Anything welding

You know, your welding is much better than you give yourself credit for

 

Oh for sure. I highly doubt tig would have even held the container weight at a stand still. Mig doesn't play around. super strong.

Learning everyday buddy! Got a lot of mig tips from you!

 

@koditten

Worked on the Steelers sign I mentioned in the email I sent you.

I started with a freebie a guy posted on internet. He said he "never tried to cut it because his grandson lost interest". Man, trainwreck. Literally every dimension needed work. All the gaps in the fonts were too tight. There were numerous shapes with open perimeters and overlapping lines that were not connected. The connecting points between the cutouts were too thin...

I spend 3 hours trying to make it right. May have been quicker to start from scratch. Anyway, I will try to cut it tomorrow evening after a final, non-glassy-eyed review.

Fixing other people's mistakes is definitely teaching me a lot about Fusion 360. I'm sure the first run will end up being scrap metal, but hopefully only that first one.

 

Is metal really expensive out there for ya?

I ask cause I'd be cutting tons of stuff (and making scrap out of it while learning) if I had a cnc plasma table.

 

I am mostly using 18 gauge for any signs. Right now, it's about $3.00/sqft. I tell myself "that's less than relatively cheap carpet", and I feel okay about a little scrap.

 

I've ran into that a few times myself.

I find if it's too incomplete,I just use the image as a pattern and just do my own trace.

I'm getting pretty fast with the spline line feature in f360.

My question, once I do a trace, does that become my product?

My traces resemble some copywriter logos, but there are imperfections that are not in the original.

 

Ahh ok

I ask cause there's a shit ton of clean steel from sheet metal (pretty sure its 18 gauge) up to 1/2" in the remnants piles and it'll go for about $1/lb.

I don't buy any cause they're too big to fit in the LC and they won't cut a large plate.

 

I've been grabbing old stoves, washers, dryers off the side of the road on trash day. The flat panels work awesome for practice pieces.

I was worried that the enamel paint would stink real bad, but it doesn't.

The plasma blows the paint/iron fumes right into the water pan.

It doesn't stink any more than just cutting clean iron.

In other news, up here I was quoted $85 for a sheet of 18g.

I was also quoted $77 for a sheet of 16g. I was told that the 16 was hot rolled, so it was cheaper. I was surprised at that.

 

Forgot to mention, I put the reject pieces in the old washers, then haul them to the road. Someone grabs the washer carcasses with my scraps.

I took a load of scrap to the scrap yard a month ago and got $75. I'm not wasting an afternoon for $75. Some other scrapper can have my scrap.

 

As far as trace vs product, I may not have good advice. I only used trace once just to learn the process. Are you Extruding it after you set it up? That really helps with selecting cutting path and simplifying G-Code. I don't use "Finish Sketch", I just Extrude and it does both. Helps see immediately if there are any areas that are not going to cut out.

Also, for text, make sure to right click and Explode Text. That ensures it will cut out.

My imperfections have been mostly related to lead-in/out parameters and cutting on inside vs outside of the loops.

For the 18 gauge, I have found these setting to work best. I have used 2mm on the lead-in and also had good luck, especially with text. Default is 5mm.


Not sure if this will help you, but I am still feeling my way through this as well.

 

Our local scrap yards are "liability sensitive" about letting people come in to buy scrap. I get a little from the place I buy my stuff, but they have preferred customers getting most of it.

 

I learn everytime I use the thing.

I do extrude after I trace and F360 says that I'm constraint. I have mine set to highlight my traces in black when I finish sketch. It won't let me extrude unless my image is constraint.

At that point, I tell the extrude command what thickness I'm extruding too. Once that's done, I head to the manufacture tab and do a new setup. Since I told it my thickness back in the design tab, f360 knows what to set my speeds at.

I do have to edit my plasma cutter in the tool tab if I'm using a tip that is nearing end of life.

Like you, I'm learning the functions as I go.

That change your axis feature is giving me fits presently. That's my next hurdle.

 

With your extrude, it shouldn't matter if the sketch is fully constrained or not - it's probably not letting you extrude because the sketch has an open profile - i.e. somewhere two lines are not actually meeting. What's giving you fits? I spend a TON of time on Fusion... let me know if I can help!

 

@Chux an idea for you for when you get the container up on the VT property

 

I wish I could TIG weld this good. We made the roller and had another shop weld it. 4” O.D. stainless.

 

I about cried when the torch dropped on an open bench and hit the only metal object within range.

 

If something happens, even if it's your fault, Prime Weld will take care of you.

 

Thats a Furich fupa cup. Just need the glass thankfully. Unless they will buy me a new one for being stupid.

 

I might have my definitions mixed up.

I thought constraint meant that the sketch was fully closed off.

I'm aware that you can't extrude unless the lines are met up. Believe me, I have had to zoom waaaay in to find where my lines did not meet up. One time it took me an hour to find the missing points! I was losing my mind!

 

You don't have the market cornered on stupid shit.

I was cutting up a scrap trailer frame with the plasma torch. Cut a section of frame, it pivoted down and cut the torch lead. of course it was not near the torch end. $280 for a new 25' torch feed line.

Welcome to my club...

It's not really that exclusive ...