577
edits
Changes
From Pumping Station One
CNC Plasma Cutter Vote 2022 (view source)
Revision as of 18:18, 26 October 2022
, 18:18, 26 October 2022→Have a Particular Machine in Mind?
=== Have a Particular Machine in Mind? ===
=== Have a Particular Machine in Mind? ===
Yes, the [https://tormach.com/machines/plasma-tables.html Tormach 1300PL].
====Wait, why this machine?====
I assisted with the assembly of our [[Tormach 1100 series CNC mill]] and thought it was well thought out in terms of design and assembly, and it's my understanding the machine has served us well. Because of these factors Tormach is a "known quantity" in terms of reliability and functionality.
====Hold up, this machine is smaller than our existing one!====
Yes it is. Relatively few projects required the full size of the existing table, and working with metal of that size is extremely difficult in terms of getting it on and off the table, as well as being able to monitor the job from all sides. The table size of the 1300PL easily supports 98% of the jobs I've seen people run through the years, and for the remaining 2% there are options such as working in sections and welding together after the fact, or hanging the material off the sides with appropriate supports.
====Wait, why this machine?====
====I went to the website, OMG that's expensive! I did some searching and found plenty of tables for less money, are bigger, etc.====
Yup, same here. I did a ''lot'' of research last year before attempting to roll my own, and found that most of the equipment was of similar build quality to our existing table, used funky proprietary software I'd never heard of, or a combination of both. At the end of the day we still gotta pick something, and I decided to go with Tormach because we already have one of their machines, in addition to being more "local" than other manufacturers.
====Isn't PathPilot (Tormach's software) proprietary?====
PathPilot is a fork of LinuxCNC. As a matter of fact, [https://forum.linuxcnc.org/pathpilot there is a dedicated section for PathPilot on the LinuxCNC's forum].
=== Why Should We Get This? ===
=== Why Should We Get This? ===
