PRLdrag240

I haven't posted in here too much yet since we've been getting our new shop up and running but i thought i would share this bit of fabrication with you guys.

I started building our 5x10 plasma table for our shop last week. we have a hypertherm powermax 65 that it will be controlled with candcnc.com electronics. we're using 1018 CRS for the long axis rails and a hiwin 30mm rail for the short axis along with a k2cnc.com z axis for torch height control. we're also using cncrouterparts.com for the gear drives and their rack clamps. once the table is up and running it's going to be fully boxed in as a water table with the storage tank built in and controlled by air pressure to raise and lower the table.

the gantry design is pretty similar to the Torchmate 2 or the precision plasma gantry design. however all of the brackets i drew up myself to work with the different pieces we're getting from the different manufacturers as well as all of the dimensions of the table i designed. i figured why build the parts myself if there are already companies out there making them and selling them for a great price, like the K2 z axis and the cnc router parts gear drives. all of my brackets for the gantry were cut locally on a waterjet. Hopefully i'll have it up and running by the end of the week.

anyway, the pics, sorry they are crappy iphone pics. feel free to comment or ask questions

Boosted_B_Series

Wow, that looks great, excellent work!

Do you save much money building the frame your self?

Thanks for taking the time to post it.

DK

SQ is the SQUAD

been wanting to do this too. how much would you have invested in parts?

PRLdrag240

thanks! you save a ton building the frame yourself, especially if you want a water table like this is going to be. we priced out a torchmate 1 kit, which is nowhere near as nice as this and it was over $7800 just for the kit, and you still have to buy the steel and build your own frame to use it on, the gantry design was complete crap, and you still had to buy a plasma cutter and computer to run it. my design here is using the 3x3 aluminum extrusion and a precision linear rail for the short axis which is way above and beyond what torchmate gives you.

there are other companies out there that sell the gantries but even they are way overpriced for what you get.

total i have into it to date is 6500 + the plasma cutter which was 2800. obviously, with a smaller table like a 4x4 you could do it way cheaper and also go with a cheaper import plasma unit, but we built this to handle our needs as well as last a long time.

SQ is the SQUAD

please update this. I AM KEEPING MY EYE ON IT. ID LIKE A 5X10 TABLE. i dont have 8-10g to drop right now, but i can start pondering ideas for the future.

Golfball

heck yeah. thats what me and my boss build just on a much bigger scale.. our max cuttable areas only about 4 foot by 4 foot.

SQ is the SQUAD

the table is migged together correct?

PRLdrag240

yeah, it's just all mig welded. there is no way i would spend the hours it would take to tig the whole thing together.

PRLdrag240

i finished the table up a little while ago, but haven't been able to post any updates lately since we've been busy at the shop. it's been working great, but there's a few things i would change if i built another one. all said, it was a pretty fun build, and will be a very valuable asset to the shop. here's a few more pictures of the build along the way, and then some videos of it cutting.









First Video of it cutting before i added the water table underneath--click to see it.


second video with the water table, notice how much less smoke there is.

jmusser15

How is your K2 z axis performing? Looking at getting one. Also, did you use the rack clamps from cncrouterparts, were they easy to install and set up on a steel frame?

PRLdrag240

the k2 z axis...ehh...i don't know, for the money, you really can't beat it. but...it really needs to have a 2 start lead screw in it for faster rapids and the biggest problem with it is that it needs a way to counterbalance the torch. the weight of the torch and cables makes it extremely too heavy to do any kind of touch off on thin materials. it ends up smashing the material flats against the slats before triggering the switch. when it raises up to pierce height the material just ends up flexing back up. i'm working on a counterbalance system for it to make the weight of the torch neutral so it can actually do a real touch off.