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Posted on Feb 07, 2007 - 1:31am by John P. in Computing, Reviews, Tools
This site has been getting a lot of visitors from the search engines due to my previous posts about the PlasmaCAM CNC Plasma Cutting Machine.
These visits have translated into quiet a few questions coming in via my contact form. Several people considering the purchase of a PlasmaCAM have received the DVD from them and have been asking me how much of it is true. After all, Stan makes it sound so easy to start creating anything you can imagine from metal with this machine. ;-)
As a result, I’m going to walk you through the video step-by-step and provide analysis to help separate fiction from fact.
If you’d like to print this out to keep handy while you are watching the video use the Print this Post feature (also at the bottom of the article) to format it a little better for that purpose.
For convenience I’ve embedded an excerpt of the video from the DVD.
If you would like the full DVD please contact PlasmaCAM and I’m sure they’ll be happy to ship you one out.
Let’s Get Started!
Below you’ll find the time marker in minutes and seconds, followed by my opinion on the issue presented at that time.
0:00 – 1:00: The DVD starts off with some shots of a wide range of parts and completed projects all cut by the PlasmaCAM.
Yes, it did cut all that stuff, though the pieces you are seeing have also been welded, finished and powder coated.
1:15: We first hear Stan Ferris’ voice asking:
“Wouldn’t it be nice if you could make these kinds of products with only a small amount of effort?”
Well, yes Stan, that would be nice! But frankly you can’t. Most of the projects shown required a considerable amount of artistic creation, which translates into hours and hours of digitizing followed by a considerable amount of cutting, welding, grinding and powder coating.
Metal fabrication is a dirty, sweaty, hot, dangerous, capital intensive business and should only be attempted by people who have adequate training.
Personally I’m a trained welder, blacksmith, bladesmith and power hammer operator. I had over a years worth of experience operating a plasma torch before I ever purchased a PlasmaCAM, and without it I’d have had major problems getting this machine to operate at times. I’ve also taken college level AutoCAD courses and am an expert with CorelDraw for graphic illustration.
1:51: Stan introduces himself as a:
“…nuts and bolts kind of guy…” who “…under normal circumstances I would not have tried to operate a computer controlled machine….”
Well, here are a couple of comments to get us started:
If you are not computer savvy, do NOT purchase a PlasmaCAM. There is very little instruction regarding the use of the actual software, and the info provided comes in the form of a written manual.
There is a small amount of video instruction, but PlasmaCAM desperately needs to create video tutorials on how to use the features of this product. There is simply nowhere near the amount of training material available that I think there should be.
You are not going to want to use the PlasmaCAM software to create designs unless you absolutely have to. Think of it just as a clean-up and cutting package.
2:57:
“The robotic cutting table plugs into your computer just like a printer.”
Not true anymore.
100% of the printers sold today plug into your computer using either a USB, Ethernet, or Wireless connection. The PlasmaCAM plugs in using the old style parallel port connection, and when I was setting my machine up this was the greatest source of issues. I had to call and get support from George (who is awesome!) to get mine working.
This is a bigger problem than you might think… Since the machine requires a parallel port you have to use a computer that has a parallel port built in. This will exclude many of the PCs available today and all of the laptops.
You cannot use a USB to Parallel port converter as it won’t work. If you purchase a PC without a parallel port then you’ll have to order an add in card, and these are almost impossible to find now days as well.
Make sure you have this covered before you purchase a PlasmaCAM!
Commentary:
PlasmaCAM is well behind the curve in the connectivity arena. Not only should the machine offer USB connectivity, it should really have a wireless NIC installed that allows us to control the machine over 802.11x.
Either of these would bring the machine into the modern age, but wireless would be vastly preferable.
3:00:
“The machine uses your ordinary plasma torch to do the cutting. It’s easy to remove in case you need to cut by hand.”
Well, kind of. If by “easy” you mean “possible”. But it involves disconnecting cables, cutting plastic tie downs, plugging in adapters, remounting and calibrating things… You’re not going to really want to remove the torch unless you absolutely have to.
3:32: What Stan is demonstrating is not something you’re ever going to see happen in the real world. He’s taken a perfectly printed photo of a single leaf, on a completely white background and scanned it. He is then converting all of the colors except the white background to black, essentially creating a single filled in shape.
Let’s look at a more realistic example. Here is a little key shaped bottle opener that I designed by sketching it on drawing paper with a pencil.
Next, you select the size of “holes” for the software to try to fill in, and the size of random “speckles” for it to delete.
Next you choose the resolution and smoothing for the image, which in this case won’t make a bit of a difference.
Finally you have the imported image which, in this case – and most others, is going to require a LOT of editing before it is even close to ready to cut. We’re talking about hours of editing.This whole process can be completed in 1/10th the time using CorelDraw. So if you don’t know how to use it go find a graphic art course at your local community college and learn Adobe Illustrator or CorelDraw.
3:55: Scaling, rotation, cut path creation, copying and moving the image are actually as easy as they say. That is not to say they couldn’t use some improvement…
Commentary
One of my biggest disappointments is that there hasn’t been a single software update since I purchased the machine, despite the fact that there are a number of areas that could be improved.
This fact, combined with the lack of USB or wireless connectivity support leads me to believe that software development at PlasmaCAM has ceased.
And this is one of my greatest sources of concern for the longevity of this product. All of PlasmaCAM’s competitors release frequent updates and improvements to their installed user base.
5:10: Frankly I do not believe that they were able to cut that entire sheet of leaves out automatically and unattended.
5:17: Interestingly, I can’t find Cash Metals on the Internet anywhere. I must have Googled for 15 minutes with no luck. I even paused the video on the pages of their catalog and searched for product names, but nothing turns up.
Despite that, I believe that everything John Cash stated was accurate.
6:35: It’s really a shame that they don’t have a video library that shows how to use all the features they are demonstrating here. It would have made learning how to use the software so much easier…
9:05: Ok, this is important to note. Between the times the machine cut the sign out and Stan picked it up, it was obviously moved from a production area machine to the machine in the video.
The plasma cutting process spits out dust and smoke in copious quantities! The floor beneath the machine would be burned and filthy, and there is no ventilation system present. Finally, without gloves, Stan would not be able to pick up that metal seconds after the machine finished cutting.
Commentary
You need to be aware that any plasma cutting process, including the PlasmaCAM, puts out a ton of airborne particulate matter that requires adequate ventilation.
When I went to the PlasmaCAM headquarters outside of Denver and got a demonstration of the machine they had it in a really cool little room that had ducting which vented the machine to the outside of the building.
If you are going to get a plasma cutting machine you need to plan to put it in an area where you can blow all of the smoke and dust either outside or through an expensive air filtration system.
9:10: Here’s a link to find more info about Dan Romano. He’s a metal artist and the things he makes are close to what I do. I agree with everything he said.
11:22: This is the best example in the video of what I was talking about when I said that small or unusually shaped parts would not quite fall through the grates. Notice that the piece which was just finished tilts up and is sticking up above the surface of the original material.
If the machine attempts to move over that area, which it might well do on its way to cutting something else, it will collide and screw everything up royally.
A collision of this sort will bend the piece that is sticking up, knock the torch head out of alignment, move the base material -making it difficult to line back up and restart cutting, and potentially even ruin the torch tip ($15 wasted instantly). I’ve also had the entire torch head assembly pop off the unit during one collision with thick material.
Bottom line, this is not good… the only way I can think of to solve this issue is to have a tighter mesh of grates to hold the material, but neither PlasmaCAM nor anyone else I’m aware of have yet solved this problem.
11:39: I’ve not yet tested the indexing of parts longer than 4 feet yet, mainly because I’m scared of ruining a large, expensive piece of steel. Whenever I do test it, I’ll post about it, but if anyone else has tried please provide some comments below.
Remember, you can cut things longer than 4′ but not wider than 4′! So, a 3.5′x7′ sign would work, but a 4′2″x 5′ would not. The table is a square 4′x4′.
13:21: Stan claims,
“This part is being drawn to exact dimensions in only 14 seconds.”
There is something strange with the video here, because Stan claims it’s just 14 seconds, but when I play it back it’s more like 11 seconds. This makes it seem as if the video has been time compressed.
Additionally, they would have to be typing in lengths – while creating the part – in order to make it “exact”, so I just don’t see anyone being able to go that fast.
11:15: Some people have asked about the thickness capability of the PlasmaCAM. Here we see it cutting 3/8″ thick material. Later you’ll see 1″. The thickness of cut is going to be determined by your selection of plasma torch, not the PlasmaCAM.
I use a Hypertherm 1000 which will cut at least 1″ thick material. But keep in mind that the thicker the material, the more it weighs. And you have to be able to load the sheet on the machine…
14:02: Jim LaTour from Turbo Engineering Corp provides good examples of what the machine can do. For his type of business the machine is perfect.
Conclusion
There is far more content on the DVD that I’m not going to go through. But if you are interested in seeing it, by all means contact PlasmaCAM and order the DVD. They’ll be happy to send it to you.
Now, I know this review comes across as being fairly harsh on the PlasmaCAM video, but please keep a few things in mind:
Frankly, there is a short list that will let you know if a PlasmaCAM is right for you:
I hope that this information was useful. If so, please drop me a comment below to let me know. :-)
By the way, I LOVE comments! Please feel free to leave one below!
Thanks very much for taking the time to evaluate the plasma cam and its software. I have limited experience in everything you have mentioned. You might have burst my bubble over the plasma cam. I was so looking forward to purchasing a unit. If these people are that dishonest on demonstrating their unit on the dvd ( I have it ) and that far behind on their software and computor up dates then I don’t think I want one.
Terry,
Thanks for the comment, and I’m glad if the article helps out.
I would like to clarify a couple of things. First, my dealings with everyone at PlasmaCAM have been first rate. I don’t consider anything they say in the DVD to be “dishonest”. I just consider it to be marketing spin.
For someone like me, with experience welding, plasma cutting, and designing in the PC the machine really is easy to use. But, without all of that experience it would be very difficult. And I’ve heard multiple stories from people like yourself who thought it might be easy to pick up on but who later found out they weren’t equipped with the necessary skills.
In fact, one gentleman posted on my PlasmaCAM Part 2 page about this very issue. And of course, this is why I took the time to go through the video step by step. I hate to think that anyone would dish out this kind of cash without being able to use it.
Take care,
John
Any other complete systems you might recommend looking into. I’ve priced the component parts to a system like the PlasmaCam and I think they are asking a bit to much money for what they offer.
Duke,
If you simply price out the parts for what it would take to build the system it might seem a bit inflated. In fact, I’ve seen kits that will allow you to build a machine for less and save a few thousand.
But there are some things that you have to consider about going that route as well:
– I believe PlasmaCAM is now offering 3 years of technical support with purchase. It is impossible to overstate the value of this feature. I’ve yet to find a problem that George and the gang haven’t heard before and aren’t able to solve with a simple call.
– PlasmaCAM has to deal with replacement parts under warranty. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard of them sending someone a replacement motor or other part. These things add up.
– The PCAM controller and software were developed in house. Those can’t be purchased on the open market, so it’s hard to assign a value to them.
Having said all of that, a few other systems I looked into before buying my PCAM included:
– Torchmate – offers some of the least expensive systems out there. Even kits.
– Practical CNC – offers some nice looking small tables that will also do routing.
– DynaTorch – also offers unfinished kits.
– DynaCNC – the table I would have liked to have purchased, if it wasn’t so heavy and if they could have shipped it within even a couple of months.
Ultimately, you can see the route I chose to go mainly for the size/weight of the machine, the well established user community, and the tech support.
Hope that helps,
John
Hi
I have plans for buying this machine when I build my shop later this year.I’m a retired welder with over 40 years experience and 15 years with computor graphics.I have enjoyed very much reading about what you have said about the machine.It seems that one of the hardest things to find, is ideas on what to make.
Thank you so much
Al Zampieri Lewes,Delaware
you’re right, there’s no way you can program to cut an entire 4×4 piece of small pieces and walk away. after two or three, one will tilt at an angle and catch with the torch head. i am having problems with too much slag residue on the bottom side. i cut 12 gauge and use a miller spectrum 625. any input on settings, speed, etc. i would appreciate. thanks
Mike,
Sorry, but I don’t have any experience with the Miller Spectrums.
Generally speaking, if you are getting a lot of dross you are cutting too slow, have the torch head too high, or worn out consumables.
With my Hypertherm I looked in the manual and it tells the exact speeds to use with each tip type and material thickness, so I would recommend checking your Miller manual to see if there is something comprable.
Also, that doesn’t solve your problem, give PlasmaCAM a call and talk to George. I’d be willing to be he’s got the settings for your machine memorized. :-)
Take care,
John
I just bought a used plasma cam. the guy who had it owned it for 3 months and had a welding and fab shop, but never learned to use it. His biggest mistake was trying to use thermaldynamics and essaub plasma cutters. He thought the main box was fryed. we bought is, hooked up a hypertherm 1000 to it and my 1st time 19yr old son had it up and going in 2 hrs, and by the 3 hr was already designing parts and cutting them out. If you good on a pc and do like directions say, use hypertherm plasma cutter. The nice thing about people who don’t follow plasma cams suggestions on prefered plasma cutters to use, is we saved 4,000.00 on buying it.
Wow! That is a great buy!
One more thing, the machine does work well. And we did add a extra ground wire to help on contact on metal that was not so shinny.Also while searching for a used plasma cam i met a few people and ask questions. One guy was selling his plasma cam, so i ask why, he said he bought a bigger 40,000.00 table because work was great, i ask him how he liked the plasma cam software and he said he wished he could use it on the new larger machine, it was easier. The part my son made was a 10″ x12″ plate with 8 bolt holes around the out side flange, with a 3 1/5 inch center hole. I was taking us 45 mins to 1 hour to make these with a hand torch and drill press, now the part is saved and we just print as many as we need.
im glad to hear it wasnt just us that are having so many problems and dissipointments, with plasma cam we have everything put together and ready to cut, isnt happening, we also have found alot of discrepecies , not just anyone can put it together and start cutting , we are , searching for someone in our area to give us some help, cutting by hand seems alot easier at this moment.
thanks for your information, FRF
i love my machine!! it does have a few bugs to work out when you first get it, and of
course it takes some computer knowledge and training,,,, but i dont have a real problem with programing my own drawings into finished product. after years of doing this by hand, plasmacam aint bad at all… i never touched a computer till 2000, and had my 10n year old son teaching me the basics, but i dont see that operating the plasmacam is any harder than doing basic work in like microsoft publisher or comparable program. its just a matter of picking out the commands you really need to do the job at hand, and jsut as important, what to ignore…. ive been making a living as an artist in salt lake city and park city, utah, for about 8 years now with my plasmacam, and would be lost without it…
just one artist opinion…email lazyjz@excite.com, for product ideas, any help with running the machine, or anything else.
thanks, troy
We have found out there are many a few steps that must be done in order to go from design to cutting. sample if you have abcdefg, you can’t do acfg. you have to do all the steps. The first 15 minites my son did get frustrated some, but then he found out it was not the plasma cam, or the soft ware, it was somthing he over looked or settings were wrong, or he forgot to initalize.
Yes, that is true. You must go through a Pre-cut checklist.
And that’s not even a complete list! But of course, it’s well worth it because you end up with things that you just couldn’t have made without it.
Take care,
John
I saw the problem with the airborne particles on my daughters machine. I fabricated some side “skirts” to help control the airflow under the machine and cut down on the openings for the particles to get out. Also fabricating a “drip pan” with a bit of water to place under the cutting bed which will help greatly in the particle clean-up.
Hey John,
Mmmmm where to start. . . .I am right on the brink of purchasing a plasma cam. Your blog has created some doubt in my mind as to whether I should purchase the plasma cam to manufacture the tool I have invented. I have invented a tool for the fire service, yes I have a patent pending, (boy what a process that was!!!). I will be cutting the tool out of 1/4 inch stainless steel. After checking out all my options (lazer, water jet etc. . ) I decided to plasma cut it myself. The costs to outsource would have put the cost of the tool to high for the market. It sounds like I can deal with all the issues that you mention in your blog. Would you be so kind as to share with me anything that would help me in the production of this tool. We (my father and I) will be setting up a shop at his place and producing the tool on our own. As I said before we will be cutting the tool out of 1/4 inch stainless steel, then tumbling them to round the edges. Is there anything for your experience that I need to know about cutting stainless that would help this process to go smoothly. I don’t have a picture of the tool on my website yet, but if you would like to contact me you can go to the website and my email contact is at the bottom of the page. The website is http://www.tugtool.com any help you would be able to provide to this rookie would be much appreciated!!!!
Thanks Brian
Brian,
Here are many random stream of consciousness thoughts in response to your comments:
You made the right decision regarding plasma cutting because 1/4″ stainless can not be cut economically with Waterjet or Laser. Plasma will however make short work out of it assuming you get a big enough plasma torch.
Stainless is a little harder to cut than plain mild steel, so the torch I’d recommend is actually the exact one I own, the Hypertherm 1000. You could also step up to the 1250, but the consumables will cost a little more and I don’t think you’re going to be able to manufacture the parts much quicker.
I’m not sure what the dimensions of this tool are. Knowing that would help me tailor my comments a little better, but I’m assuming that it may be about 12″ long and probably narrow. If that is the case, depending on the shape of the tool you may be able to tell the machine to cut out a whole sheet and leave it unattended to do so. However, if it’s long and narrow with a strange shape on the end you might have to monitor the machine fairly closely and cut only a few at a time.
I can’t tell for sure, but from your background in firefighting I’m guessing that you don’t have a lot of welding / plasma cutting experience. This could be a major problem with the plan to manufacture these tools by yourself. I could not recommend the purchase of this expensive machine to someone without plasma cutting experience. There are a lot of things that can go wrong:
If you received the video from PCam and were “sold” on the idea but you don’t have any experience with these machines then I really would recommend reconsidering. I do NOT want to deflate your hopes and I’m not telling you that it’s impossible, but I am telling you that there are hundreds of details that take time to learn and any one of them could keep that machine from operating properly.
On the positive side, if this one tool is the only thing you need to make then it should be much easier to operate since it’s going to be very repetitive. But it would probably be very helpful for you to spend time with an experienced operator first before you actually purchase a machine to make sure you think it’s something you can do.
I’d be happy to cut you out a prototype on my machine if you like, or if you come through Dallas I’d be willing to show you how it works.
Another option for you would be to find someone with a machine that is willing to cut these parts out for you at a reasonable rate. They’ve already spent all the money on the shop, so you can avoid that. I would say that you are going to have to sell a LOT of these tools to make enough to cover the cost of buying and operating the machine, but someone who already has one that is doing other things with it can probably make them cheaper for you than you can.
Other than that I’m not sure how to provide additional guidance, so let me know if you come up with specific questions.
John
Hey John. . . it Brian from California. . . on 04.26.07 I had posed questions to you in regards to purchasing a plasmacam. It seems like ages ago!! You had a lot of good advice when you posted back!! Just wanted to update you on how things have progressed!!
We did purchase the plasmacam and all the equipment needed to manufacture the “Tug Tool”!! We are doing it all ourselves at my parents place in WA state. I just wanted to let you know. . . YOU WERE RIGHT!!! Boy what an adventure this has been . . . . I think we hit all the pitfalls you mention in your post!!! Through it all we are now pretty darn efficient at cutting out the tools, (I have also expanded to cutting out parts for 2 other tools for the fire service!! I can even muddle my way through Autocad and transfer the drawing into plasmacam with ease!!! I have sold about 30 Tug Tools and we are now just gearing up to get the business running full speed!!! So I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank you again for all your input!!!! I hope you don’t mind if I ignored some very good advice on your part . . . and stubbornly plowed through!!! He he It has been a great learning experience so far and I look forward to the next stage of making this business a success!!! (Of course I had to decide to try and make a business successful in this economy!! Oh well)
Again thank you for all you advice!!!! If you would like to see the website I put together go to http://www.tugtool.com
Thanks again and take care!!!
Brian
does anybody know who is the direct competitor of plasmacam or who has similar products with plasmacam?
Ed,
I posted about the competitors here.
John
Hey John,
Thanks for the response. . .I have been out of town for a bit and just got the chance to get back on here.
My Pop who lives up in Washington has found a guy locally who has used the plasma cam for many years. . .. This gentleman has offered to help with getting our shop up and running. I think it is fair to say that my Pop is picking this guys brain to death. . . I bet he wishes he had never met my Dad!!! He he!!
In conversation with my Pop we have spoken on many of the issues you have mentioned. We are getting there John. . . Learning from your posts and the contacts my Pop has made I think we are getting this thing surrounded!!! When we start producing them I will send you a picture of what we are manufacturing!!!
If I am ever in Dallas I will be sure to look you up. . . hopefully by that time we can compare notes!!!
Take care and thanks for all the info!!!!
Brian
Hey John,
For got to mention this. .. . we are going with the hypertherm 1250. . . my Pop has made some connections with some of the logging and trucking companies up in his neck of the woods. If they need a part that is hard to get or will take some time to ship, his is going to use our machine to fabricate the parts for them!! So hopefully this will also be a successful venture!!
Take care
Brian
Brian,
That all sounds great! Three things I’m going to recommend as you’re getting set up:
Keep us informed how it goes!
John
Thanks John. . I will. . . oh and I will probably bug you with a few more questions. . .if that is alright!!!
Take care
Brian
Very nice review- maybe a bit harsh, though! It’s expected that a promotional video for something like this is going to have a lot of hype and oversimplification. Also, I’ll have you know I still use a parrallel port for my printer!
You hit the nail on the head. The video makes it sound like anyone can use the software in no time.
Great machine, very miss leading Video.
Great information. I really wish I had it before I bought my Plasmacam. Don’t get me wrong, it works great when it’s working. But when it’s not… it can be some work to get it back up and running. It is definitely a hobbyist’s machine. I was wanting to do some small production work with it but it’s a constant babysitting job when it’s working.
I ended up buying TurboCad to do my drawings because the PlasmaCam software simply isn’t designed to do much more than basic squares and circles. Not a big deal but it’s an added expense and after you come up with a drawing, you have to convert the files so PlasmaCam can read them. (I am somewhat of an amateur in Cad… actually, very much an amateur)
Bottom line, would I still have bought a PlasmaCam if I knew then what I know now??? Maybe, but I would have done a lot more homework and taken a harder look at the others out there.
well man.. I hate to say it but if you stopped in at my shop on a busy day, your entire image of the PlasmaCAM system would be blown. I’m working gigs of up to 1000 parts so far, mass production of lots and lots of stuff.. I’ve also been doing intricate designs, all with the PlasmaCAM software.. I think messing about with one program to the next is a waste of time. I’ve had my machine “quit” on me quite a few times.. but as soon as I blast the X/Y switches it’s running again. I will agree that sometimes it gets a little frustrating, and there is definitely room for improvement. However.. if I consider the amount of money and time this machine has taken to get “just right”, and the RETURN I’ve gotten on my investment… and the POTENTIAL and CAPABILITY of this system… I can’t think of any other CNC plasma system I’d rather have.
Hello John,
I’m a newbee with my plasmacam.. I’m learning it isn’t as easy as Stans video… I guess my bigest problem so far is completing a project before the machine starts to run into the warped metal as a result of previous cutting on the design. The DHC control doesn’t seem to follow warped material very well for me. The machine keeps crashing into my projects… If you have any suggestions on clamping the medal down to the table, I’d be interested in knowing any secrets you might have on that subject. It’s getting expensive ruining my projects…
Thanks..
Ron
Washington State
Ron,
Three things.
I hope that helps. Let me know how it goes for you.
John
Hi John,
I’m having some issues with my cuts on 1/4″ material. I have a Hypertherm 1250 on my PlasmaCam. When I cut in certain directions, the cuts are not perpendicular to the plate. They tend to angle off. But only when cutting in certain directions. In other words, if I cut a circle, the cut may be perfect on the upper and lower portions but the right side will be cut like you turned the torch head. (am i making any sense?)
I have replaced all of the consumables, I’ve tried to increase and decrease cut speed, changed temp. And it’s not just on circles. It seems like any time the torch is moving towards the upper right corner of the table.
A Hypertherm tech told me to change my cutting direction. Is there anything to that? And if so, how? And will it solve my problem?
Thanks for any help. Steve
I can post a photo, but I’m sure you can figure it out..
I found that my biggest issue with the PlasmaCAM is the tool carriage, and how the torch clamps on. I see that PlasmaCAM has updated this issue on the new Samson CNC or whatever they’re calling it.. The issue lies in getting your torch tip absolutely level. Well.. the solution was quite simple. I found a tube collar with a 1 inch ID (same as the torch shield) and now I can level my torch without needing material underneath. works great.. and that narrows down the issues with bevelling. I think I am going to create a ground “net” like others have done with the copper wire.. hopefully that will eliminate some of the wierd cuts I get sometimes.
Actually Steve, I think this has more to do with where you are hooking up the ground to your table. Try moving your ground clamp closer to where you are cutting and see if that doesn’t change the quality of the cut. In fact, clamp directly to your metal and see what happens.
I’ve seen this happen primarily when either the ground is no good, or when the torch tip is burned out. Keep in mind that if the ground was messed up and you used a brand new tip it could have instantly burned out the tip. So I’d recommend putting new consumables on it for testing when ou move the ground.
What some people have done is obtained heavy duty copper ground wire and strapped every single slat in the table together, then clamped the ground to the strap to ensure that every point in the table has a good ground. Also, some people put a pole in the ground and additionally connect the table to the physical ground.
Let me know what happens when you make this change.
John
Hi
My name is Ed and I bought a Plasma Cam about a year ago .I have had to learn as i go as I work a full time job and I am a welding instructor for the local college at night so I guess you would call me a weekend burner. Anyway I am haveing trouble with noise / parrell port /bad harware comuncation error code 130 . I have talked to several people and even went through 3 computers all the cables and surge protectors . I have moved the plasma unit as far away from the table and pc as possible.I have a hypertherm 1000 .I have changed light fixtures in the shop and evan turned every thing in the shop off while trying to burn but i am still getting this problem . Has anyone out there had this problem I really do need some help i have runn out of ideas. Can you help.
Thanks Ed
GROUND GROUND GROUND. and keep your parallel cable CLEAN! FREQUENTLY use your air chuck to blast the machine clean of dust.. remember.. you’re cutting STEEL, and the “dust” that comes from plasma cutting IS CONDUCTIVE!!!
Ed,
I can’t imagine having to do all of that, and I haven’t experience anything like it. It sounds to me like the controller on your unit might have a problem and I would ask them to send me another one if you are seeing the error occur regularly.
Having said that, parallel ports suck and this is such a significant weakness that I can’t believe PlasmaCAM hasn’t yet rectified that situation.
John
Thinking about purchasing.
Can you supply some sources for sheet materials.
would like to purchase close to pittsburgh to save shipping costs
your information has been very helpful
Mark,
Sorry. I live in Dallas, so I know suppliers here, but don’t know of any in Pittsburgh. Perhaps this Google Search can help.
John
I’ve had my machine for over three years and it is Great! I use a Hypertherm 1650. We used the original grate only long enough to cut out the pieces to make a cutting table with 10ga removable slats aprox 1.25″ apart like you would see on comercial machines. We installed multiple drop legs between our compressor and a refrigerated dryer. Additionally we installed an inexpensive 110v timed pop off valve to drain our compressor. Our “clean air” efforts are excessive. The pop off, drop leg and good water seperator/filter are more than enough even here in humid Florida.
We used self tapping screws to attach sheet metel to the sides around the table. We installed 2 (we only use one) used blowers under the cutting grate protected by simple sheet metal. We ducted the air outside away from our compressor ( no metal particles to cut compressor rings). It works great. This is a down draft setup. We can cut 1/2″ plate non stop with no smoke in our shop.
Yes you do have to watch your machine while cutting, however we never have problems with tip ups. Occasionally a small piece might fall between the slats and we retrieve it with a small magnet on a piece of 5/15 bar stock. The reason to watch is for consumable wear. You don’t want to keep cutting with a malfuncting tip. If it does not cut the first time it is almost impossible to cut over the originally fouled up piece.
Software.
The user interface is incredibly simple and easy to operate. The placement of pieces/nesting and utillization of scrap steel to cut new parts from could not be easier. Go look at your steel distributers $250,000.00 machine’s interface. It will truely terrify you.
The software is a very weak drawing program. The industry standard is AutoDesk’s AutoCad. You can purchase AutoCad LT very reasonibly. Yes you will have to invest some time in learning to draw. There are no free lunches, however if you learn to work with your plasmacam machine you will be hooked for life. I have shown my machine to 2 other business owners who both bought machines and you could not make them go back to hand cutting or pattern torches for anything.
Regarding drawing your parts. I can draw most parts in AutoCad with incredible precision and repeatability, save them as dxf files, import them into plasma cam, convert to cut paths and cut them before they can be layed out accurately on steel with soap stone, and I can cut as many as I want.
Think of the machine as a parts machine not a cutting machine. It takes bulk steel and turns it into usable pieces. (Yes you must grind but not nearly as much as if you cut it with a hand torch). Don’t like to grind, build a simple tumbler with your machine to clean your parts.
Tech Support
George is fantastic. He is responsive and absolutly knows his stuff. Thanks George you’re THE MAN.
If it sounds like I’m sold that’s because I am.
It’s cheap, it’s accurate, it fast, it’s reliable, what are you waiting for?
Jimmy C
Thanks for the info Jimmy. I agree with everything you said!
John
John, when I got my PlasmaCAM about two years ago I visited http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Plasmapig/ and read everey single posting from three years ago. Virtually every subject that could come up with the system is discussed. It was the smartest thing I ever did. That PlasmaPig message board was a lifesaver.
I tried to read this board but you have to be a member and membership is limited to those that have a PlasmaCAM already. Is there something that I’m missing that I can’t read the posts?
thx
We have a plasmacam at work here in NZ, has taken about 4 weeks to get used to the drawing package, if you treat it like high school Technical drawing you can draw most items, but is a bit frustrating as you are unable to sketch and then shift it in relation to other sketches, the biggest issue we find is the imperial measurements only, we work in metric here and have to convert every measurement to imperial, if you import a drawing file from solidworks and its in metric, you need to scale the drawing to correct size in plasmacam(S=0.03937008) ot 1/25.4 . we are using a millar plasma (umber escapes me)
but once you get used to the issues it speeds things up when building one off items,
the manual is fairly vague on the hook up for voltage sensing, so we use “stall hieght” and keep a eye on it when running
Cheers
Der. sir
I want to send me prices and the available capacity of Machine and details can be identified perhaps more Machine .
Thank you for your cooperation
Mohammed,
I do not sell PlasmaCAMs, I’m just a customer. If you would like more information you can head over to their Web site at Plasmacam.com. Good luck,
John
We received our PlasmaCam about 3 weeks ago. After some tweaking and trouble with the parallel port (who still uses these?) we are finally up and running. We purchased this mostly for personal use, but we will plan on selling a few pieces here and there. How are most people pricing their items? It is difficult at this stage to factor in time and consumables, since we don’t have that much experience.
John great points and info, I am going to have say I have had my machine for 6 months now and I honestly hate it. It may be user error, but most of my work is automotive related alot of 3/16, 1/4, 3/8. I tried cutting some 1 inch once which is why I bought it. and that screwed the settings on the machine up so bad I had to completely start over and reset every thing. I have the Thermal dynamics 101 cutter attached to mine. I really have no issue with the port setup all though dated. I have trouble just getting a decent cut on anything. Just basic shapes I can not get a 90 degree cut it is always beveled. when I cut holes for brackets the top side of the hole is always larger then the bottom side. If I cut anything intricate what so ever it blows it all to peaces. I can honestly cut what I make, drill it and clean it up faster by hand. I have slowed the cut speed down to a crawl and I still get a beveled cut. I have talked to George a few times and nothing has made me think the almost 13000 dollars and hours and hours of trial and error remotely cost effective at this point. I really could use the time savings I was looking forward too. The production runs on things I thought I could walk away from and do something else isn’t going to happen. as the constant baby sitting is really annoying.
Sorry for the rant really frustrated with my machine it is not at all what I thought I was getting.
Sean,
The issues you are describing with the beveled edges do not sound like a problem with the PlasmaCAM machine. If the machine is actually moving in the pattern dictated by the computer, and it is firing the torch, then it is doing the only job it was designed for.
In fact, I can only think of three things which would cause this:
Do not slow the cut speed down beyond the manufacturer’s recommended cut speed for the material thickness you are cutting (check the torch manual). That will burn out a torch tip as quickly as anything else because once the material is pierced the arc will wander to the side and ruin the tip.
To summarize, you can ruin the tip by moving it too slow, or coming in contact with the material. So check and recheck your settings!
Good luck, and sorry to hear about your problems.
John
We have a Plasma Cam as well and have some welding & fab experience. We are wanting to sell our Plasma Cam, interested? Will let Plasma Cam (without computer) go for $9900 including software, & discs for artwork. Ready to sell, just collecting dust and only 2 yrs old. Frustrated User by Tulsa
I am interested in buying your machine. Please email me at ignatious@nwtec.com.
I’m so glad I came across this blog! I have received my PlasmaCAM DVD last week and have a quote on a machine. I live in Ontario Canada so I’m sure I’ll pay hefty for the shipping and duties, but at least the dollar is good these days! :)
I’ve been researching all the other companies and I feel like I’m going in circles when one company says how poorly the other company does ‘x’ or ‘y’ (not the axis!). So I decided to go back to the PlasmaCAM because a) it was the first one that popped up in my google search and sometimes you really should stick with what you thought about doing first in the first place, and b) I’m only a hobbyist and really don’t need or want a machine that can leap tall buildings! (Don’t mean to make a light of this – but the forums and comments can really scare you and your blog and explanation of the sales video and your own setup has really helped me think again about PlasmaCAM).
I am not a machinist but do know about computers and drawing packages. I have had a quick lesson on plasma torches and welding (and yes I’ll be getting more instruction). But my question is this – because I’m not experienced with cutting and welding, would I still be able to do this? John’s comment was as follows:
Can’t I learn? I just wanted to clarify this so I know whether I should proceed with purchasing a table or just put this absolutely great business idea on the back shelf :)
thanks
Pat
Pat,
I’m so glad that my experience could be of help to you, and the others who have stopped by. I never would have guessed that so many people would be interested in this, so I’m glad I actually documented everything as I went along.
To answer your fundamental question, “Can’t I learn?” The answer is a resounding “Yes! Yes you can!”
The biggest hurdle to using the PlasmaCAM that I’ve seen comes when people have no computer aided drawing experience. If you’ve already got that, then you’ve overcome the hardest part. However, you should not underestimate the difficulty of learning to weld and use a Plasma torch.
I am one of those guys who is ridiculously handy. I can build things from wood, work on cars, fix a toilet, cook dinner… but when I went to welding school I found myself extremely frustrated and it took months to begin to feel comfortable.
There are a lot of little details about Plasma torches that make them very, very finicky. There are parts that wear out which you can literally burn out in a fraction of a second on first use if you do something wrong. You wouldn’t even know you did it by looking at it sometimes! You also have to understand HOW they work and what settings are required for different materials.
All I can do is share with you the process that was successful for me. If you’ve got $15 grand burning a hole in your pocket and you are a compulsive gambler then run right out and get you a whole setup! But in my opinion, you should go get some professional welding and plasma cutting training before you do that.
Find a local college offering welding courses and sign up for a semester. You’ll find out if this is REALLY something you want to do before you pull the trigger.
I hope that helps!
John
Pat
I too have a background similar to yours. If you would like email me at bowman@pghpa.us and I can send you a few things that helped me.
joining newsgroups has been a big help.
mark
A little late for me to read your posts. I bought a plasmacam with no experience in CAD or even computers but can weld till the cows come home.
I cannot get my machine to do anything because i can’t understand the instructions on how to get started . I crashed it so many times I’m afraid to use it. Three years of it just sitting is not worth it, too bad there is no start up tech to help you familiarize with the machine.
I had computer geeks laugh at the port cable on a new machine. They even tried to get it running and give up. I really could use help getting it running, I know it has potential. $16,000 later with everything computer, Miller Spectrum375, Ingersol Rand rotary compressor, and the easy to use PlasmaCam.
Frustrated
I travled to Colorado City to see one of the Plasma Cam working. It was demonstrated by one of their techs. Very impress with how simple it was to run. Good quality cuts & simple to learn program.
New shop now being built to accomidate the machine by the end of this month.
I have been doing sign work for 15 years & this product will fit in nicely.
Bob Hines HINESIGNS
Nova Scotia
Bob,
I’m glad you enjoyed the trip. It is indeed a great machine, but if I were you I’d seriously consider the new 8′ version of the table. It would be most appropriate for a sign business in my opinion.
Take care,
John
you might consider raising the carriage as much as possible and mounting the torch as low as possible. make sense?
email me before you give up.. or call Alliance Metal Art 989.948.2008
Interesting thread. I work closely with a shop that has a Plasmacam for about 6 months and while it basically works now after 3 control boxes and a lot of head banging, it is a very fragile machine not built for any kind of real production work. It is basically a minimalist machine built for hobbyists. The Plasmacam at the shop won’t last long as they use it to make real parts. The bearings are very small and run on raw steel. Nothing is shielded. Dirt gets into everything. No provisions for a water table – big mistake. Cutting straight non beveled cuts is a challenge probably due to poor grounding through the chintzy table. Sure it is light weight – there isn’t much there. The shop is looking at replacing their table with a production style machine. They have well over $10K into the machine and the money should have been put towards a much better machine. The Plasmacam is the Yugo of plasma tables. It’s cheap, it runs for a while, and then you get to replace it with something that will last. Cheap yes, good value no.
Oh one more thing. Blow your control box after warranty is up and prepare to send them $3500 for a new one.
Dave
hmmm… well. again, I’ve had my PlasmaCAM for over a year, producing parts for some major players in the area. I haven’t done any head banging at all.. I’ve cut well over 10,000 parts since I setup my new shop. It’s definitely not a turnkey operation. I haven’t had ANY trouble with my control box. Anyone who does any plasma cutting knows that it’s a DIRTY JOB. Routine maintenance and cleaning of any tool in a metal shop is required. The PlasmaCAM is no exception. I use a downdraft exhaust system for the fumes and dust. Grounding isn’t a problem for me anymore since I created a copper mesh which helps incredibly. The $10K spent? well.. I spent $9300 and it was delivered to my door. I find Dave’s comments to be quite naive to this system. Once you actually learn how to use the table and create solutions, this system is great, and like they said in the video.. IT MAKES ME MONEY. The only real problems I’ve had have been nickel and dime parts. It’s actually quite obvious that “Dave” expected to flip a switch and start counting the dollars.. Like any other system, you have to take care, LEARN, and use your experience to solve the problems. Each and every time I’ve ever had a problem with this machine, the tech crew at PlasmaCAM worked out the issues with me. They’ve always been very helpful and prompt at returning phone calls. Also, since your team there has blown 3 control boxes, it’s quite obvious they didn’t read any of the instructions.. especially the part that COMPLETELY WARNS YOU ABOUT GROUNDING THE TABLE ITSELF. If you don’t ground the actual table, you WILL DAMAGE YOUR HARDWARE.
think before jumping to conclusions… and if you’re serious about fabrication and production, you’ll ignore the ignorant comments from a very apparent newbie to plasma cutting and fabrication. Compare the prices and construction of other tables and you’ll find that PlasmaCAM is NOT a cheap table, and it’s completely capable of large scale jobs. In fact, the only REAL problem I’ve had with this system is running out of steel.
oh and P.S.
PlasmaCAM – $9300 and change
Air Compressor – Kobalt (made by Snap-on) 60 gallon, 10.8 SCFM @ 90PSI – $549
Computer system – AMD64 3400+ ..my own personal machine – $2300
DIY Exhaust System – $250
parts and art pieces made – over 10,000 in a year
happy customers? – 12 / unhappy customers? – 0
is it worth it? you bet your can it is….
I couldn’t agree more. People need to realize that doing any of this is like riding a bike or driving a car.. you can’t just hop on a bike and instantly start riding.. you can’t just hop in a car and know everything there is to know about a car or traffic…
most of the negative comments on this blog are very obviously coming from people with little or no fabrication experience that expected they could just push a button and go.
hello…
i enjoy your blog,, very helpful at times…. ive been making a living for about 6 years off of my plasmacam, and love it…. at least 100,000 pieces cut and still going strong…… reading some of the post makes me think, tis a poor workman who blames his tools…. yuve gt to learn how t use this thing… it doesnt run itself…. but when it is running, it can be like a printing press, printing dllar bills……
i am looking for a source fr plasmacam bearings, and parts,,, and also a cpy of the specs for calibrating the machine….
ps….. also looking fr a key board that dnt have a sticky “O” buttn
regarding the marketing video, its like watching an ad for a brand new car,,, it shows it cruising down the road at a distance,,,, looks so simple,,,, but if you couldnt drive, you wouldnt be jsut jumping in and be flying down the road,,, you have to learn to operate a car,,, and also learn the car itself, before you would be cruisin…..
John,
I know what you mean about a sales video. I used to run the PlasmaCAM machine our company had. We bought it for the same reasons… compact. After getting the machine, I was extremely pleased with how easy it was to set up and use. I did have an advantage though. I had taken CAD courses in the community college long before I ever got the machine. To this day, I am still happy with that machine. Like you , my only drawbacks are the lack of USB support and software upgrades (although the software is very easy to use as is!). I have a friend who is thinking about buying a PlasmaCAM and I am trying to sell him on it as hard as I can. (Hope you are listening PlasmaCAM!) Smoke is definitly a problem that has to be solved by the user as well as the size of the Plasma Cutter.
I now operate an OMAX waterjet and a large Multicam Plasma cutter. The OMAX is truly a great machine to use. The MultiCAM… well lets just say I was much happier with the PlasmaCAM!
Tip ups are always a problem with cutting machines. The best solution is to add small tabs to hold the pieces in until all the cutting is done (by now I a, sure you know this). This is not always necessary, but good planning can prevent wasted materials.
Just keep communicating with the user groups and they will teach any new user a lot.
In conclusion,
For the money and size, The PlasmaCAM is the best choice!!!
Richard
John you did a good job with the review. I have had a PlasmaCam for 3 1/2 years and have done some complex shapes. I have been very happy with this machine. I import my stuff from cad program. I have done a small amount of drawing from within the program it leaves much to be said. I think it is about the same as AutoCad which is hard to learn. My machine has saved me time and money i use to buy all my cutouts from the local steel warehouse and had to wait a week. Now i do it all myself. As for cutting thickness PlasmaCam says 1″ is the thickest yuou can cut. I have a Miller Specturm 1000 80 Amps i can cut 1″ but the machine will only pirece 5/8 materail so you have to keep that in mind.
I would really like to see this product functioning before I consider moving to the next stage of my research.
Can anyone provide a name and contact method for a PlasmaCam owner/user in the Reno, Nevada area?
I agree that the machine is great, The people a plasma cam are helpfull.
The manuel is almost useless. I have the machine in my high school metal shop and trying to keep it going in that enviroment is difficult with the level of students. If you want to cut out an piece that is already on file its great. Try and draw something and your their for hours.
I was initally struggling with the software with regard to doing drawings, i actually prefer to use the plasmacam software as opposed to solidworks, once you have figured out ways to size or make some item to particular shape you have to approcach it methodically and by using lines and midpoints with circles, copy lines etc you can draw pretty quickly, i would use solidworks if i was making a machine or item that needed to bolt or weld together as a assembly, but for one off odd brackets the plasmacam is pretty good.
I’ve had a Plasmacam for more than 7 years. In reading this review I can remember back to my own learning curve. Owning a PC can be very frustrating at first but the is a very bright light at the end of the tunnel. Here’s my 2 cents: Join the Yahoo PC group and read read read. Insist on being able to visit w/a present owner to speed up the initial learning curve. If you call PC for help, speak w/George only! As frustrated as you might be, don’t be a whiney dick to him. He’s a very good guy who cares. Make friends w/aPC owner like me and ask lots of questions.
I do welding and fabrication. For me the software is awesome. I use a Hypertherm 900 and I’d strongly recommend this company for product quality and cust serv.. There is not such thing as “set it and forget it” you baby sit these things and that’s the way it is. Don’t use drag tips. They don’t work. Most of all, you have to understand that these machines (like so many other machines) have a marketing “sweet spot” where they are of the most value to potential custs. Your job is to find a version that fits your style and go with it.
I would sell every other piece of my welding equipment before I sold that PC.
First off, love this blog. I am a metal shop teacher and looking at buying one of these machines. This website is the most useful one I have found so far. If you wouldn’t mind, I would appreaciate you emailing me so I can ask you a few questions. If anyone else has opinions on this machine rather positive or negetative, please email me as well. mstauth@usd266.com. Before I spend this much money, I want to make darn sure this is a wise investment. Thanks, Mark
Well I must be the only one who has had problems with this piece of crap; in the two years I’ve owned this thing I have had to replace the control box twice ($500 a pop). I had to buy a new computer, parallel port cable plus the new 1.2 version, even after all this the first time I try to connect I get an error signal from the Plasma-cam software. I have struggled for two days after my regular job to troubleshoot this thing so I call Plasma-cam to ask for tech help I am told that I have to pay $200 for tech help for 90 days. What a load of SHIT!!. I have had enough. I am looking for someone to help me get this thing running so I can sell it. I can be reached at MillerWeldMach@aol.com
I must agree with you miller!,
After i had plasma cam send me a video on how it work’s & how simple it look’s to use, i purchased this machine. Let me say to you all out there before you buy. This machine is very complicating, you need to have experience in computer skill’s & cad drawing. There is also alot of problem’s with this machine. You can be hour’s & hour’s on this thing, let alone the money you will be spending on sheet’s of metal just to practice on. My machine is sitting here doing nothing & will be putting it up for sale, it’s still new & only done demo time. Thanx. Nick.
Thank you for all the info. I am just getting started and I have no plasma cutting experience or welding experience (my hubby does). I have taught myself quite a bit but I know I have tons to learn. I will be visiting your site often and posting my questions. Thanx again. Karen
I just started cutting and I’m having a prob. with slag in some spots, clean cutting in others on the same piece. Also, I can’t figure out how to connect the start and stop point. I’ve changed some settings but one piece cuts out fine and another piece won’t. Can somebody give me some pointers? Thanx. Karen
So I have seen the PC 180/mo pricing scheme but i can’t find the bottom line price on it. How much do one of these cost?
Hey John P., I may have some helpful information to keep the pieces from falling in or sticking up. I ran and programed a waterjet for a few years, and it has the same problems. However, the parts just don’t fall on the floor, they would fall into a three-foot deep tank of water, sand, and other sharp cutouts. To solve this problem, we set the lead-in / lead-outs a 1/16th to an 1/8th inch apart to keep the parts from falling in or out. Later, we would just by hand break the parts loose and finish the edges, since you have to anyways. I thought this might help. :) -Jesse J
OK, I’ve done some MIG welding in the past and would like to purchase this machine. I have taken a business program at the local college and would like to start a home based business. I’m not looking for exact figures but would like to know how long it took plasmacam owners to get a full time business established and approximate incomes to look forward to.
Is this better suited as a hobby, part time, or full time business.
Any and all experiences with the plasmacam, good or bad, would be appreciated!
I can be reached at: predatoryarcher@yahoo.ca Thank you for your time!
To anyone who is thinking of purchasing a plasmacam, might want to do there home work very carefully.
I can think of alot of other thing’s where you can spend your money on than this machine. If you live outside of the USA & somthing break’s on this machine, you are up shit creek, cost you & arm & a leg to replace part’s. When your warranty run’s out, you are on your own, or if you call plasma cam they charge you a ridicoulous fee, what a joke!!
Just a quick thank you for your time and effort. I am in the beginning stages of looking at these machines and the information you have provided is incredibly helpful.
I am looking for someone in North Carolina or surrounding area that has a plasma cam that I can come watch and learn. If anyone can help please email me at rfarrington@triad.twcbc.com
HOWDY, HAVE PURCHED A USED PLASMACAM , LIKE NEW , NEED HELP , ANYONE INTERESTED IN A BARTER, LESSONS FOR A VACATION IN PUERTO VALLARTA,MEXICO , MAIL ME —-RON
I’m in Denver and I’m a customer – not a buyer. I need to have shapes cut out of approx 3/16 steel for a prototype I’m working on
If you can help or direct me please email Peter at Finboats@Gmail.Com
Thanks!
Just wanted to let you know that I really enjoyed your comments and input about the PC Table and it’s Demo Video. I sold my older PC unit a couple years ago due to relocating across the States. However, I just purchased another used but newer model PC DHC table and believe me, I find it a bit more time consumming and fustrating to get started up and cutting. Looks like one has to set the metal thickness into the program setting and then do alot of additional checking and setting insertions just to get the machine to start cutting. Believe me when I say that my older model table sure didn’t take so much wo get started and I’d be willing to trade this newer table for the older model anyday. And yes John, you are so right about the flaws and hidden scenes in the video, but just remember everyone, it’s also just a sales pitch and one should view the PC Table in action before purchasing one. But I must add, that I do enjoy and would prefer the PC over other models. Now that I said this, I would like to add that I am a bit confused on inserting the new settings needed to get the right commands to make the newer model table to cut, or should I say “continue to cut”. I am using a Miller Spectrum 2050 cutter on a 2 yr. old table. It makes the first cut just fine but the torch does not drop back down to the correct Peirce Point Height on the following cuts, and I have to return to the settings and redo the settings. This newer model needs “Arc Voltage Shift’ settings, ect. that are confusing me. If anyone out there is using the PC table with the Spectrum 2050 cutter and can advise me with a few hints, I would deeply appreciate it. Having a printout chart of the material thicknesses and the settings I should be using would be a great help for me to get used to the new program. Please email RWARDLL@dobsonteleco.com for your information. Thanks to all & may God Bless.
Correct me if I’m wrong , but I believe they use a parallel port because it is capable of high speed real time BI directional communication without buffering. If they used usb and most certainly WIFI there would be information buffering that would cause the system to either stop or get lost while cutting.
Much the same as trying to play a game online like Call of Duty, by the time you decide to shoot the guy in front of you you were already dead 2 seconds ago.
USB uses the same 2 wires to send and receive information, there for does not do both at the same time. The PlasmaCam system probably does not store any movement commands in the PlasmaCam controller it relies on the computer for that.
i have experienced everything you have commented on in the blog. my problem at hand right now is that i installed the new software update and now my serial port will not communicate with the controller. any ideas?
I have a friend that bought a pc because of the video. He no’s nothing of computers so he has asked for my assistance.
I am learning the ins and outs of the program and have enfoyed reading all the comments on this blog.
My question is on setting cut speeds and torch heights for different metal thicknesses? If anyone has a chart or anything that would help I would appreciate any help or advise, contact me at davidmichel06@charter.net
Thanks in advance.
I have a Plasmacam I bought used. I have never been able to make it work on a consistent basis. Usually it doesn’t work properly. It consistently forces the torch head up because the z-axis goes too far down. Then it wont cut or the bottom of the carriage drags the work around. Or worse it pulls the carriage off of the gantry. The software is garbage and the manual is a joke. In short the machine is piece of junk. I hate it and I’m sorry I bought it. One more thing I called plasmacam to get some info and they wouldn’t even talk to me unless I paid them $500. I would never recommend this thing to my worst enemy. DON’T BUY ONE. If you want any more info from me please don’t hesitate to ask. Jim
Jims comment made me chuckle as I bought used and went through the learning curve. I did not give up.
The best resource out there is the “owners only” well moderated site http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Plasmapig
Jim’s problem is the Curse of Zed as I call it. For a year I cut with the DHC box unchecked and manually set the height Do not use “sense material to set height” at all. Bring the tip down to contact the plate, lower slowly using the rotary knob, and click the “Z shift” button. You will get a number like .432
Then set your “arc voltage shift” number at 1.6. NOW INITIALIZE THE TABLE.
When you start to do a test cut it will pierce and then the torch will pull up and away from the work.
Now go back and change that number from 1.6 to 1 or .87
Initialize, and do another test cut. Your torch will pierce, and pull up a little bit. Now you know you are on the right track. Keep lowering the arc voltage shift until the cut height is correct for you. Always initialize after every change of arc voltage or Z shift change. Record that number and it will be a starting point for you every time you cut that thickness of metal.
Would I ever buy another PlasmaCAM?
Yes. Would I steal or kill to get the money to do so? Maybe….
Gerry
Hello Folks
We have a Plasma Cam which is up and running fine, their many tricks to learn and we have some tricks of our own, which you have to learn on your own, we can help with what we know everyone take care and happy cutting
Ty
pleased i found your site/blog i was repeat was thinking about getting the plasmacam. but with all the probs you pointed out i will leave well alone.
BTW John, Pcam has updated their software..I am on version 3.04. Nothing too radical, but it is an upgrade.
The connectivity thing is in need of addressing, but wifi with all that stray RF? I suggest a CAT5 and shielded cable.
I use mine for everything, why cut and grind and hope it fits when I can sit down and draw it and it come out perfect?
I wish to use this machine with a router to cut “engrave” signs in wood. plastic, aluminum, copper and brass. Will it and the software do what I want?
Hello!, my name is Ana Lucia Estrada, the last year I inherit a plasma cam machine. But I never see it worked. I want to continue the project that my cousin did before he died. I have the manual and the video of plasma cam. I already installed the machine, I only need a compressor air and the filters. But I´m scare to run the machine, because I never have work whit machines like that. I study Forestry Engineer, I worked whit some machine but are not like plasma cam. Can You help me??? Do you have more tips, that I have to now before running? You can contact me anluese@hotmail.com Thanks.