It can hold up to three gas charges, it will cost you one gas to chainsaw a smaller enemy and 3 to chainsaw the larger ones. Bonus armor is also awarded when you glory kill a demon that is on fire. Since each enemy only drops a few pieces of armor, your biggest pay off is using it on bigger crowds of enemies.
The Flame Belch will drop Armor over time but the armor it drops isn't very useful unless you hit multiple enemies. The key to a successful flame belch is ensuring it hits AT MINIMUM 3 enemies. Utilize the Flame Belch: The Flame belch is essential to staying alive during combat with demons, but the problem is if used improperly, is all risk and no reward.