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help
bobinbama -
Tuesday, January 29, 2008 - 11:50am
plasma cam please help, looking to buy cnc plasma cutting table looking at 5 different versions would like to know whos haveing the best luck with there machine looking at p-cam, torchmate, practical, samson, plasma route. dynacnc any info greatly appreciated  Plasma Cutting Table
JWinters -
Friday, March 28, 2008 - 2:14pm
Hi, I did alot of research before I bought mine. It is an EasyLoader 4x8 table from Precision Cutting Systems. I have had it about 5 weeks now. The EasyLoader shipped as a fully welded table. I only had to plug in the cables to the controller and hook up the computer. Yah, they supply the computer! And of course set up the plasma unit. I ordered it with the Torch Height Control. The other guy is right, you have to have this. It is awesome when I cut checker plate or gauge plate. It has a water tray AND downdraft system. I don't have any of the metal falling onto my shop floor and filling the place up with smoke. Their manuals are easy to read, software was easy to use. The tech spent over an hour on the phone with me walking through how to use the software and get cutting. I have called them with some other questions. Easy to get help. Good Luck » reply  Plasma Cutting Table
BJamin -
Monday, April 7, 2008 - 10:09am
JWinters, Are you still happy with your EasyLoader, after looking into them I think it looks like a very good product. And since they have had the best service thus far, they are remaining on my list. I just got a big plasma rail job, and would really like to put it to work right away. » reply |
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ArtMetal
I do not own any of the
I do not own any of the brands you mention- instead, I have the smallest model made by a bigger industrial manufacturer, C&G.
http://www.thermadyne.com/cgsystems/
Mine is an Aviator, which is their most basic model.
It is substantially better built and more heavy duty than any of the newer small models you are looking at.
I bought it new in 92, and have had virtually no problems with it- a couple of times I had to replace a capacitor on the output board- but aside from that, zilch.
Things to consider-
How heavy of material will you be cutting?
All of these "home" units are built extremely light duty- this is ok if you are cutting a 2 foot square piece of 16 gage, but if you need to cut 4x8 sheets of 1/4" plate, you will need to forklift the material onto the machine, at which point a flimsy frame built from 16 gage square tubing becomes an issue.
You MUST have auto torch height. The metal you are cutting will warp and rise up while you are cutting it- if your machine cannot respond by raising and lowering the torch automatically, you will ruin parts, and must babysit every cut.
If you do much cutting, you will probably want to build a water table to cut on. Most of these erector set machines dont really account for that. Cutting a half inch or so above water cuts down on grit, slag, smoke and sparks by a huge amount. Cutting actually just below the water virtually eliminates these. Plasma cutters make a BIG mess, and its no fun.
Look for a machine that will take a dedicated machine torch, as opposed to just hose clamping on your hand cutting torch. A machine torch will last a lot longer, and not melt, like the plastic hand torches. It will also have a nice rack on it for torch height adjustment. Machine cutting means the machine is on for many minutes at a time, things get hotter and its a much tougher environment, which wears out hand torches quick.
Of the ones you are looking at, the plasma cam seems the most mickey mouse, with parts made from bent sheet metal. Samson is made by the same guys, with similar lack of real info on the website- lots of pretty pictures of bad western art, very little hard facts about the machine- but it also is light duty, with the hose clamp hand torch setup.
Torchmate seems more well built and flexible.
No experience with the actual machines, though- check over on CNCzone.com for stories of actual use.
I cut big stuff, and have done a lot of it over the years, and I know these little machines would not hold up to my usage- but they might be just fine for you.