Hey everybody, my boss just picked up a cnc plasma machine and we are looking for parts to manufacture. i have tig and mig expierence and the table on the machine is 4x4. not looking to copy what alot of people have already done parts wise but if theres an idea you have that you would pay money for post the idea and the price range you think its worth. thanks!

 

People still use plasma ? I mean, other than for dismantling. I'd have to use a shovel to scoop te dust off my plasma cutter. Seriously, nobody uses that technology anymore.

 

cnc vvt valvecover

 

It's not a cnc mill, it's a plasma cutter.

 

Plasma cut me a valve cover with an ice cream maker

 

Last thing I did with my plasma cutter was chase mosquitos around with furious vengeance.

 

What do they use instead? Waterjet?

 

We use fiber optic lasers with auto loading rack systems but its a big shop. Something like this:

TRUMPF TruLaser 3030 fiber: Fast and Flexible - The Fabricator

 

I was thinking waterjet or laser, EDM I guess too.

Waterjet is nice because it doesn't need conductivity, so you can cut wood, lexan, etc. Cost wise, though, you can't beat a plasma cutter. The average person cannot afford a waterjet or laser cutter for their home (at least one that can cut anything significant), but a decent plasma table can be had for 4-5000 if I remember right. The slag sucks for welding but is doable.

In FSAE, we plasma cut our control arm mounting tabs, bell cranks, etc. We even plasma cut our uprights one year.

 

I've tinkered with the idea of this.

 

oh by all means you CAN use a plasma cutter, but the edge treatment needed post cut makes it really labor intensive. I used to use it a lot but lasers and waterjets have taken over the world. I have all of my stuff laser cut now, for the most part. Most places only chard 60-90 hr for cutting. Much less if you provide a DXF. The HAZ zone is MUCH smaller with a laser too. .00 vs .050" vs .5" in a lot of cases.
I have yet to see in person, a Plasma table that could cut without a lot of labor needed after. Ive seen $10,000 ones and $60,000 ones. They all sucked IMO.

Anywho, didn't mean to totally **** on this party.

 

Can cut carbon fiber too, if you've got the settings right at least. We used a waterjet to cut a bunch of stuff out of carbon fiber plates for our rover last year, pretty sweet.

 

Something like this?

B-Series VTEC Billet Valve Cover Project.. - Honda-Tech

 

Yea or the dsm valve covers. But for miata. With vvt. With all the ports.