Hello wise forum. I have seen a few kits that help your existing plasma cutter turn into a plotter / CNC machine? I'm not sure where to start. I'm happy with my cheap Harbor Freight plasma, just looking to do a little more accurate fab work. I'm mildly computer literate and could ***emble it if it came in kit form. I do not have an extra computer laying around though. Has anyone done this? Any advice is appreciated.
I bet the garage journal has threads on this exact topic. Should be a link at The bottom of the page if your not already familiar
A member had a post going a few months back on how he built his. What parts he used, etc. I lost track of the thread and don’t know if he finished posting all the info.
These guys make some home sized and priced units you add your own plasma to. From what I have seen on other forums they seem to be well regarded. https://www.langmuirsystems.com/crossfire
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/2-x-2-cnc-plasma-table-build-in-installments.1277585/ This is the thread I mentioned. I didn’t look through it to see how it ended
buy a dell optiplex mini i5 win11 it ---------- go on u tub and search illustrator cs2 download -install make sure its working. ---------- down load sheetcam tng demo Downloads (sheetcam.com) ---------- download mach 3 demo Newfangled Solutions Mach3 (machsupport.com) join the mach 3 forum. ------------------------------------ what you might have seen is a guy converting a little laser cutter into a plasma. hmmmm -------------------- buy automation parts FIRSTLY - you cannot plasma a 3 axis style cartesian chinese table as the ball screw runs up the middle of the bed - not ideal. you cannot see through the bed - but the 'ba;lscrew is up the middle under the bed - not really plasmatastic, however this would work \/ Precise Ballscrew CNC Router 3-Axis Machine Pre-***embled Kit | eBay the hardest part of it all is making the gantry system. next, the elastic trickery first buy 6 of these Short Spring Plunger Actuator Enclosed Limit Switch AC 240V 5A 190459741453 | eBay buy sheilded cable for these limit switches moving on to the motors a realatively new thing is closed loop stepper motors and drives now you need 4 because you are having a up down z axis =1 a side to side cross beam axis, the y axis and the main axis, its called the x axis, BUT you are having an extra what is known as slave axis 'A' with its own motor abd ball screw so you need 4 motors 4 drives - drivers power supply for the motors and drives AC 220V DC 36V 15A 20A Adapter Power Supply Transformer Switching for Led Strips | eBay a mach 3 controller with 4 axis and NOT THREE ---------------------------- closed loop motors and drives are really quite expensive nema 23 - 2.3;; motors x4 NEMA 23 2.8A 127oz-in Stepper Stepping Motor Great for DIY CNC and CO2 laser | eBay nvem 4 axis controller 4 Axis NVEM CNC USB Motion Controller 200KHZ Ethernet MACH3 f/ Stepper Motor『EU』 | eBay tb6600 drives x4 TB6600 Driver Single Axis 4A Stepper Motor Controller 9~40VDC CNC Drive Module | eBay 36v 15a switching power supply AC 220V DC 36V 15A 20A Adapter Power Supply Transformer Switching for Led Strips | eBay e stop switch eec ch***is plug box for electronics 4 wire motors, you dont need 8 wire motors for plasma if using the network version of that card, you have to connect it to a switch, and not direct, crossover cable wont work either, pc needs to be a server, ip ***ignment cobblers the wireing of controller to drives to motors to psu is easy illustrator - page set up to cut area export as dxf into sheetcam convert to g code c++ basic open in mach3 cycle start you take one of these bolt solid aluminium 80mm by 15mm around, add ballscrews, amke a y axis, buy a z axis
The Jalopy Journal
