CNC Plasma Table Build

I have the PTM-60 machine torch, that was just the hand torch that came with the machine it was easier to show the stand off ring on the torch..

 

Ah gotcha, yeah I have a

$699 CUT60 60Amp Non-Touch Pilot Arc PT60 Torch Plasma Cutter 110V/220V Dual Voltage 3 Year Warranty

CUT60 as well.

Have you done enough cutting to rack up a pierce count? Be curious to see how many you get with your refrigerated setup. I was averaging about 500 pierces per electrode on that torch setup.

 

I have not as of yet done any real cutting other than test cuts as I have progressed on the table, I need to get the final wiring on the control panel done, there was some crude work that was done so I could see the table work and keep the project excitement high, plus allowed me to isolated as many sections of the build as possible for testing purposes. It is a lot easier to trouble 1 or 2 issues than a dozen and have no idea where it went off the rails.

I also need to wire in the big compressor, the small one I have does ok for short test cuts but it would quickly run out of air for larger projects. then plumbing the air system with the dryer and filters is on that list as well.

I did pick up an assortment of consumables the original ones did not last long with my less than dry air I had, something I expected, but was ok with the shorten life just for initial testing for firing the torch and simple cuts.

next major item for the table itself is the water table and slats, for now it ahs been a couple sections of metal to hold the sheet while cutting, an a open garage door with a fan blowing the smoke outside.

 

The power supply is not all that I lost, tonight the Motion control board died, there is a internal short somewhere causing it to overheat. I found this out when trying to use my bench power supply, when I hook it up in place of the failed 5v power supply, it went crazy the board was drawing crazy high current for what it was and the power supply went into protect mode.

Not sure what went wrong previously, but it's getting expensive.

 

No likes!

 

Sucks, especially when it is unknown where and destroying other equipment.

I think I finally sorted my Z Home Offset and recorded it into my configuration. I thought I was good to cut then, but sorely mistaken. I am having issues fighting through the DTHC IV configuration now, but I guess all necessary.

 

I finished mounting the machine torch mount from langmuir systems.



I drilled an countersunk two M5 holes to mount to my Z axis.

 

new 5v dc power supply and control board showed up, got them installed an I can not get things to work as I expect, I am suspecting the Break out board is not triggering the outputs properly, I get them to come on by default when booting up Mach4, but that is opposite of what it should be. good thing this BOB is the cheapest to replace of the hardware that I have gone through.

 

while waiting for the new break out board, I did figure out that using the standoff for the hand torch does work as a contact probe for the machine torch probing.

I ground the the ends of the stand off down flush with the nozzle, and crudely wrapped the wire around the stand off before reinstalling it on the nozzle. and the initial testing, shows it to work.

A better method of attaching the wire is needed, something with a short pigtail wire with a disconnect to make changing consumables easier.

https://youtube.com/shorts/jj34AUbxiWI?si=qqGch9I6ANlQVkb8

 

You of course run with a good amount of post-flow right?

 

right now its set to a little over 30s

 

Ok, just asking for 2 reasons -

1. you want sufficient cooling after a cut session (or any cut for that matter) to keep the electrode especially cool

2. you want that post-flow to work for you as your torch moves from one cut to the next to clear any water that may give your ohmic sensor a false read

I run 45 seconds and it's normally recommended by most to run it for that long especially on the

$699 CUT60 60Amp Non-Touch Pilot Arc PT60 Torch Plasma Cutter 110V/220V Dual Voltage 3 Year Warranty

CUT60

 

I will bump that up a bit, thanks for the tip

 

I've never experienced it myself, but have seen on the forum and FB group of those fusing their electrode to their torch head

Sufficient cooling is needed, really for any plasma cutter

 

The control box is back in operation. Once again I need to clean up some wires, during the process of installing parts, I introduced a few problems that had me scratching.my head for several days.

Once I get it hooked back up to the table, I will.verify axis motion an home switches work as expected an test the touch sensor with the actual torch. I learn my lesson when the gantry broke itself during early testing. the E-stop is now wired up and working

I have put the THC on hold for the moment, there are a couple of things I want to cut.

 

I just can't wait to see this thing up and running!

 

Me too!

You gonna love having your own table!

 

Found something that will be useful for grounding the water pan to the table.

 

You mean work clamp