Plasma cutter for Beginners Tutorial
Here’s my My Plasma Experience And Knowledge so far. People Who Know The Work Of Plasma Cutters Are Able To Make Really Very Valuable And Amazing Works Of Art. Of Course, You Will Be Able To Do That, When You Discover The Working Principle Of The Mechanism Itself.
Like Everything In Life, Nothing Goes Overnight, So It Takes A Little Patience And Good Practice, Looking For A Solution, I Came Across The Fact That It Is Actually Better To Go Step By Step, And Not Rush With The Procedure.
It Is Enough To Learn Little By Little Every Day, How The Days Go By, And You Study Carefully, Knowledge Will Be Acquired Over Time, And You Will Be More And More Confident In Yourself, And When You Look Back, You Will Be Amazed At How Much You Have Actually Progressed.
What I Want Is For You To Become A Better Metalworker And Learn To Use A Plasma Cutter. So Don’t Worry When We Go Through The Complete Guide For Working With A Plasma Cutter.
Even If You Know Nothing About This Mechanism, I Assure You That You Will Have Solid Working Knowledge. All You Have To Do Afterwards Is To Apply It In Practice In An Adequate Way, Which We Will Cover in this Tutorial.
Do I Need To Buy A Plasma Cutter?
Plasma Cutter And Its Settings
Complete Work Process With Plasma Cutter.
Machine Adjustment
Placing Objects
Protection
Beginning Of Work
Adjusting The Cut Itself
We Start The Machine
Finally
Consumables
Which Plasma Cutter To Buy?
Which Plasma Cutter Should I Use In The Field?
Conclusion
Most Frequent Questions And Answers
Why We Need A Plasma Cutter
Mechanism And Its Settings
Complete Operation With Plasma Cutter
Consumables Material.
Tips For Good Shopping
Before The Very Beginning, I Suggest You Take A Look At My video - Plasma cutter for Beginners, “How Hot Is A Plasma Cutter“, Precautionary Measures.
When We Learn, “How To Use A Plasma Cutter“, We Must Know How Dangerous Working With It Can Be If We Do Not Adhere To Safety Measures.
That Is Why It Is Important That We Take All The Necessary Steps, To Protect Ourselves.
Do I need to buy a plasma cutter?
At The Very Beginning of time, I Used A Grinder And A Band Saw For Metal, Until One Day I Came Across A Plasma Cutter.
Then I Decided To Explore In A Little More Detail “What Is A Plasma Cutter” , And When I Discovered How Efficient It Is And How Much It Makes Everyday Life Easier, I Decided To Afford One Of Them And To My Great Surprise I Got More Than Expected.
Having A Plasma Cutter Is A Really Great Thing, It Will Save You A Lot Of Time And Effort. Once You Start Cutting With A Plasma Cutter, You Will See How Exciting It Can Actually Be And How Easy It Is To Handle.
All The Tools You Have Used So Far For Cutting Metal, You Will See That They Are Useless And Difficult To Work Compared To A Plasma Cutter, Thanks To It It Is Possible To Cut Different Types Of Metals, Different Dimensions, Of Course Depending On The Strength Of The Machine You Choose.
So If You’re Ready Let’s Go Explore A Little Plasma Cutter, And What Are All The Types Available On The Market
Plasma cutter and its settings
From My Personal Experience Overall The Plasma Cutter Is A Simple Machine. With The Basic Ordinary Manual Model, It Has Its Own Torch Electric Inputs And Gas, Which Is Very Important To Know That The Plasma Cutter Needs A Supply Of Dry Air.
If You Want To Be A Hobbyst, Plasma Cutters In General That Are Very Popular And People Buy Them Are Those That Work At 110 Or 120 V And That Is A Pretty Good Choice, As These Models Are Available Almost Everywhere.
Because This Type Of Plasma Cutter Is Extremely Portable, However 110v Plasma Cutters Have Their Limitations, They Are Mainly Used For Cutting Thinner Things.Like Prochrome, Copper And Aluminum, Of Course You Can Cut Some Other Thinner Types Of Metal.
For A Thinner Type Of Metal, I Recommend This Model. See More
So, All You Have To Do Is Adjust The Air And Connect The Machine And You Are Ready To Go, The Next Thing You Need To Do Is Simply Mark The Metal And Start Cutting.
When Cutting Metal, You Have To Keep In Mind That Most Plasma Cutters Need 220v To Be Able To Cut Metal Thicker Than ⅜ Inches Or More, Of Course, In Most Cases It Also Depends On The Plasma Cutter.
Complete work process with plasma cutter.
When You Are Ready To Use The Plasma Cutter, Make Sure Everything Is Plugged In And Ready To Work, Of Course Safety Comes First.
If We Are In A Closed Space Workshop We Have To Open The Windows, In Order To Get Air Ventilation.
To Prevent A Fire, We Must Eliminate All Flammable Substances That Are Nearby.
Machine adjustment
If Our Machine Needs Outside Air, We Have To Connect The Line Immediately, If The Machine Compresses Its Own Air, We Have To Check If The Unit Is Connected To Electricity, Also To Check If The Manometer Is On And If Air Is Generated.
The Machine Will Have A Certain Air Pressure For Optimal Cutting, Be Sure To Check The Instructions.
When We Start To Reduce The Air Pressure, It Will Drop, But Don’t Be Surprised, It Is Completely Normal And It Is Actually Expected.
When You Release The Shutter And Stop The Reduction, The Pressure Returns To Any PSI You Selected And The Meter Displays The Current PSI.
Placing objects
We Put An Object That We Will Cut (Metal) In A Vise, On Saws Or Fasten It To A Table, Check The Current.
Adjust To The Material We Are Cutting, If The Metal Is Thicker, Many Machines Will Usually Have 50 AMP, Like These
What We Need To Pay Special Attention To Is That When We Cut Metal, We Need To Check Where It Will Fall, So That It Does Not Fall On Us Or On The Cable.
The Place Of The Cut Is Cleaned With A Wire Wheel Or A Grinder To Bare Metal
We Need To Draw A Line Where The Cut Goes, With Metal Chalk, Or Any Other Marking Device You Have.
Attach The Grounding Clamp Of The Plasma Cutter To A Piece Of Metal That Will Remain Stationary After Cutting.
Protection
Let’s Put On Our Protective Gear.Work masksGood Eye Protection, It Is Best To Have Shaded Goggles Or A Welding Helmet, Gray Shades.
Begining of work
We Connect The Plasma Cutter And The Air Hose, Check If Our Machine Receives Energy And Air.
If All Is Well We Are Ready To Work.
We Take The Torch And Align It By 90 Degrees To Our Work Piece.
Aligns The Body With A Piece Of Metal, So That We Are Furthest From The Sparks, To Have A Clear View Of Our Cut, And To Protect Ourselves From Falling Metal After The Cut Itself, Because It Is Extremely Hot.
Adjusting the cut itself
The Next Thing We Check Is Whether We Can Move The Plasma Torch, Through The Entire Range Of Motion Of The Incision, So We Don’t Have To Change The Middle Incision.
Flip Down Your Plasma Hood
Position Your Plasma Torch Slightly Off The Piece Of Metal To Prevent Blowback If Possible (This Will Not Be Possible If You Are Starting A Cut In The Middle Of A Piece Of Metal)
We start the machine
We Press A Switch Or Button On The Burner, And Make An Incision Using A Light Built-In Range Of Motion.
It Is Important To Note That We Monitor The Speed Of Travel, It Is Easy To Determine Whether You Are Moving Too Fast Or Too Slow, If You Are Moving Too Fast, Sparks And Dirt Are Flying Towards You, The Operator, If That Happens, It Means You Are Going Too Fast.
We Have To Travel Slowly, Not Force The Machine, At Some Point You May Notice An Uneven Cut.If You Move Too Slowly, You May Have Room For The Torch To Wander Left Or Right, Which Will Result In Uneven Cutting If You Do Not Use The Guide.
Travel Speed Is Correct If All Dirt And Debris Falls To The Floor.
We Continue Until We Hear The Metal Hitting The Floor, So You Will Know That The Process Is Complete, If In Some Case It Has Not Separated, You Will Need The Help Of Hammers.
At The Very End, We Have To Let The Metal Cool Down Before We Lift It Off The Ground, Because It Is Very Hot, The Small Pieces Are Much Hotter, If You Haven’t Looked, You Can See Here How Hot The Plasma Is.
The Next Thing To Keep In Mind Is That If You Are Just Starting Out Or Planning To Cut Metal.So The Rule Is That The Thicker The Metal, The Slower The Speed,If You Move Too Fast Like Me In The Beginning, You Will Not Achieve A Thorough Cut, So It Is Important To Follow The Work Of The Machine Itself, And Not Force It.
Consumables
As With Welding, Just As There Are Consumables, So The Plasma Cutter Has Its Consumables, But Mainly With Plasma Cutters The Main Item That Will Change Frequently Is The Tip Itself.
But That Is Not The Case With All Brands, So Some Plasma Knives Are Designed So You Have To Buy Their Tips.
While Others Come With Generically Designed Tops That Are Available At A Much Lower Price
This Is Just Something You Need To Keep In Mind When Deciding Which Knife To Buy.
Which plasma cutter to buy?
So Far We’ve Covered A Few Facts About The Plasma Cutter Itself, Its Settings, And How The Plasma Cutter Is Actually Used (How It Works), Specifications Now Let’s Shift Gears And Talk About Which Plasma Cutter To Buy.
To Make Your Decision Easier, You Can Find Various Types Of Plasma Cutters In The Shop, I Even Sorted Some Models At The Price I Recommend, From The Cheapest To The Most Expensive, See More
If You Are Wondering Which Plasma Cutter To Buy, You Must Know That Everything Depends Exclusively On You And Your Needs And Projects (The Purpose For Which You Plan To Use It).
You Need To Set Yourself A Clear Goal For What You Need A Plasma Cutter For, What You Plan To Do With It, Whether You Want To Buy It For Artistic Purposes, Or For A Specific Job, Or For Field Work.
Which plasma cutter should I use in the field?
As You Can See There Are A Lot Of Plasma Cutters On The Market, There Are Different Types Of Brands, The Best One Is The One That Will Finish The Job, The Prices Range From The Cheap Ones From $ 200 To $ 3k.
Of These Cheaper Models Most Have Solid Performance And Can Finish The Job Without Any Problems, But If You Are One Of Those Who Have A Deeper Pocket And Want A Serious Machine, With Which All Jobs Will End Without Any Problems, Then This Is The Best Choice. See More
Basically To Summarize, For Field Use You Will Need A Machine With 15 ‘Or 20’ Lead.This Is Because With The Help Of Such A Mechanism, You Will Easily Get A Job, You Will Easily Be Able To Connect Air And Electricity.
Conclusion
We Have Come To The Very End, I Sincerely Hope This Guide Has Helped You, In This Guide We Have Covered The Science Behind Just Behind The Plasma Cutter.
Getting A New Tool Can Be Really Exciting, Now See How Much A Plasma Cutter Is Necessary For All People Involved In Metal Cutting Or Some Production, It Will Save You A Lot Of Time And Open Up A Lot Of Possibilities For You.
And Opens Up A Lot Of Possibilities When It Comes To Building Everything Related To Metals, Keep In Mind That Even Today You Can Have Your Own Plasma Cutter, There Are Many Brands And Models On The Market. But For Less Than $ 700 You Can Get A Good Machine, Of Course For A Start, Over Time You Will Buy A Better Plasma Cutter As You Progress.
FAQs
Most frequent questions and answers
How Does A Plasma Cutter Work Step By Step?
Plasma Cutters Work By Sending An Electric Arc Through A Gas That Is Passing Through A Constricted Opening. The Gas Can Be Shop Air, Nitrogen, Argon, Oxygen. Etc. This Elevates The Temperature Of The Gas To The Point That It Enters A 4th State Of Matter.
Can You Use A Plasma Cutter In The Rain?
Unless You Use It In Pouring Rain (When The Trip Would Probably Go First) I Can’t See A Problem. Quite The Reverse.
The Fumes Are A Bit Chokey And Best Not Breathed.
Will A Plasma Cutter Cut Rusty Metal?
The Plasma Cut Cleanly And Quickly Through 1/8 Inch Metal, Just As Simple As Drawing A Line. … Plasma Can Cut Any Electrically Conductive Metal Including Stainless Steel, Mild Steel, Aluminum And More, Without Pre-Heating. Plasma Is Also Great At Cutting Painted, Dirty Or Even Rusted Metal.
What Air Pressure Is Required For Plasma Cutting?
So How Much Air Does A Plasma Cutter Need? Air Requirements For A Plasma Cutter Will Require About 4-8 SCFM Delivered At 90-120 PSI. This Will Cover Units That Are Intended For Up To 3/8″ Thick Steel To Large Units That Can Handle 7/8″.
Can You Cut Wood With A Plasma Cutter?
Any Thickness From 30 Gauge Through 1 Inch Can Be Cut, Depending On The Plasma Cutter Used. … Plastics And Wood Are Not Electrically Conductive And Cannot Be Plasma Cut. However, You Can Use A Rotary Saw, Router, Or Other Tool If You Want To Cut These Materials In The PlasmaCAM Machine.