Cnc Plasma table

[goldie lox]

Interested in getting one for personal use, who has one and what one do you recommend, remember home personal use so no 20k tables

 

[scubadoober]

Budget? Size?

 

[jbc28]

If you have the room go with a 5 x 10. I have a LDR with a powermax 85. It's a great table for the money. There's a ton of tables on the market now. I almost bought an Arclight Dynamics, but I liked the bladder style water table on the LDR.

 

[ovrrdrive]

Build it yourself with Precision Plasma llc gantry and CandCNC electronics. It's the best way to go if you don't have a lot of money.

 

[Balor]

Hi goldie lox, I was looking into the same thing and found you have more consumables (cost) with a plasma table. Look at a water jet, less consumables (cost), and able to work with a lot more materials i.e. steel, wood, plastics, glass, and the list goes on.

rngr1

 

[TheLoamRanger]

Hi goldie lox, I was looking into the same thing and found you have more consumables (cost) with a plasma table. Look at a water jet, less consumables (cost), and able to work with a lot more materials i.e. steel, wood, plastics, glass, and the list goes on.

rngr1

Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure comparably sized waterjets are MUCH more expensive than CNC plasma...WAZER was a tabletop size waterjet on Kickstarter and I think they cost like $5-6k.

Plus waterjet consumables are no joke. It's not just water, there is an abrasive consumable and a carbide nozzle consumable as well. Plus you have a high pressure pump that I'm sure will have some maintenance associated with it. With plasma, you just need a big/high power air supply and torch consumables.

Absolutely waterjet would be awesome! Can cut nearly anything (and is actually a preferred method for composites and hardened materials, for example), but it is seriously expensive as far as I know.

 

[motofool33]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure comparably sized waterjets are MUCH more expensive than CNC plasma...WAZER was a tabletop size waterjet on Kickstarter and I think they cost like $5-6k.

Plus waterjet consumables are no joke. It's not just water, there is an abrasive consumable and a carbide nozzle consumable as well. Plus you have a high pressure pump that I'm sure will have some maintenance associated with it. With plasma, you just need a big/high power air supply and torch consumables.

Absolutely waterjet would be awesome! Can cut nearly anything (and is actually a preferred method for composites and hardened materials, for example), but it is seriously expensive as far as I know.

Cheapest waterjet ive seen is 80k and that supplier i wouldnt buy their plasma table either.


check out the Precision plasma kits, westcott tables, wright tables, LDR, StarLab, theres a couple facebook groups that have a wealth of info.

if u want super cheap the only option is langmuir

 

[4 FN 27]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure comparably sized waterjets are MUCH more expensive than CNC plasma...WAZER was a tabletop size waterjet on Kickstarter and I think they cost like $5-6k.

Plus waterjet consumables are no joke. It's not just water, there is an abrasive consumable and a carbide nozzle consumable as well. Plus you have a high pressure pump that I'm sure will have some maintenance associated with it. With plasma, you just need a big/high power air supply and torch consumables.

Absolutely waterjet would be awesome! Can cut nearly anything (and is actually a preferred method for composites and hardened materials, for example), but it is seriously expensive as far as I know.

Cheapest waterjet ive seen is 80k and that supplier i wouldnt buy their plasma table either.

Been in the Sheet Metal biz for 40 year now...been around Lasers all of that time. Bought a CNC Plasma a few years ago. It did what Plasmas do and I wasn't content with the edge quality. So I invested in a Water Jet. An OMax 5555. I am over the top happy with the machine.

The problem is the upfront cost as moto mentions will drive most away from a new Jet but used can be had for much less...maint records are a must on the pump side. Hours since rebuild is critical.

Loam the consumables are not that bad. Really the daily consumable is the Garnet. It is about $0.31 per pound and my machine uses 14 oz per minute (this number is real and needs to be calibrated to set the cutting conditions of the machine. It is not a guess).

Filters depending on your water supply will last a long time. I have almost 30 hours on my pump now and I am seeing no pressure drops from the first filter to the second on the inlet side. I do change out the "Final-Final" Filter every 15 hours. $12.00 each

The Carbide Mixing Tube is showing Zero Wear as I have not had to adjust the Cutter Comp yet. Most people consume the Mixing Tube simply by running them into something shearing them off because of a tip up risk and bad programming path. Having 40 years of programming experience I am hoping to wear my Mixing Tube out rather than breaking it. $160.00 each

Mixing Tube Lock Nut...this one is something I am watching. It is a wear item based on piercing time/duration based on my observation. There is a Carbide Washer glued to the Nut as protection from the "surly" bouncing back while piercing through the material. So far I have eaten 1 and that was due to me over tightening it pushing the Washer off. $$48.00 each

Diamond Nozzle Assembly? "They" say based on your water purification this can last 500+ hours. No experience yet but I have a spare on hand in case. $988.00 each

Pump Rebuild, well since I bought the machine new I get one free rebuild at 500 hours or when the pump needs to be rebuilt. From what they tell me the pump life is 100% related to these things:

Water PH: Keep this balanced, not to high and not to low extends the life.

Filtration: The cleaner the water the better. Pretty simple.

Water Hardness: Can't remember the target but I had to add a Whole House Filter and a Water Softener as I have a well.

High Pressure: My pump is capable of 60K PSI but I run it at 52K psi (this is an input number for the cutting conditions). Running the pump 5-15 under can double the life of the pump between rebuilds.

Water Inlet Temp: 68 degrees and less. My water runs consistent at 60-61 degrees summer and winter. The colder the better and colder will extend the pump life too. I may add a chiller in the loop to maintain 55 degrees.

In nut shell the consumables are not that bad if you know what you are doing. But the upfront equity injection can be a deterrent.

OP don't be discouraged by my reply. CNC Plasma has its place and is a great tool. It is just that years of Laser has corrupted my brain and my quest to hold +/-.001 on everything in life has cost me...LOL...