Bernz-O-Matic ST2200T Micro Flame Butane Torch Kit, Small, Black

good quality and value ..really effective soldering and heat shrinking....

Love it. Mostly use this for portable soldering with the caveat of also having a torch. Works great. It replaced a cheapie that I had for years that finally quit soldering due to the porcelain crumbling and falling out in the soldering attachment. I undersand the safety features but it does make it a little more difficult to light. Nothing that can't be dealt with though. The only other issue that I have is that I wish that it had a thumb knob for flame control. When shrinking heat shrink tubing on the old one I would sometimes cut the flame way down to prevent overheating the shrink tubing and having it crack down the side.

I bought this torch for a jewelry making class, learning to solder sterling silver. Turning it on is a bit tricky and takes two hands but otherwise it worked great and I’m very pleased with my purchase. I plan to use it for crème brûlée also! 😊

MICRO TORCHES REVIEW I was unable to decide on which of the many butane micro torches I should buy from Amazon, and I couldn’t trust the ad claims or flame pictures, so I ended up buying 4 to test then against each other. I have lots of larger torches of various sizes, but I wanted one with the smallest, most focused flame. The pictures in the ads of the flames was not, where pictured at all, was not useful to me or accurate. Price was not a factor for me in this. 1. Blazer ES1000CR Spitfire https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001EDU5NY Made in Japan. This one has very cumbersome controls. Lighting it is a very awkward process requiring two hands and rolling an interlock forward whole pushing down on a button. Lighting it also requires 3 other controls to be in the right positions. The controls also feel rather flimsy. The flame is OK There is very little variation in the flame between minimum and maximum. It does have a button for continuous operation, but again, it feels rather flimsy. It was also the second most expensive at $53. Really the most expensive when you consider all the extras the $56 Dremel comes with. 2. Bernz-O-Matic ST2200T https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000PS9TQI Made in Taiwan. The listing for this product falsely states, in two places, “The product is manufactured in United States”. I did not appreciate the false/out-of-date information. The controls are much less cumbersome than the Blazer. It has a child lockout for the igniter, presumably brought to us courtesy of CPSC. If you don’t have kids and want to get rid of this, it looks like it would be very easy to just snap off a piece of plastic and be done with it. The torch is easy to use. There is not much difference between the minimum and maximum flames. The flame is a bit larger than the Blazer. I wanted the smallest flame, so this was a negative for me. The instructions are printed on the side of the main tube, which is handy. It also includes a soldering iron tip. $32 3. Dremel 2200-01 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MJW07Z0 Made in Taiwan. Includes a decent thin metal box containing lots of accessories. If you don’t already have soldering equipment, this might be the best choice for you. It comes with a detachable stand; all the others come with a fixed base stand. The flame comes out at an upward angle, which all the others have a flame coming out at 90 degrees. This may be a plus or minus for you. This one, like the Bernz-O-Matic, comes with a plastic child lockout that looks like it could be broken off and discarded if you don’t want that feature. This one got second place in the biggest difference between minimum and maximum flames. The maximum flame was the largest of all tested, so if you’re looking for max flame, this is the one for you. At $56, the most expensive, but it comes with a lot more accessories than the others. Both the Dremel and the Bernz-O-Matic could easily be started using one hand, even with the child interlock. The Bernz-O-Matic was probably a bit easier to light with one hand. Both of them featured instant-off flame when you releaser the button, with a lock to engage for continuous flame. 4. RAVS RBT018 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5RKWNMS?th=1 Made in China. With the first three, you press the igniter button to turn on the gas and light it. The flame stays on only as long as you continue holding down the button (unless you engage the continuous lock). As soon as you release the button (or the continuous lock) the gas is cut off and the flame goes out. Probably more “consumer-safe” for people who don’t really know what they’re doing with a torch. This one is a bit different from the first three, in that it operates more like a typical propane torch. There is a rotary knob that you turn CCW to turn the gas on or CW to turn it off. So you turn the gas on, then press the igniter button to light the gas. You adjust the flame from min to max by using the rotary knob. The flame stays on until you turn the rotary knob fully CW to shut off the gas. So perhaps a bit less “safe” for those who don’t really know how to operate a torch safely. This one also felt a bit heavier and more substantial that the others. Apparently it uses more metal and less plastic. It also had, BY FAR, the most adjustable flame, from less than half what the others could produce (like down to about ¼” flame for some really fine work) to considerably more than their maximum flame. This one was also the cheapest at only $22. It’s also made in China. Normally, I will go to great lengths and spend considerably more to buy USA-made products, with probably Japan second and Taiwan third. However, for MY specific requirements, this Chinese RAVS was the clear choice for me.

I bought this little torch to unfreeze a couple of broken 6-32 screws that were rusted into a 1/2"+ long threaded hole. The screws were 1/4" away from an expensive piece of tempered glass. This was too fine a job for an ordinary torch. I was delighted that the flame was about 3/16" in diameter at its base and less than 1/8" at the tip. I was able to get the screws red-hot without endangering the glass and was able to wiggle them out! The margins of the flame were easily hot enough to melt aluminum foil, which I was using for heat shielding, The center of the flame is much hotter, and I have every confidence it would melt gold or silver. The torch fueled up effortlessly (fuel sold separately) and lit right up. About 1 out of 4 clicks will not light the flame, but that's no problem. I LOVE the soldering tip, It attaches securely and there is a feature on the torch to interrupt the pencil flame so that the butane burns catalytically inside the tip, I haven't yet used it for soldering but look forward to it. I've read complaints that this torch will not hold much fuel, but I did not find that to be true. After fueling up, I probably burned the torch for 5 to 10 minutes without running out of fuel UPDATE: I've used the soldering tip for the first time. On high (+), it gets as hot maybe as a 30W soldering iron and takes a bit longer to heat up. I was a bit surprised it's not hotter. However, you still can't beat the convenience of not having to string up an electrical cord to get to an out-of-the-way place. :-)

Bought this for electrical heat shrink tubing and it's held up great so far. The controls take a bit to get used to but you can use it with one hand with some effort. My only complaint is that the lowest flame setting isn't low enough, so you have to move very quick or you'll burn the heat shrink.

Excellent product, simple to operate.

Whether you are using this torch in you workship or in the kitchen to make creme broulet the torch can be set to do the job. It also includes a soldering attachment to use as a pointed soldering iron when needed. My problem with the torch is the the piezo igniter stopped working after about 6-8 ignitions. I have not yet investigated why, but it may have been damaged by the heat of the torch. In the meantime, I have used a Bic lighter to start it. After that it is not problem. I will probably send it back but I threw out the packageing so it may be a problem. I think this is a good torch for the money even if the igniter does not fuction but I only rate it 3 strars because of the malfunction that happen so soon after the torch was purchased. Hopefully others will not have the experience I have had.

Excellent tool to have handy for many tasks besides a high temperature fine point flame. The heat gun attachment works well for small jobs you just want done in a few seconds like shrinking a single heat shrink tube on a wiring repair. It also has a valve opening to vent the burner to reduce the flame temperature and velocity with your thumb - I use this often for preparing microscope slides where I need to pass things in a flame more like an alcohol burner or bunsen burner (which I don't have) with the air hole slightly open. A well though out and made tool.

Came as described

Exactly as described.

Great torch but was sent the wrong colour. Wife won’t use it because of the colour. sad I know, but that’s important to some people.

Has a really annoying trigger safety lock that I may remove. Otherwise, this torch is great for detail work, since it has a thin, pencil flame. It works very well for soldering and heat shrink.