Problem- Series of Mishaps...is it mechanical failure?

[millerswife]

My husband has purchased a dynatorch and yet to get it rolling. Seemingly small things keep going wrong. This is an 8ft gantry, he built his own water table...everything is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Had to buy new tips to keep the arc going to cut expanded metal mesh.

The machine starts cutting the expanded metal scrap pieces he uses to 'test' the new copper tips. SOMETHING GOES WRONG when he then places a full sheet of mesh on the table...the cover plate for the torch POPS loose EVERYTHING comes to yet another hault.

With the money that has been spent to purchase this Gantry and the inability to start using it, I NEED TO KNOW...is Dynatorch a good purchase?? Have other users experienced a series of failures with this equipment just trying to get started?? Does this quanlify as mechanical failure??

The table is level, no reason for torch to 'snag' or whatever it did to cause the cover plate to pop off. I AM ANGRY, my old man is HOPEFUL, due to customer service being very responsive. "I don't know what you did" was a comment he received from the company - sort of jokingly, but all he did was use the machine.

Have we just gotten the biggest most expensive paper weight in the world???

[WSS]

A crashing torch is not considered a mechanical failure. Happens often. What plasma generator is being used? Is it on the right setting to cut expanded metal? How thick? What amp copper tips are used?

What experience does do you have with CNC? Plasma? DynaTorch?

There is a huge learning curve for the beginner, if this is the case, much patience. Give it a few months to figure out the machine then a few years to figure out how to make money (joking of course).

WSS

PS, any chance of posting some pics of the water table?

[magma-joe]

Millerswife,
Cutting expanded metal is not easy to do. The speeds must be just right and the torch height control must be OFF or a torch crash is a sure thing. Building a new table, learning how to operate it, and starting with expanded metal is an invitation for problems. Starting with thin flat steel plate would be a much safer material to learn on. No matter what, the initial learning curve is steep. It is at this time when most problems arise.

As WSS said, even under normal circumstances torch crashes do occur and especially when some one is first learning how to operate the torch height control on ANY brand CNC plasma table. It is also safe to say than anyone who has operated a CNC plasma table for any length of time has experienced a torch crash.

As the operator's skills improve the crashes will be minimal however they can still happen for various reasons beyond the operators immediate control. Damage can be prevented by using a torch crash protector which allows the torch to break away from its mount and also stop the machine movement.

Torch Crash Protection Unit

Once your husband learns how to operate the machine and you see the machine making parts your stress about all the money spent will turn to joy. I can assure you there are many happy Dynatorch owners out there, myself being one of them.

Magma-joe

[millerswife]

Greetings WSS,
I don't have still photos on this computer of the entire water table he built, but you can get a jest of the amount of work he's put into this project from the following video. It's either 8ft or 10ft long and I believe 4" - 6" deep with a waterproof industrial coating. The slats are not coated.

YouTube - ‪MrWestviewGA's Channel‬‏

[millerswife]

WSS and Magma-Joe I wanted to say thank you for responding and I appreciate the words of encouragement Joe. For clarification I had to check with the "other one" to make sure that I am expressing myself correctly...I have yet to master the art of speaking 'man' :-)

He had to purchase shielded tips to get the machine to work on the expanded metal mesh. The tips that came with the machine would loose the arc. They are 60 amp.

The failure wasn't the torch itself, but the attachment bracket popped off (does that qualify as manufacturer defect) to the torch controller for the Z axis. The height control is OFF, which as y'all have pointed out the only way the machine will work on expanded metal.

He does NOT have a protection unit, just the gantry and table. $700 doesn't sound like a lot of money in comparison to the gantry but everything just keeps adding up $$$$$$.

Again, THANK YOU BOTH for responding....time is of the essence here in a MAJOR way!!

[WSS]

Ok, so you broke the two 10-32 screws that hold the torch to the torch height control? That is a hard hit. There are a few options for a "break-away'. One is the snap-n-cut by possum plasma out of australia. He will have a mount that will work with the DT out shortly, or you could build one for a hundred bucks or so using 30mm magswitches (also out of aus).

You mention how the $$$$ keeps adding up, I have had mine for almost two years now and still throw generous amounts of money at it regularly. I just spent 2k on retro-fitting a water table and bladder system (which still is not ready, but the money is spent)

In the video, did the table have water in it?

WSS

PS, our table has many uses as shown in photo, LOL

[magma-joe]

Originally Posted by millerswife Greetings WSS, I don't have still photos on this computer of the entire water table he built, but you can get a jest of the amount of work he's put into this project from the following video. It's either 8ft or 10ft long and I believe 4" - 6" deep with a waterproof industrial coating. The slats are not coated. YouTube - ‪MrWestviewGA's Channel‬‏

Millerswife,

Tell your husband, nice work on the table build! Look forward to seeing some more vids or pics once he gets up to speed.

Magma-joe

[millerswife]

Soooo can I just share with you guys that although I was raised with a keen sense of knowing the effects of a defaulting timing belt/chain, the sounds valves make when the oil is low, installing clutch pins and changing my own tires I never had any understanding of millwork or machining before now.

With that being said, another call to Dynatorch and the problem may simply be that the pockets were not milled deep enough to allow the threads to fully engage. We are going to try a trip to FASTENAL for longer shoulder bolts, another 3/8" and hopefully we will be making sparks fly.

I didn't know everything on the gantry was hand milled...Hopefully this will be it until WECIMM!!

I will repost if the longer shoulder bolts are or are not the fix. Have a safe 4th of July!!!

Joe...he said Thank you for the compliment

[Edwardo]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I had my DT for a year before cutting any expanded metal and even then it was a hairy experience, expanded metal warps ( alot ) when cutting and with the torch height control off you must control the warp of the material instead. If i were to cut more expanded metal again i would use plastic electrical ties to cinch the expanded metal to the slats to hold it down or place weights in stragetic locations away from the cut/rapid paths, WSS touched on this when he asked what type of plasma generator you have as Hypertherm has a 3 setting switch on its control panel and one of thoughs settings is for specifically cutting expanded metal. Regardless of your background experience learning cnc can be a challenge if you are learning as you go with no formal training, but in the end i have found nothing more rewarding than being able to draw something up and cut it out and have someone like it enough to pay me money for it. Good luck with your nice table.
EDD

WSS... my table has the same use more than i care to admit...lol