Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2016 January 15

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January 15

plasma cutters.

I'm interested in modifying a typical hand-held plasma cutter (Something like THIS ONE, for example) so it can be computer controlled to turn it into a CNC plasma cutter. I know how to make the X/Y motion and all of the other bits and pieces - but I'm not very familiar with the actual plasma cutting part - so I have some basic questions:

1. What kinds of voltage/current does the trigger switch carry?
2. Does the trigger also switch the air supply on and off?
3. Is there any significant delay between pulling the trigger and the plasma being able to start cutting metal?
4. Is there any delay between releasing the trigger and it shutting off?
5. How wide is the 'kerf' (the slot that it cuts)?
6. How fast are the consumable tips used up?
7. In order to do this, I think I need a "no-touch" system. Are there any disadvantages of these over the other kinds?

Anything else you can think of that might matter here would be worth knowing!

SteveBaker (talk) 16:09, 15 January 2016 (UTC)

5. A reviewer of that product here [1] says that the kerf is 1/8 inch. SemanticMantis (talk) 16:54, 15 January 2016 (UTC)

Here's [2] the official product manual/spec pamphlet from Lotos, hosted by Amazon. It gives a range of 3-12 mm kerf, depending on material composition and thickness. SemanticMantis (talk) 17:02, 15 January 2016 (UTC)

Be careful when working with extremely hot gasses. KägeTorä - (^影_虎) (もしもし！) 13:18, 16 January 2016 (UTC)

No kidding! We're pretty experienced with CNC machines - we have a couple of laser cutters and a CNC milling machine. So we have plenty of respect for the potential dangers. Hence the research. SteveBaker (talk) 18:32, 16 January 2016 (UTC)