plasma advice plz

[dan.taylor.1]

Gordon, ditto on the earth though I've not braved doing it yet as its still under warranty! Might get the dealer to do it. I didn't know they had a filter built in, I just use one on the airline.

 

[gordon stephenson]

I believe the filter is one of those that drains any water away when you disconnect the air line, and the little poppet valve closes when pressured up, Why Hypertherm use such a horrible stiff wire for the work lead i just don't know, When the main cutting lead is a quick connect fitting,

 

[the snooper]

I believe the filter is one of those that drains any water away when you disconnect the air line, and the little poppet valve closes when pressured up, Why Hypertherm use such a horrible stiff wire for the work lead i just don't know, When the main cutting lead is a quick connect fitting,

my Clarke is the same, I couldn't see one on that machine from the pics

 

[gordon stephenson]

Its inside the casing, as far as i know its a filter/regulator, its under the pressure adjusting knob.

 

[ned]

Dan thanks, thanks, phew, looks good so )

Gordon, its really early right now and I'm too dim to understand the advantages of a dinse connector, can you explain to a dullard please?

Though it is strange that the earth is sooo skinny when every other lead is so oversize.

Guys, i have three tools now that id be very upset if they were robbed. This, my welder and a festool track saw. It seems to me that it should be possible to fit a small battery powered tracking device inside the unit and tap into the power supply to charge it. Have any of you heard of such devices? I wonder are they available for just such a purpose...

 

[ned]

i just copped the dinse connector thing, its for reach to the workpiece is it? The earth didnt look as long as the torch lead.

 

[skotl]

Though it is strange that the earth is sooo skinny when every other lead is so oversize.

There's not as much current leaving a plasma cutter as there is a welder; if it's a 50amp cutter then imagine the cables on these €60 little 50A arc welders - the cables only need to be that spec.
The torch feed is thicker than the return/earth because there's an air line in there, plus an ickle cable for the trigger.

 

[skotl]

fit a small battery powered tracking device inside the unit and tap into the power supply to charge it. Have any of you heard of such devices?

There has been discussion of these things in the past on here - I think it was to do with motorbikes if you want to do a search.
I recall the consensus was that they were not much cop - keeping them powered and also keeping the SIM activated (they use a mobile phone SIM, but you have the challenge of using that SIM once every ~60 days, depending on contract, for a chargeable call, otherwise the telecom operator cancels it).

Better with a (several!) big strong lock and some insurance...

 

[Robotstar5]

Build yourself a sitebox bolt it down and don't forget to lock the grinder inside!

 

[ned]

yah okay I like that idea, thats a good idea and a worthy project!

Alas, I have a li-ion battery grinder, do criminals? they usually arent the smartest bunch are they

 

[gordon stephenson]

Ned, I cut the return lead and fitted the dense straight connector ( male and female) to make the machine easier to put away when i had finished with it, I have also made up a new return lead from some good flexible cable that will lie flat on the floor instead of the stiff Hypertherm one that just won't behave it self,

 

[ned]

ahh I see yes, very good.

 

[cumbriasteve]

Alas, I have a li-ion battery grinder, do criminals? they usually arent the smartest bunch are they

If you are ever locked out of a building and scratching your head wondering how the hell you can get back in, want to guess which bunch will know the answer

 

[ned]

well it works.

I'd never used one before i tried it this evening. I watched a lot of vids, but something that kicks out that much sparks, I was nervous about.
I wonder is the grinder more of a fire hazard.... i dont usally worry about sparks from the grinder, whereas I was kinda paranoid about the sparks from the plasma. Both are outdoor activities I think.

the compressor and the plasma together keep blowing the 13 amp fuse to my sheds power supply.

I started the cut on low amps,and turned it up after a bit. The process certainly is more impressive looking with the amps turned up.

 

[Shedendman]

You'll still be getting the grinder out to clean up the edges,when theres a need

 

[skotl]

well it works.

I'd never used one before i tried it this evening. I watched a lot of vids, but something that kicks out that much sparks, I was nervous about.
I wonder is the grinder more of a fire hazard.... i dont usally worry about sparks from the grinder, whereas I was kinda paranoid about the sparks from the plasma. Both are outdoor activities I think.

the compressor and the plasma together keep blowing the 13 amp fuse to my sheds power supply.

I started the cut on low amps,and turned it up after a bit. The process certainly is more impressive looking with the amps turned up.

Good stuff they're impressive machines, aren't they?

It will be the compressor tripping the circuit breaker (I'm assuming you don't mean old-fashioned fuses actually blowing?) when it kicks in, rather than the plasma cutter.
Get your electrician to fit a "C curve MCB" in place of what will likely be a B curve. You can tell because it will have B16 (assuming it's a 16A breaker) written on it.

 

[T0rnado69]

glad to see it works NED ....... great bargain you got there.

ive set my bin on fire with sparks from the plasma.
ive also set my self on fire ( fleece ) twice with sparks from a grinder.
sure keeps you warm on these winter day's LOL

Get your electrician to fit a "C curve MCB" in place of what will likely be a B curve

i had to change my B to a C because it kept tripping the breaking because of the planer thicknesser.
that was a while back now.
though the next upgrade was changing from just a ring main fed from the house's CU, to a sub main.
so now i dont trip the house's MCB's or RCD..

and thats a big relief from the kids...

 

[ned]

thanks man )

I have a question regarding turning the amps up or down - what are the advantages of turning them up or down?

It seems to me (I've used the machine for all of 50 seconds) that I might as well just leave the amps jacked up all the time?

 

[gordon stephenson]

I usually cut a max of 6mm, so set the machine for 30amps, works great,

 

[ned]

guys I'm wondering, does it matter if I just drag cut the whole time, is that alright, or will it affect the life of the torch bits?