Welding Digest

When it comes to the performance of TurboTorch^® brazing equipment and the “wrap around” flame effect produced by an Extreme™ Air Swirl torch, seeing is believing — and HVAC/R industry professionals can see for themselves at the 2025 AHR EXPO in booth 3213, held February 10–12, 2025 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. TurboTorch and other ESAB brands will provide live and static demonstrations of their air-fuel, oxy-fuel, gas control, brazing, welding and plasma cutting equipment at AHR Expo, the industry’s leading event for showcasing HVAC/R technology.  

“TurboTorch, ESAB, Victor and Thermal Dynamics invented and perfected the technologies relied upon by contractors and other HVAC/R professionals,” says Jay Henderek, ESAB’s Director of Specialty Markets. “In addition to highlighting essential products for brazing and soldering, we will showcase products which improve performance, portability, productivity and quality, such as the battery-powered Renegade VOLT™ Stick/TIG welder.”

TurboTorch Products

Burning up to 40% hotter than competitive air-fuel torches, the TurboTorch Extreme™ line of self-lighting and standard torch tips create a "wrap around" flame effect that heats pipe more evenly and quickly. Extreme air-swirl torches are available in standard and self-lighting models for acetylene and MAP-Pro™/propane gases.

At the expo, TurboTorch will also feature its Nitrogen Purge Kit, which helps prevent the formation of oxidized particles that can flake off and flow through an HVAC system, damaging bearings and fouling system filters. The purge kit includes the G-Series nitrogen regulator, which features a unique gauge guard for added protection, an easy to adjust color-coded knob, 800 PSI delivery, a zinc aluminum housing cap for added strength, and a forged brass body. 

Victor Oxy-acetylene Torches and Totes

Victor offers two portable oxy-fuel Tote Outfits. The light-duty outfit features the smaller (6”) J-APT handle for better maneuvrability in tight spaces, while the medium-duty outfit includes the medium-sized (8.3”) 100-CPT handle for working with thicker materials. The J-APT and 100-CPT handles set the industry standard for performance, safety, reliability and durability. Both torches come with check valves for enhanced safety.

Tote Outfits conveniently package every item a technician needs for oxy-fuel applications. The lightweight plastic carrying case features an ergonomic handle and a patented design that balances the outfit when carrying Type R oxygen and Type M fuel cylinders (outfits are available with or without cylinders). The carrying case also includes built-in storage compartments for filler rods and the included striker, welding tips, cutting attachment, tank key, safety goggles and hoses. 

Welding Innovations

 AHR Expo visitors will be able to explore ESAB’s line-up of award-winning welding equipment. In addition to the Rebel EMP 205ic AC/DC, a true all-process welder, new products at the show include:

• The Renegade VOLT™ ES 200i — the ultimate go-anywhere Stick and Live TIG welder — is powered by four DEWALT® FLEXVOLT® 12 Ah (amp-hour) batteries and offers maximum welding output of 150A on battery power, plus it connects to 120V/230V primary power. Renegade VOLT enables welding in locations without primary power and provides a fast-payback in applications where portability and quick set-up provide operational efficiencies. Renegade VOLT is also a more portable and affordable alternative to engine drives, and it eliminates the need to drag hundreds of feet of heavy and expensive welding cables or extension cords.
• The Rogue™ EM 190 PRO inverter-based MIG welding power offers a maximum output of 190A, weighs 29 lbs. and offers advanced functions such as wire run-in speed for softer arc starts, burnback control to ensure the wire does not stick in the weld puddle and spot and stitch welding modes. For faster set-up and ease-of-use, it provides 27 Synergic Lines (weld programs) where welders select the wire type, wire diameter and shielding gas mix. Rogue will then automatically set and maintain optimized welding parameters throughout the range of material thicknesses, eliminating the guesswork associated with traditional controls.
• Rustler EM 280 PRO has a maximum welding output of 280 amps and rated output of 200 amps at 60% duty cycle. It connects to 208V/230V single-phase primary power and can provide its full output range on a 30A breaker, where older-generation technology required 50A service. The Rustler EM 280 PRO comes ready to weld most common base materials with factory-optimized arc programs for carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum, silicon bronze and flux cored wires from 0.023 to 0.045 in.
• The Savage A50 LUX automatic helmet includes premium features such as HALO™ headgear and advanced OpTCS™ true-color viewing at a flawless EN 1/1/1/1 optical level. In addition, it boasts a number of exclusive new features, like an integrated work light, redesigned shell, quick-release front lens and simplified auto-darkening filter (ADF) user interface.

Manual Plasma with Mechanized Option

The newly launched Thermal Dynamics Cutmaster^® 50+ plasma cutter has a recommended pierce and cut capacity of 5/8 in. and severs metal up to 1 ¼-in. thick. It has a rated cutting output of 50A at 60% duty cycle, weighs 35.3 lbs. and is available in 110V – 240V 1ph and 480V 3ph primary power versions. The Cutmaster 50+ offers a built-in 14-pin CPC port for easy CNC mechanization to maximize utilization of this machine. Fabricators can add the ESAB MechPak, which includes a 180-degree torch and all required hardware to allow precision setup and control for cutting mechanized plasma applications.

To learn more, visit esab.com.