Smokey starts???

You can turn it upside down all you want. This device is internally regulated to provide the appropriate vapor pressure whether being fed liquid or gas propane. It's pretty slick and necessary since you sometimes have to solder in odd positions.

 

Good to know.
I've turned propane torches upside down in the past...and got quite the surprise.
I won't use that style torch for soldering.
They aren't nimble enough and you end up with leaks.

 

To be honest, I don’t solder anymore. There are much better plumbing options these days but I do light a lot of fires in an outdoor fire pit that is dug out below grade. Inverted torch every time. Not doubting your experience but the tech on these torches has improved to allow all position flamage.

 

Yes, I use a torch to preheat my chimney flue. First I build most of the bigger parts in the stove. Then I take the torch and shoot it straight up the back of my stove to the flue opening. I leave it there from 30-60 seconds at full blast. Then I put small kindling on top the big stuff and hit that with the torch for about a minute. This has made a big difference for me to prevent smokey starts from my long chimney flue in my basement.

The torch I bought came with some different heads which was nice since I could put a big one on there that puts out a lot of flame. Here is the link to the all metal torch that I attach to the green cans.