Propane Hand Torch: Goss, 1949

John C. Goss of Pittsburgh patented this hand torch, US 2,465,643, in March 1949. It burns propane, which turns from liquid to gas so readily that, shut in a tank, it makes its own working pressure: unlike the older blow torch, it needs no pump. The knurled cylindrical tank is also the handle. A dispersion tube hangs from the tank top to about half the tank's height and draws gas, not liquid, through a minute port in its end cap. A needle valve meters the gas to a nozzle bent back at about thirty degrees to the tank. A spring-loaded ball check valve lets the tank be filled from a supply bottle but lets nothing out.