[Mike@Torchmate]

1) does transfering between pilot and cutting arc so many times each cut shorten the life of consumables or the machine or anything else?

Yes, it can wear out the consumables faster, depending on a few factors like speed and the size of the gap the torch will have to cut across.

2) what's the difference between pilot and cutting arcs? why can't it maintain the cutting arc across small gaps?

The pilot arc is a small arc where it is basically searching for the ground through the material, once it has found that ground the machine transfers to a cutting arc which is where the amperage comes into play. It can maintain a cutting arc across small enough gaps where the torch can be severing one cut and then make contact with the next.

3) do slower speeds mean more dross? or do slower speeds mean we'd just need to reduce the current (and/or other settings) to match the speed?

In general you would use the appropriate speed and amperage settings as you would for the same thickness in flat plate, and then adjust from there. If you slow it down alot you may need to decrease the amperage on the plasma cutter to compensate, otherwise it could result in more dross build up.

4) does manual mode mean the height control is disabled?

The AVHC would not be completely disabled no, it will still sense pierce height and retract between cuts. It will just maintain the pierce height across the entire cut.



Hope that has answered your questions so far.