Help cleaning minor torch

[melzip]

Hello,
I've pretty much neglected cleaning my minor torch and now I have a couple holes that must be plugged because the flame in those two spots is pretty short. All the rest are long. Does anyone know how I can get them clean? I dont want to ruin my torch (hopefully it's not to late).

Thanks for any help!

[barb]

This is from Arrowsprings:

CLEANING

Torches require periodic cleaning. You can usually tell when cleaning is necessary. You will see a carbon build up on the face of the burner head or sometimes the fuel ports on the burner face may look restricted. You may not notice the flame reacting differently until quite a lot of carbon buildup has accumulated, but a small amount of buildup can affect flame quality and shorten the life of the torch.

Carbon buildup on the burner face is most often caused or accelerated by using a flame that is too weak. Dirty propane can also be a cause. Different torches build up carbon at different rates. Excessive carbon build up on the burner face works as a heat conduit and will transfer the heat of the flame to the burner face, thereby overheating it. Overheating causes eroding and or swelling of the metals of the burner face. This not only shortens the life of the torch but also, creates poor flame quality. Dirty fuel ports, when left unattended, may get so restricted that it may become nearly impossible to get the cleaning tool into them.

ALWAYS turn off the torch and let it cool before cleaning or you might melt the cleaning tool to the burner face. Only use the provided cleaning tool or an approved torch cleaning tool.

Cleaning is very simple and quick. Usually, most of the carbon build up on the burner face can just be brushed off with a sideways stroke of the cleaning tool. To clean the fuel ports, insert the wire end of the cleaning tool into the port a short distance. The wire is quite a bit smaller than the hole. Work the wire in and out several times while rotating the wire in a circular or cone shaped motion. This breaks off the build up that accumulates at the very edge of the hole. Repeat on all the fuel ports. Typically the oxygen ports stay clean. You can clean them as necessary.

If you accidentally touch molten glass to the torch and it sticks, immediately turn off the torch. If you try to remove it while it is still molten you will just smear it over the burner face and into the ports. After the torch has cooled, carefully use a hard piece of metal and chip away as much of the glass as you can and then clean as usual. Use caution as not to damage the burner face. Molten glass is corrosive to metal, so be sure to remove as much as possible. If only a very small amount of glass is still on the burner face and all of the ports are not clogged, the glass will burn away within a few minutes.

[melzip]

Thank you... I appreciate the info.

[CO_Phantom]

My mini-CC from arrowsprings didn't come with a cleaning tool, but it did come with the instructions on how to clean it. Where do I find a cleaning tool?