I'm paying too much, i think ;) Whats best to do....

[Davek0974]

I'm not doing much MAG at present, I have a BOC account and a Y cylinder of Argoshield Light on loan.

This cylinder as far as i can tell has been on loan for over a year now, maybe even two so thats two years rental and one fill of payments.

The account is on the VolkZone/Hobbyist setup so prices for the fill are fairly good i recall.

Its coming up to a refill again, should i be looking to leave BOC and shop elsewhere or just get another fill???

I think gas is a bigger PITA than trying to get a decent weld

 

[Davek0974]

Think i have answered my own question,...

I pay BOC £56.40 per year for the pleasure

This Y cylinder has lasted 18 months or so and was £35.79 for the fill

Over the year and a half period, I have paid £84.60 for the rental and £35.79 for gas so total outlay of £120.39


The local SGS stockists are quoting £55.00 for a fill of 20L, I'll ignore the £100 bottle deposit as it is refundable.

Seems i have shafted myself out of about £65 over the 18 month period


The only gap in my sums is the bottle fill - SGS is 20L but i don't know yet whats in a BOC Y as their web site just shows 5 cubic metres volume.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

What pressure is in the SGS cylinder, I recall that enters the equation somewhere?

 

[daleyd]

When I was getting mine I did a quick fag packet calculation and anything less than 1 per year and I was better off going rent free (Very roughly).

I dabble with a bit of all sorts (Tig, mig and stick), so I have pure argon and mix, but to be honest I do very little serious welding so a bottle can last a couple of years, so for me it was a no brainer.
.

 

[Davek0974]

Just asked SGS and they said its 200bar fill and 20ltrs so thats 4 cubic metre of gas whereas BOC state 5 cubic metre volume.

So thats 20% less gas if i worked that right?

 

[Davek0974]

When I was getting mine I did a quick fag packet calculation and anything less than 1 per year and I was better off going rent free (Very roughly).

I dabble with a bit of all sorts (Tig, mig and stick), so I have pure argon and mix, but to be honest I do very little serious welding so a bottle can last a couple of years, so for me it was a no brainer.
.

Yes i think you are correct there, I set the BOC account up on a promise of a good size order which of course never arrived then i just left it running not realising the wastage in rental over time.

I will drop my bottle back this week to BOC and go for SGS i think, even with the lower volume its still money saved and no regular rental bill to come in.