Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Plasma Cutter recommendations

On 6/28/04 3:49 PM, STAN MCDONALD wrote:

>I have also used the Esab line
>of plasma cutters and find that they go through a lott of consumables.

By the way, this thread is technically off topic, since it really doesn't relate
to CNC. But at the risk of annoying the powers that be, here's a tip about tips.
Centricut sells CHEAP consumables for Esab and others. I was paying about $9 a
throw for tips, so I was cutting pretty ugly before I threw them out. Centricut
(about 2 years ago) was about 1/4 the price on tips and about 1/2 price on
nozzles compared to Esab. You technically void your warranty, but I haven't been
able to tell any difference. Except that now I change tips a lot quicker and do
less grinding.

www.centricut.com (no connection to me)

And one more thing. Aluminum also blows up nozzles quicker, because it spits
more sticky metal into the nozzle, which eventually makes it cut crooked. This
is somewhat relevant to CNC because you generally have your torch at a fixed
height and can't cock it to the side to start. Some torches have a longer
starting range than others, though I don't know if there are any good
comparisons out there.

Hal Eckhart - Casa Forge - Minneapolis MN - <http://www.casaforge.com>