Thermal cutting in which preheat flames bring carbon steel to its kindling temperature, roughly 870 °C, and a stream of pure oxygen burns the iron and blows the molten oxide out of the kerf. It cuts carbon and low-alloy steel cheaply, from thin plate to several feet thick. It will not cut stainless steel or aluminum, whose oxides melt hotter than the metal, or cast iron, which melts before it ignites. Cut quality shows in straight drag lines, a square top edge and little dross on the bottom.
Oxyfuel cutting the 4-inch plate, number 4 tip, keep the drag lines straight and the slag off the bottom.
Also heard as
- torch cutting
- flame cutting
- burning
- gas cutting
- oxy-acetylene cutting
Related terms
Burner
Shop name for the tradesperson who does torch cutting, or for the cutting torch itself.
Kerf
The slot a torch, plasma arc, laser or saw leaves behind, and the width of metal it removes.
Rosebud
Shop name for a multi-flame oxyfuel heating tip used to preheat, bend and loosen parts.
Flashback arrestor
A safety device on an oxyfuel torch or regulator that stops flame from burning back into hoses and cylinders.
Plasma arc cutting
Cutting with an arc squeezed through a small nozzle into a hot, fast gas jet that melts and blows out a narrow kerf.