Need Help!- DIY plasma tubing cutter?

[Evil Tsi]

Im looking for a DIY Kit or plans to build a cnc plasma tubing cutter for my shop. Anybody know of anyone offering such a setup? Thanks!

Brian

[rchacich]

Precision Plasma LLC sells DIY CNC plasma kits. Here is a model of a simple cnc rotary tubing cutter.

This design uses a 6" 4 jaw chuck in which the tube moves under the torch. The complexity of the tubing cutter depends on the application. For instance, if you just wanted to cut tubes for fabricating roll cages, you would not require torch height control or even a motorized Z axis. If you want to cut square tubing, you would need both THC and a motorized Z axis, along with a UHMW tubing support, but with a round cut-out to match the diameter of the square tubing.
Best regards,
Ron Chacich

[Evil Tsi]

Originally Posted by rchacich Precision Plasma LLC sells DIY CNC plasma kits. Here is a model of a simple cnc rotary tubing cutter. This design uses a 6" 4 jaw chuck in which the tube moves under the torch. The complexity of the tubing cutter depends on the application. For instance, if you just wanted to cut tubes for fabricating roll cages, you would not require torch height control or even a motorized Z axis. If you want to cut square tubing, you would need both THC and a motorized Z axis, along with a UHMW tubing support, but with a round cut-out to match the diameter of the square tubing. Best regards, Ron Chacich

Thats what im looking for. Does anyone offer plans and designs for such a beast? Im just looking to cut anywhere for say 1in to 4in piping.

[zman61]

Ron I would like to know how much it would cost to get a second floating z axis and the rest of the parts to build this? would this support say a 6" schedule 40 pipe? I know my frame will but will the rotary I (we) bought actually support a piece of pipe that heavy in the length you have in your drawing. Got our table running pretty good now thanks to your help and help from Tom and Luke at CandCNC.

[rchacich]

This concept would work for 6" pipe, but you would require a large motor and belt reduction along with the proper size gear rack and pinion due to the weight of the pipe. You would also want to use roller balls to support the pipe to reduce the resistance when moving and rotating.

With heavy pipe, it would be easier to move the torch above the pipe rather than use this concept where the pipe is moved beneath the torch. You can then rotate the pipe on a pair of roller bearings.

Our Z axis runs $600 and now comes standard with a 2 start screw.

[jimcolt]

Actually...most of the roll cage builders need another axis and software so that they can cut angles and "fishmouths" into pipe for proper fitup....resulting in saving time doing this with grinders and hole saw jigs.

There are a few cnc machines (some expensive industrial machines....some reasonably priced entry level and DIY type machines) that use a rotary drive and chuck....along with another axis as an attachment for pipe cutting. They also need software that can handle the rotary axis.

Some of the complex industrial machines can bevel, contour cut, and can handle square tube and pipe as well.

The machine Ron has drawn would work great for simple pipe cutoff.


Jim Colt Hypertherm

Originally Posted by rchacich Precision Plasma LLC sells DIY CNC plasma kits. Here is a model of a simple cnc rotary tubing cutter. This design uses a 6" 4 jaw chuck in which the tube moves under the torch. The complexity of the tubing cutter depends on the application. For instance, if you just wanted to cut tubes for fabricating roll cages, you would not require torch height control or even a motorized Z axis. If you want to cut square tubing, you would need both THC and a motorized Z axis, along with a UHMW tubing support, but with a round cut-out to match the diameter of the square tubing. Best regards, Ron Chacich

[packrat]

While not CNC, I made a set of "collars" for a guy, that slipped over the pipe and had the "fish mouth" shape cut on the end. Then all he had to do was use that as a guide for his torch to cut the shape, kind of like using a piece of flat stock to guide the torch for a straight cut.

[jimcolt]

Yeah...that works well....I still have some that were made from melamine (fiberglass) tube that slide over 1.5" and 1.75" roll cage tube to guide the plasma torch with...they work great. I used them almost 20 years ago....

Jim

Originally Posted by packrat While not CNC, I made a set of "collars" for a guy, that slipped over the pipe and had the "fish mouth" shape cut on the end. Then all he had to do was use that as a guide for his torch to cut the shape, kind of like using a piece of flat stock to guide the torch for a straight cut.

[Torchhead]

We include the "Rotary Wizard" in our 5 axis bundles. It takes a flat 2D design and "wraps" it around a round object. It does it by recalibrating the rotary axis to set the number of steps to move the SURFACE of the cut one inch. You simple input the pipe size and it does the rest of the math.

So you draw it flattened out, You bring it into SheetCAm with the drawing width being the circumference of the pipe (shows up in the Rotary Wizard window) and you run it in rotary mode. The Rotary Wizard also does rectangular and square tube by indexing 4 times to cut each side.

So where do you get the magic flat layour of a birdsmouth or an ellipse where two pipes join at different angles?

If you have SolidWorks then you just draw it in 3D and unfold it to a flat 2D. For those of us not wealthy enough to own Solidworks, take a look at
Digital Pipe Cutter Software. Will let you design the joints, see them in 3d and then (here is the important part) lets you export in DXF into Sheetcam, It brings across a bunch of grid lines and stuff that you can ignore in SheetCAM and it has in inside and outside toolpath. The Software is not terribly expensive for what you get, (around $500.00) You can get a demo that will only draw the cut paths if the angles are 53 degrees but everything else works. Coolest thing it being able to see the joint(s) in 3d and spin them around and stuff.

If you just HAVE to have a template you can print the design out and wrap it around the pipe and cut by hand but then who needs a CNC plasma cutter to do that?

We will have some stuff later this summer to make automated pipe cutting and angled tubing cuts even easier and less expensive.

TOMcaudle
www.CandCNC.com

[langwadt]

Originally Posted by Torchhead We include the "Rotary Wizard" in our 5 axis bundles. It takes a flat 2D design and "wraps" it around a round object. It does it by recalibrating the rotary axis to set the number of steps to move the SURFACE of the cut one inch. You simple input the pipe size and it does the rest of the math. So you draw it flattened out, You bring it into SheetCAm with the drawing width being the circumference of the pipe (shows up in the Rotary Wizard window) and you run it in rotary mode. The Rotary Wizard also does rectangular and square tube by indexing 4 times to cut each side. So where do you get the magic flat layour of a birdsmouth or an ellipse where two pipes join at different angles? If you have SolidWorks then you just draw it in 3D and unfold it to a flat 2D. For those of us not wealthy enough to own Solidworks, take a look at Digital Pipe Cutter Software. Will let you design the joints, see them in 3d and then (here is the important part) lets you export in DXF into Sheetcam, It brings across a bunch of grid lines and stuff that you can ignore in SheetCAM and it has in inside and outside toolpath. The Software is not terribly expensive for what you get, (around $500.00) You can get a demo that will only draw the cut paths if the angles are 53 degrees but everything else works. Coolest thing it being able to see the joint(s) in 3d and spin them around and stuff. If you just HAVE to have a template you can print the design out and wrap it around the pipe and cut by hand but then who needs a CNC plasma cutter to do that? We will have some stuff later this summer to make automated pipe cutting and angled tubing cuts even easier and less expensive. TOMcaudle www.CandCNC.com

if you can flatten it, it should be simple enough just run the rotary axis with the signals/driver for one of axis on a 2D machine.

just need to calibrate rotation angle with circumference

[Torchhead]

Originally Posted by langwadt if you can flatten it, it should be simple enough just run the rotary axis with the signals/driver for one of axis on a 2D machine. just need to calibrate rotation angle with circumference

That is EXACTLY what the Rotary Wizard does automatically.