Cutting stainless steel

[jmsrbrt]

First off, it's amazing that you cannot search for "stainless" because it's too COMMON of a word, yet you CAN search for "stainl*" and pull up discussions.

But my question is...how do you cut stainless steel? And by that I mean, what amperage tips do you use, and what speeds? I'm trying, actually experimenting with 20-40 amp settings and speeds between 400 ipm and 50. I cannot get a clean cut. And the cleanup of dross is practically impossible.

[jimcolt]

Let us know what plasma, cutting machine and height control...and I'm sure we can offer advice. I cut a variety of stainless with my Powermax85 on a PlasmaCam (with height control) with virtually no dross and little secondary work.

Jim Colt

First off, it's amazing that you cannot search for "stainless" because it's too COMMON of a word, yet you CAN search for "stainl*" and pull up discussions.

But my question is...how do you cut stainless steel? And by that I mean, what amperage tips do you use, and what speeds? I'm trying, actually experimenting with 20-40 amp settings and speeds between 400 ipm and 50. I cannot get a clean cut. And the cleanup of dross is practically impossible.

[jmsrbrt]

Torchmate 4x8 table with ATHC, and a water table. Thermal Dynamics 51 (I think, might be a 52...not looking at it. Range is 20-30-40 amps). The stainless is 1/16th inch, 304 stainless steel. I have tried speeds between 50 and 400, the 20 amp setting, and the 40 amp setting with appropriate tips. Air pressure is around 75 (what it should be according to the manual on the TD), and runs through a dessicant dryer, a refrigerated dryer, and one of those filters with what looks like a roll of toilet paper (forget what you call it). Pierce height is around 1/8" and the cutting height fluctuates between 1/16th and a little higher. My ATHC doesn't react instantaneously, nor does it stay at a steady height above perfectly flat material. Also the water is maybe 1/2" or 3/4" underneath the steel.

Most of the time, although there are those occasional exceptions, the metal will melt through when the torch passes over it, then somehow backfill the cut with the molten metal. At this juncture, I would suspect not enough air pressure to blow the molten metal away. Very black, kind of looks like multiple little blobs or balls. Very hard to get off, but doable with the grinder and enough sandpaper (80 then 120 grit).

Any assistance you can give me would be greatly appreciated. I don't cut stainless very often, but there are those times when that is all the customer wants.