Strange: torch goes up then flame out when cutting

[RAD]

What would cause this? just after piercing the torch would lift and flame out while following the path. this happened a few times while cutting 1/4" steel. I suspect something to do with the thc? I re-processed the drawing in sheetcam and moved the work clamp from the slats to the material and it cut normal.

Any ideas?

[WyoGreen]

When under THC, the torch is raised and lowed in response to the cut voltage vs the set voltage. So if the set voltage is higher than the cut voltage, the THC will raise the torch up to try and get the cut voltage to match the set voltage. If you are clamping the work clamp on the slats, it can affect the cut voltage, especially if the slats are dirty. While cutting you should watch the cut voltage. If it is significantly lower than book settings for the metal you are cutting, you need to figure out why. Causes could be poor work clamp conductivity, wrong voltage divider settings, or bad connections in the voltage sensing circuity.

Steve

[RAD]

Thanks. it wasn't just raising slightly but the torch would go way up 3+ inches and be on in mid air then flame out while following the path

Never had this problem when cutting 16g. I intend to keep the clamp on the material when cutting 1/4" from now on. anyone else had similar problems. I'm hoping it is only a conductivity issue with the work clamp and not my electronics.

[seajinx]

I had a similar problem with my table a few days ago. The Torch would pierce the metal then rise above the plate. Although it followed the path it wouldn't cut through the metal. Contacted Hyper-therm and they said the Torch Hose needed to be replaced and it was somehow not letting the required air pressure get to the Torch. I then called The manufacturer of the table and they had me check the consumable. What i found was, I had mistakenly bought a 5 pk of fine cut consumable. It was not compatible with my PM 85 set up. Changed to the regular 220941 and problem fixed. Just a thought.

[RAD]

Thanks, the problem never returned since i started attaching the work clamp to the material itself and not the slats, i even cut some 3/8" recently with great succes. For 1/16" I just leave the clamp on the slats tho.

[scottlane]

I had a similar problem with the torch going up and torch going out. I finally figure out that with a Thermal dynamics torch it has the torch tip and a tip cover that screws into the torch base covering and protecting the torch tip. On occasion when the torch would fire on a new cut a piece of slag would blow up and lodge itself between the torch tip and the torch cover. when the slag touches both parts it shorts the circuit out and the torch goes into anti-collision mode. Took a little whike to figure out but it always pays to check and clean the tips frequently. Just my 2 cents.

[jjenks]

I had a similar problem just days ago. I was Cutting hand saw blades with little success. I was trying to cut some decorative scenes into the blade for wall hanging junk. The torch would run perfectly on dry run, but when the torch lowered and lit, it would go out upon reaching cut height and continue the track as if it was cutting, finish the object, return to original position. Talked to Torchmate Technical, experimented by lowering the cut height, shortening drastically the pierce delay, and made sure to connect the ground directly to the cut piece. Worked, exactly which one or which combination, no idea, but tinkering with them helped. jjenks]