Bulltear 4x8 CNC Plasma Gantry Build...

[Jason Lister]

I have been meaning to put this up for a while now. I would like to get suggestions and help from others that have been through the same process. I have read all of the builds here as well as other sites. Hopefully I have familiarized myself enough to get this up and working without much trouble! #-o

We received the gantry kit on October 24th and it came crated beautifully... Some of the washers and bolts didnt end up in baggies like the others, but I think I found them all...


I used Matt's prints that he sent me a while ago and fabbed up a sketchup model that would be more customized to my needs. I will be putting this in a 24x24 garage and still parking my wife's car in there, so space is at a premium!
I have two renditions, since budget was a concern... we will be building the table in steps. Eventually it will look like this... possibly:

However, the first stage limits the steel rack, the desk and product drawers....


Eventually, the complete version will have a pressurized compartment for the electronics and dust filters to keep everything cool and clean.

[Jason Lister]

Bringing us up to date...



Bandsaw made the cuts nicely:


Pieces cut:


Easy way to cut slats... I chickened out going more than 8 at a time though:



I have been welding with my new Miller Dynasty 200 Tig. Please go easy on the weld quality; this is my first project and I am learning with every tungsten grind ><.

After wrestling with the fact that the concrete floor is no where near within 1/16" of flat... I put the table upside down up on the welding table that I made for myself previously... Finally a semi flat (we wont call it perfect, blanchard grinding is on my wishlist) surface.

After only 2-3 arguments with my loving wife... we got it squared, level, and plumb... well as close as a tape measure will tell you.

Legs came next:


I dont think this is the intended usage of pipe stands... but it worked well... dangerous, but well...


Flipping the table:

[Jason Lister]

Leveling feet:


Feet welded on... bringing us to today:


I'd love to hear opinions on the design and any helpful tips on setup... I do have a few questions that Ill post next

There are plenty more pictures on the photobucket acct... feel free to look around or ask here if you'd like to see something or clarify it...

[csp]

The pictures need to either be bigger or hotlinked to your photobucket acct. Can't see much as small as they are.

[Jason Lister]

I will fix them... photobucket must have dropped the thumbnail scripting in their tagging.

fyi, for anyone using photobucket... their new "beta" option is dropping the hotlinking of their thumbnails as of this posting..

[Jason Lister]

Originally Posted by csp

The pictures need to either be bigger or hotlinked to your photobucket acct. Can't see much as small as they are.

Thanks csp... they should be fixed now... photobucket sabotaged me

[MFGENG]

What are you using for your electronics?

[Jason Lister]

Bulltear uses CandCNC

[cnc-me]

I'm redoing a small CNC router right now.
Almost done with all the wiring.
Good luck with your plasma.
What brand of cutter are you going to use,
I would lean towards HyperTherm they are good on consumables.

[Jason Lister]

I have a Hypertherm 65... I am VERY impressed with its hand cut capabilities versus my Miller 625 Extreme. I cant wait to get the machine torch on it and start making some very nice cuts.

[srmofo]

Originally Posted by Jason Lister

I have a Hypertherm 65... I am VERY impressed with its hand cut capabilities versus my Miller 625 Extreme. I cant wait to get the machine torch on it and start making some very nice cuts.

What are you intending to build?or is this for more of a business venture where you do whatever comes in the door?

[Jason Lister]

Originally Posted by srmofo

What are you intending to build?or is this for more of a business venture where you do whatever comes in the door?

We are starting a business to include yard art, metal design, and other things. We will be staying well within the operating specs of the 65. I did not see a reason to step up to the 85.

My family also owns a rental equipment yard, so I am constantly working on trailers, tractors, and other equipment. Those items may require parts that get toward the top end of the operating spectrum.

Recently, I was impressed when I hand cut 1.25" thick with the Hypertherm 65. I know it's rated to that, but it was still pretty impressive to not need the O/A setup.

[Regnar]

Nice build so far. I did goto Bulltears site to have a look and what I find kinda disturbing is the lack of info on the Gantry. Im guessing the info is somewhere else just dont know where.

I think you should add in some cross bracing and angle supports. You have more than enough support for load but you have to consider the weight of the gantry moving and coming to a complete stop. This will shake your machine considerably and you will see it in your cuts. Have a look at the photo for what I am talking about.

[Jason Lister]

I understand your concern on the bracing. I agree with you... to a point. Once the final rendition is completed; I would think the sheer weight of all the sheet storage would help keep things stable. I also used the leveling pads from Mason Industries that are rubber padded on the bottom. I definitely think that will keep the whole structure from moving... they are already doing their job with the skeleton I have there.

Additionally, 3" of water in the 111"x 54" pan, should dampen ALOT of vibration or racking from the gantry movement.

Even considering these things... I still agree with you. I will just wait and see if there is an issue during operation. At that point you can have the "I told you so" and I will humbly add more bracing!

[brianh]

Looks like a nice project, I have a wood working cnc never did plasma.

On the photobucket issues you should be able to revert to the old style look up at the top right on the page when signed in. The beta sucks big time will not work in opera at all.

[Jason Lister]

I updated the main thread of this build on bulltear.com. It is pretty specific, so I didnt want to bore everyone with the details. I will post up here again when we get movement and fire!

http://www.bulltear.com/forums/showt...d=1#post132528

[Jason Lister]

Well, no fire yet, but definitely progress:
Well, I got the water pan picked up last night...


Got it placed with the forklift:


Got it welded up...


and got the slats in...


I oriented the slats on the x axis to make it easier to slide the plates onto the table. I also made the water pan 5" deep to allow me to submerged plates and keep the mess contained... (hopefully) I didnt cut anything on the holders or slats, so I can always go back to the stock orientation if this doesnt work.

I am planning to install 2- 2" NPT bungs for drains... any opinions on where they should go?

[chris fresh]

drains go on the bottom,but seriously,i've always thought if i build a table i would put some sort of low spot in the pan,or a sump to where it would all drain.i saw one a while back the a guy built,he just burned a 1'' coupling on the bottom and it had a ball valve on it.then coming out of the valve was a barbed fitting that he could slip a hose on and drain off.pretty nice set up

[Jason Lister]

ya, I picked up two 2" npt ball valves today... the plan was to just thread in 2" pump hoses that I can pickup from work when I go to drain it. Very similar to your idea.