane burns hotter than propane why can you burn (cut)steel with a propane oxygen mix and not with a butane oxygen mix. Strange!

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lots of info here

www.calor.co.uk

http://www.calor.co.uk/leisure/caravanning.htm

Quote: Originally posted by TOYRAV on 27/3/2009

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.....or is part of the problem the one regulator trying to cope two different gas pressures, i.e. propane dropped from 37mb to 30mb.

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No it's ALL the problem, under the old system, butane and propane were supplied at the two different pressures to make up for the difference in their properties. Butane is 31% more efficient than Propane so it was delivered at 33% higher pressure, this gave rise to the myth propane burns hotter but to do it you burn a third more gas!

Add that to the difference in weights of the bottles, 7kg of Butane, 6kg of Propane, (Butane is a lot heavier than Propane), the two bottles contained the same amount of 'heat'. The full price is also the same for the 'heat' in each bottle but propane is often discounted. 

As regards using Butane for cutting, I can't say I've given it a second thought in 30yrs of using oxy-propane, but 4psi to 7psi is what propane is used at, that's 300 to 500mb!!

Come to think of it, I've never seen an adjustable regulator to fit a butane bottle either LOL

Simple answer to your first question, can you change back to the old system.... no, to many grey areas to say anymore!

I think butane is not used industrially because of it's high 'freezing' point, pulling 300mb or more off would force the bottle temperature down below the freezing/gassing point in no time at all.