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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 8, Issue 5 (September 1, 1933)

Gas Conquers Iron

Gas Conquers Iron.

That busy hammer is getting the iron ready for a gas-cutter which will give the metal its page 10 desired shape. An oxy-acetylene flame at a temperature of 6,000 degrees F., will play along a chalk line, and will have its way with an ease that startles the layman. The expert says it is a chemical action. The oxygen combines with the iron and forms an oxide which is dispersed as gas. It is sublime—and it is ridiculous—well, ridiculous in the sense that the gadget looks so flimsy for such stupendous success. One feels almost sorry for the tough iron when it is so easily scolloped. The writer had a thought—“a piece of scientific impudence”—but it is wonderfully efficient.