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Plasma cutter for under $300!!

djberta

djberta

Ultra Member
Premium Member
djberta said:
OMG buy this. Its on sale as well. Just cut stainless with it like butter.
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Wow! Not just on sale, but also $100 coupon. Some models have a lower coupon but still - under 300 for a half inch plasma cutter is pretty damn good. Will it cut aluminium? Of the models listed, which one makes the most sense?
 
Susquatch said:
Wow! Not just on sale, but also $100 coupon. Some models have a lower coupon but still - under 300 for a half inch plasma cutter is pretty damn good. Will it cut aluminium? Of the models listed, which one makes the most sense?
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I have an older one then the one posted and I have cut lots of steel with it, even painted. When I say lots, I'm a hobbiest so likely not that much for the shop guys. Just cut some stainless on the weekend. I've cut up to 1/4" but my friend has the same one and cut 3/8" on his welding table build. Just so nice to not have to use a zip disk or oxy set. The worst part for me is I can not cut very straight as I have a bit of tremor but it cuts quick and pretty clean when set right. I can give it a try on aluminum tonight when I get home from work?
 
Susquatch said:
Wow! Not just on sale, but also $100 coupon. Some models have a lower coupon but still - under 300 for a half inch plasma cutter is pretty damn good. Will it cut aluminium? Of the models listed, which one makes the most sense?
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I know, at $211 I'm tempted to just yolo and give it a try lol

Looks like it has pilot arc/hf start too which is nice.
 
djberta said:
OMG buy this. Its on sale as well. Just cut stainless with it like butter. Cut steel all the time and have had no issues.. Thickest I have cut is 1/4". Mine is 2 years old and still works great. I have only run mine on 220v. I have plans to make a small cnc table but that has been for on my project list for two years so not going to happen any time soon.
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What is the CFM requirement? Says approx. 8.8 CFM in one spot, and 2.5 CFM in another.
 
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djberta said:
I have an older one then the one posted and I have cut lots of steel with it, even painted. When I say lots, I'm a hobbiest so likely not that much for the shop guys. Just cut some stainless on the weekend. I've cut up to 1/4" but my friend has the same one and cut 3/8" on his welding table build. Just so nice to not have to use a zip disk or oxy set. The worst part for me is I can not cut very straight as I have a bit of tremor but it cuts quick and pretty clean when set right. I can give it a try on aluminum tonight when I get home from work?
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Assuming nobody chimes in to answer the question, if you could I'd really appreciate it. It's not that I don't cut steel, it's just that I also cut aluminium and it would be nice to know that it can do that.

I hear you about steady hands. At 78 I shake like an oak tree. Plus I can't see worth shit anymore which really affects my ability to cut with OA and weld.

I'm also a bit worried about the CFM requirement. I don't have a big huge compressor.
 
Do I read correctly that it only wants 250lpm/9cfm? That's tiny.
 
Susquatch said:
Assuming nobody chimes in to answer the question, if you could I'd really appreciate it. It's not that I don't cut steel, it's just that I also cut aluminium and it would be nice to know that it can do that.

I hear you about steady hands. At 78 I shake like an oak tree. Plus I can't see worth shit anymore which really affects my ability to cut with OA and weld.

I'm also a bit worried about the CFM requirement. I don't have a big huge compressor.
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I will do both steel and aluminum when mine comes to see how it does. As for the eyes/hands, just use a guide?

PaulL said:
Do I read correctly that it only wants 250lpm/9cfm? That's tiny.
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I'm not worried about air requirements as I have a 60 gallon 5hp ingersoll rand 2 stage compressor, but will see if it's an air hog or not.
 
That's a smoking deal for $211. I have a Cut50 blowback start for my CNC plasma and it definitely consumes more than 9 cfm.
 
SomeGuy said:
I will do both steel and aluminum when mine comes to see how it does. As for the eyes/hands, just use a guide?

I'm not worried about air requirements as I have a 60 gallon 5hp ingersoll rand 2 stage compressor, but will see if it's an air hog or not.
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I don't want to wait for a review. It's on sale now with a coupon now. Waiting would be silly.

Air needs is a bigger issue. I have a small portable compressor and there is no way in Hell that I'm gunna get a bigger one. I'm slowly getting rid of all my air tools in favour of battery. And I hate painting of any kind let alone spray painting so...... No new bigger air compressor on my list. I fact, if I get that Dewalt 20V tankless compressor that I put on my Xmas list, even my small 120V portable compressor will get sold or given away.
 
Susquatch said:
I don't want to wait for a review. It's on sale now with a coupon now. Waiting would be silly.

Air needs is a bigger issue. I have a small portable compressor and there is no way in Hell that I'm gunna get a bigger one. I'm slowly getting rid of all my air tools in favour of battery. And I hate painting of any kind let alone spray painting so...... No new bigger air compressor on my list. I fact, if I get that Dewalt 20V tankless compressor that I put on my Xmas list, even my small 120V portable compressor will get sold or given away.
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I would not get a plasma cutter unless you have a good air supply.
 
Susquatch said:
I don't want to wait for a review. It's on sale now with a coupon now. Waiting would be silly.

Air needs is a bigger issue. I have a small portable compressor and there is no way in Hell that I'm gunna get a bigger one. I'm slowly getting rid of all my air tools in favour of battery. And I hate painting of any kind let alone spray painting so...... No new bigger air compressor on my list. I fact, if I get that Dewalt 20V tankless compressor that I put on my Xmas list, even my small 120V portable compressor will get sold or given away.
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Fair, I'm sure they'll go on sale again, so for anyone down the road considering one, we'll have another data point on it...but for anyone jumping on this deal, well, I guess it's luck of the draw.

As for air requirements, I'm sure even a 2 gallon little tiny compressor could run one, but only for a handful of seconds...it will really come down to how long you need to cut something without waiting. I suspect though, just looking around at the reputable brands, most are requiring more CFM than any 120v compressor can provide (usually above 5cfm).
 
SomeGuy said:
I suspect though, just looking around at the reputable brands, most are requiring more CFM than any 120v compressor can provide (usually above 5cfm).
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My little compressor says it does 3.3cfm at 90psi. The specs on the plasma cutter say it needs 8.8cfm at 90 psi. But I'm old. I'll prolly need more breaks than the plasma cutter would and I generally set the small tank to 125psi and it recovers pretty fast. Maybe frustrating for others, but I'm willing to try.
 
Susquatch said:
My little compressor says it does 3.3cfm at 90psi. The specs on the plasma cutter say it needs 8.8cfm at 90 psi. But I'm old. I'll prolly need more breaks than the plasma cutter would and I generally set the small tank to 125psi and it recovers pretty fast. Maybe frustrating for others, but I'm willing to try.
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How big is the tank on your compressor?
 
My little compressor says it will do 5.7 cfm @ 90. I have never found another that will claim that, or that this one can either. It is an Iron horse I bought around 15 years ago or more from House of Tools. Keeps up ok with smaller air tools, but not my MAC 1/2" impact and runs out quick with the air die grinder. I would love a larger compressor but limited space/money keep me from getting one. I don't know that the compressor would be able to keep up to a plasma cutter for very long. @Susquatch let us know how yours does.
 
DavidR8 said:
How big is the tank on your compressor?
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I'd guess 2 ft3?

Screenshot_20241209_140159_Chrome.jpg

But I have a much bigger tank I could put in the line if that isn't enough.

I took a leap of faith and ordered it. Not many left in stock. Waaaay too good a deal to ignore. Worse comes to worse, I'll return the plasma cutter. But not without playing with my air supply first.
 
Susquatch said:
I'd guess 2 ft3?

View attachment 55696

But I have a much bigger tank I could put in the line if that isn't enough.

I took a leap of faith and ordered it. Not many left in stock. Worse comes to worse, I'll return the plasma cutter. But not without playing with my air supply first.
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Yeah, that's not going to work for a plasma cutter. They consume huge amounts of air.
For comparison sake here's some info from the Primeweld site about their Cut50:

"The PrimeWeld CUT50DP air pressure is pre-set at 4.5 PSI and requires a flow rate of 6.0 CF/M.

The volume capacity of your compressor is important. If you have a small compressor with exactly the same CF/M rating as the plasma cutter, then the compressor will run continuously when you are plasma cutting. A compressor with a CF/M rating slightly higher than the plasma cutter would be more adequate. If you are doing a lot of cutting, cutting thick plate (same air consumption but slower cut speeds = longer cut time), then choose a compressor at 1.5 to 2 times the plasma system requirement."


Adding a bigger tank is sort of a solution but when the bigger tank is depleted, it will take ages for the pump which is sized for that tank to refill a larger tank.
I tried this by adding a second 20 gallon tank to my 20 gallon Speedaire compressor. Yes, I had more air but it took twice as long for both tanks to refill negating any benefit. I eventually bought a 60 gallon upright.
 
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I would guess that is a 2 gallon tank. Mine is a 4 and has the two tanks stacked. Like DavidR8 said, I tried a 4 gallon portable tank in line with mine, it helped extend the air I got for the short term, but not for continuous air supply.
 
The plasma I have doesn't use that much air. Actually one of the things to do first when you get one of these plasmas is to turn the air supply down to 60psi or less. Don't cross 60 psi as the fittings have failed above that. Mine also has the separator build in to the back. Depending on thickness of cut a small compressor should work for these units. I have a fairly small compressor and it works fine. Again depends on how thick or long the cut. I also got the one deal for the consumables. Its definitely not to the level of the shop level units but it has served me very well for the last two years.
 
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