What's the best and cheapest cnc plasma machine for 3'x3' work?

[squale]

I am looking for a plasma cutter to add to my shop for cutting intricate shapes from flat steel anywhere from 1/16" - 1" thick steel...

was looking at PlasmaCam.. can anybody comment on the usability, relability and performance of this machine and software?

[jimcolt]

Great machine. I have owned a PlasmaCam model 98Z for over 7 years....very easy to use and learn software.....and one of the easiest cnc's to run. You can easily import .dxf files from other drawing packages. The newer models (DHC, DHC2 and Samson) are superior to the older models in that they have arc voltage height control, ohmic plate sensing...and improved control functions. I recently sold my old one....and just took delivery on a new 4 x 4 DHC2. I use a Hypertherm Powermax1000 for the plasma....and a $299 pentium computer from Tiger Direct for the control computer.

Jim

[Torchhead]

Not everyone shares the same high regard for PlasmaCAM. Everything on the unit is proprietary and you will have to deal with their tech support (be it good or bad) for ALL your needs. At one time they were one of the few choices for a lower cost CNC plasma table. Now you have many to choose from. The market has progressed rapidly over the last 4 years.

I would also urge you to expand your work envelope to 4 X 4. The price differential will be small and being able to use standard 4 ft wide material will increase the versatility of your machine. At 3 ft you either waste a foot of material or cut everything in 24" wide to get two panels.

Also, better read up on cutting thick material with Plasma. To get a machine that will give you good cuts in 1" will cost you thousands more than one that will work well up to about 3/8". Almost all decorative cutting is done on thinner material. What you are trying to sell is the "art" not the weight of a piece. Buying, handling and shipping thick pieces (over 10 ga) will drive your costs up. It's hard to explain to a customer why the piece is double the cost of your competitors because it's thicker!

Before you start writing checks, cruise the ZONE, read what you can, look at the websites of the primary players. Don't get seduced by the sizzle (color pictures of WHAT you can make with your new machine) but focus on the features and function of the machine.

In the smaller sizes a stepper based system can work fine. If you want to plan ahead and consider that you might want to use the machine for other cutting/drilling/marking functions make sure the machine you choose is constructed heavy enough to do contact cutting. If the software won't support full 3 axis cutting operations then you will have to spend $$$ to get there....and if the table will only run with one vendor's software it may not support 3 Axis cutting at all.....There IS live after Plasma (:-)

While the software may be easy to learn and use, so is a bicycle with training wheels. It is also limiting as well. Once again the introduction of low cost software tools over the last four years has caused a mini explosion of activity.

MACH3 has 14,000+ users (an lot of them plasma or mixed usage users). It has an open interface (SDK and MACRO language) that encourages 3rd party add-ons and design. Example: Find out how much a fully functional Hand Control (not a hacked game controller) is for a non-MACH based machine.....

The introduction of SheetCAM over 2 years ago has given us a router and plasma specific tool for building files for cutting. It supports automatic piercing moves, kerf offsets (inside/outside/online) automatic lead-ins/outs (4 types) and multi-pierce touch off. It costs about 166.00 USD.

If your intent is to cut decorative, then use a drawing tool better suited for that. CAD is Great for drawing buildings and simple shapes. It fails at being able to handle complex text manipulation and import the more art based type of Vector art files in AI or EPS format (see www.VectorArt.com) To make money doing this (decorative cutting) you can't spend hours at the PC drawing a design. I started cutting decorative steel in 2001 and because I was poor and stupid I did all my art work in CorelDraw. Nothing in the past 7 years has changed my mind but the process has gotten easier and better with each release of CorelDraw and tools like SheetCAM.

If you think you are going to be able to just scan a photo and cut it out in plasma, better think again. That's more of marketing the dream.

If you really want to maximize your dollars then consider building your own table. Hundreds have done it in the last year. It too gets easier. Contact me off-list and I can point you to vendors for components that will ease the stress of being our own builder/provider and tech support!

If you would like to play around with a low cost way to get machine files (g-code) then find a copy of CorelDraw 12 (about $49.00), Download my DXFTools demo plug-in for Corel off my website, Get a demo copy of SheetCAM and MACH (both free) and start drawing. I have free Corel (CDR) plasma art on my CandCNCSupport Yahoo Groups (must join).

It's not as hard as you think, it's not as easy as you want!

TOM CAUDLE
www.CandCNC.com
www.FourHillsDesigns.com (decorative steel cutting site)

[jimcolt]

I (in 7 years) have never called PlasmaCam tech service. Belt's, pulleys, bearings, limit switches are all available from suppliers. The software and control box are the only proprietary parts. The software works quite well for entry level.....yet I agree there are better drawing and nesting packages available.....but that's no big deal...as their drawings easily import into the PlasmaCam system. It also is very easy to scan bitmap images and make cut paths out of them.....at least images such as line drawings (images out of a childs coloring book are perfect!)....although I doubt that you could take a bitmap photo and turn it into a cut path.

There are a lot of machine choices out there....I was just giving my two cents as a satisfied owner of a PlasmaCam......the price/value was very good for my use. I have been working closely with virtually all brands of cutting machines for over 30 years....so I am aware of all of the latest technology available...


Jim

[Big John T]

Just to add my 2 cents. Best and cheap never go in the same sentence when describing machinery. I just finished building my plasma table and many others have done so as well. I would not make a table less than 50" wide unless you just want a small table. I built mine 50" wide and 38" long. The design permits me to use a whole 4x8 sheet but not cut the whole thing at once if that makes any sense.

John

[jeffery71]

I wrote a post for Sheetcam. I'm not sure if Les is including it with Sheetcam yet or not. It is basicaly a post for Plasmacam. You can use Sheetcam to do all of your cam work and then import the gcode as "cut paths". I have some friends who bought a Plasmacam and while the table seems pretty good I felt the software was not up to par with Sheetcam. Sheetcam is so much easier to use and it does a better job with complex parts.

jeff