Can I afford a beveling cutting head? 5 axis?

[weldersandblaster]

Hi Chris,
The Langmuir videos are really short, I think most are several minutes long. I think I recall going thru those in an evening. Arnold's videos are a bit longer, and he has drawings to print out for each lesson so it makes it easy to follow along. If you haven't already done so, I would highly recommend that you print them out. I think I did about 3 or 4 of his videos an evening. But after each video, I would attempt to create the assigned drawing/model on my own. Then go back and watch the same video again until I could do it on my own. Did the same for all of his tutorial videos.

After that, I found some other drawings/models online that I could print out and work on. These were generally more complicated than Arnold's tutorial examples. I think I did about 20 of the additional drawings for practice. I will see if I can find them and post them here.

Good luck!
David

Interesting. At about the 7th hour of studying, I made some mistake in a drawing, and while trying to find it, and focusing super diligently, my mind just shut down and there were no more gains to be had, just wasting time. Like when you read the same sentence over and over and over, because it refuses to sink in. And after rereading it for the 15th time, you just finally acknowledge no more gains can be had this day, and leave, and go do something else.

I'll reread your posts tomorrow. Nothing else is sinking in tonight. My brain has locked me out.

[adbuch]

Hi Chris,
The Langmuir videos are really short, I think most are several minutes long. I think I recall going thru those in an evening. Arnold's videos are a bit longer, and he has drawings to print out for each lesson so it makes it easy to follow along. If you haven't already done so, I would highly recommend that you print them out. I think I did about 3 or 4 of his videos an evening. But after each video, I would attempt to create the assigned drawing/model on my own. Then go back and watch the same video again until I could do it on my own. Did the same for all of his tutorial videos.

After that, I found some other drawings/models online that I could print out and work on. These were generally more complicated than Arnold's tutorial examples. I think I did about 20 of the additional drawings for practice. I will see if I can find them and post them here.

Good luck!
David

Interesting. At about the 7th hour of studying, I made some mistake in a drawing, and while trying to find it, and focusing super diligently, my mind just shut down and there were no more gains to be had, just wasting time. Like when you read the same sentence over and over and over, because it refuses to sink in. And after rereading it for the 15th time, you just finally acknowledge no more gains can be had this day, and leave, and go do something else.

I'll reread your posts tomorrow. Nothing else is sinking in tonight. My brain has locked me out.

[adbuch]

4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth.dxf
4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth.dxf image.jpg

Do you have a simple black and white version? With no words on it?

I missed this before. So here you go.
David

4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth - no words.dxf

4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth - no words.jpg

[weldersandblaster]

4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth.dxf
4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth.dxf image.jpg

Do you have a simple black and white version? With no words on it?

I missed this before. So here you go.
David


4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth - no words.dxf
4 inch disc with 4 shark teeth - no words.jpg

Thank you David.

As you know, I am aiming at getting into manufacturing the shark's teeth, and adding them to an existing tool (which is still a secret), and selling them hopefully in a high quantity.
I saw your eBay store and the high-end tool kits you sell.
I may sell some on eBay which I'm familiar with as I've done a lot of selling on eBay. Years ago I made and sold the "jcv tow hitch" for 5 years until a Japanese company started copying and selling them at 1/3 my price and I quit.
https://www.amazon.com/alternative-groc ... op?ie=UTF8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE1GgcD2IE4

I made and sold about 5,000 of them over five years. That's what got me into the welding business I now have, which is where I found my real growth. They were a great stepping stone. But I couldn't make a living on selling the jcv tow hitches alone. But it was great supplemental income. I loved it. It bought me a lot of tools.

Once I started welding for the public, I discovered I have amazing problem-solving talents and the welding business thrived as long as I was able to be on the job supervising. I hired a lot of certified welders that could fuse two pieces of metal together, but had no idea of how to do a repair job or fabricating job. https://after-hours-welding.com/pages/w ... ation.html

And I later added sandblasting to my metal repair services https://jacksonville-florida-sandblasting.com/.

Then about 4 years ago it began becoming more and more difficult to find good help. Then it became difficult to find any help that would even show up.

Now I'm planning on shutting down the welding side where I work for the general public and fix their breakdowns or build their dreams. I no longer want to be on the job 8 hours a day to supervise a dunce to make sure he does it right.

I no longer want these types of jobs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BJlmwHdxII. This might be one of the most fascinating weld jobs you would never want to do yourself.


So shark's teeth is one idea for me to manufacture and sell out of my small shop. The advantage is it's not custom work that is always above my helpers level of comprehension and understanding. Also, because it's doing the same thing over and over, it's easy to train a helper to do it without them needing long term supervision.

And I had another invention I invented and built for my own use because one did not exist on the market. I've considered manufacturing it and selling it to the general public, but I was not in a good position to manufacture it without cnc plasma as it required a lot of drilling large diameter holes, in precise locations, in 1/2" thick metal.

Well, now those manufacturing limitations will be gone soon with a Crossfire. Once I have a cnc plasma, I'm sure I will find other unique things I will add to my manufacturing list.

So not only am I sitting here talking to a CNC plasma guy, I'm talking with a self-employed metal manufacturer which also sells his wares to the general public, which is pretty rare for me to meet someone like you. I'm sure this forum is full of people like us, but I never get to meet them in my little world.

So I'm going to keep you informed of the big milestones and highlights of my journey, so you can see how your influence is affecting the world.

I build a lot of neat custom things for customers, but once it's done and paid for, out the door it goes, and I never see it again. The enjoyment of my influence ends. I build a few custom things for myself I can't buy from other people, and I love those builds which pay me nothing, because I get to see them every time I walk out my door into my yard. And seeing what I built always brings a smile to my face.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKVxWBiH7R8 (you may want to fast-forward around quite a bit to just look at the build of my sand blast trailer) I built my own sandblasting trailer from the ground up. I turned it into the most efficient blast rig I have ever seen. 3 years later, I decided I wanted to add a 3,500 LB capacity crane onto a trailer that was never designed to hold a crane. How do you do that? No problem, just hire Chris. He can build anything. So I did.

Every time I see it, my face glows in a huge smile knowing I have what my competitors want, but cant have, and I do have.

You help people on this forum, and out the door they go. You probably don't get to see the effect your influence had, in the long term, so your smile is short-lived.

I will keep you updated of the more spectacular highlights of this new journey I am embarking on with cnc plasma. You will get to see the ripple effect of your influence, and hopefully it will bring you as many smiles as my custom blast trailer has brought to me.

While our paths have several similarities in cnc manufacturing, and knowing your way ahead of me, I'm curious what advice you might have to offer me as I head on down the road you've already travelled upon?

You have dealt with the speed bumps I don't even see coming my way yet.

Chris

[adbuch]

[adbuch]

backlash.jpg

[weldersandblaster]

backlash.jpg

Hi David. Sounds like there is a gap or slop somewhere in the drive train, and when it changes directions, it keeps coasting a little further until it slams at the other end. A little bang noise, at 0:19 and 0:23 to 0:24 , but I can't identify the direction change that makes the bang sounds. I'm just baffled what that noise might be? Was there someone else working in the shop out of camera view that might have been making some noise?

[adbuch]

Chris - I really never listened to the audio. I just did and I suspect the mic was just overly sensitive. Plasmacam DHC2, brand new, extremely low hours. There was no other activity going on in the shop. The buyer was very familiar with the Plasmacam DHC2 as he uses one at his work. He viewed the video and all the associated photos before he drove the approx. 1000 miles to pick it up. There was no slop or any other problem with the table. I bought it brand new in 2017 from Plasmacam to use exclusively for engraving. I would have kept it, but I am just running out of space here in the shop. Sold it several months ago for $7500 including computer, additional software, and roll around base. This was a great deal for the buyer.

David

[adbuch]

Chris - here is an example of the engraving I did on that table. If there were any slop, it would show up on something like this for sure. The Plasmacam DHC2 uses servo motors with encoders - in some ways more reliable positioning than open-loop stepper motors.
David

1940 ford enlarged.jpg

[adbuch]

Chris - how are you coming with your Fusion 360? Did your new Crossfire arrive yet? Inquiring minds want to know.
David

[weldersandblaster]

Chris - how are you coming with your Fusion 360? Did your new Crossfire arrive yet? Inquiring minds want to know.
David

That engraving looks awesome.

I started off doing great on studying F360. My monitor was big enough to have 1 window open, but while studying, I needed the youtube window and the F360 both open and visible at the same time. Since my monitor was not big enough to do that, I was constantly going back and forth from one window to another. After about 1,000 window swaps, from one to the other, and back again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, .......................................

I grew so frustrated, I decided it was time for a new monitor. So I dumped my 32" monitor and replaced it with a 65" monitor, since I sit 4 feet away from it. It took me a couple of days of research to select it, and then install it. It took another couple of days to tweak the monitor and computer so they played together well and looked good.

Then the chance arose to film and get some great video footage of the sharks tooth in action. So I did. Then watching it in action on video was so intriguing and satisfying, I decided to edit the video and remove all the crap and distil it down to amazing. That took a couple of days. Now I have my first commercial ready to go, but no table to start building them with. Oh! well.

Now I'm motivated to get back on studying F360 now that I can see both windows open simultaneously. A 65" screen is so much easier on my old eyes.
So, I've done no studying for over a week.

I wasn't planning on buying a table until I was done studying the software. I don't want to make a purchase decision rashly.
Now I'm wondering if the 25x33" crossfire is big enough? I have a set of crane forks I'm thinking of manufacturing also. And they could use a larger table. Mostly just for drilling large holes in thick tube. I'm thinking of making a jig that can set on the table, and hold 10 or 15 tubes simultaneously, and just plasma cut the holes fast and easy. Pull out the tubes, flip them over and put them back in, and cut the bottom side. Then take the jig off the table and I'm ready for sheets again.
Now I'm considering 4x4 or 4x8.

How often do you use your rotary tube plasma cutter David?
Why do you use plasmacam instead of some other brand?

Chris

[adbuch]

I would be interested to see you commercial.
David

[adbuch]

How often do you use your rotary tube plasma cutter David?

Chris

Not very often. It's just for hobby stuff like the candle holders I showed.
David

[adbuch]

Why do you use plasmacam instead of some other brand?

Chris

I was thinking about a diy approach, and then I happened to discover Plasmacam just by accident when one of Keith Fenner's videos showed up on Youtube. I did some research and was very impressed with the build quality and software. Actually Keith Fenner's videos convinced me to make my purchase. So I ended up buying two of the DHC2 tables, and a spare gantry, carriage, controller, and wiring harness to use for my tube cutter.

I have the Plasmacam Engraving Attachment, which I can mount on the same table I use for cutting. It was handy though to have a second table setup just for engraving.

Plasmacam is USA made and has been in business for well over 20 years now. It all depends on your needs and budget. Plasmacam also makes the Sampson 510 (5 ft. x 10 ft. cutting area) for those needing to accommodate full sheets on a regular basis.

[adbuch]

If you want to know more, I would suggest watching the Keith's entire "Getting ready for Plasmacam" playlist.
David

keith fenner.jpg

[weldersandblaster]

I would be interested to see you commercial.
David

I would love for you to see it. Would you be ok with signing a non disclosure agreement?
You already sell machined tools on ebay, and you could probably produce them better than me. And you have better tools than me to do them with.
Chris

[weldersandblaster]

How often do you use your rotary tube plasma cutter David?

Chris

Not very often. It's just for hobby stuff like the candle holders I showed.
David

If you decide to sell it, I might be looking for one in a year from now.

[adbuch]

Chris - email me the non-disclosure agreement and I will sign and return to you. As a practicing Mechanical Engineer/Electrical Engineer I have signed these many time before in conjunction with various clients I have worked for.
David

email: desert.hybrids@cox.net

[adbuch]

How often do you use your rotary tube plasma cutter David?

Chris

Not very often. It's just for hobby stuff like the candle holders I showed.
David

If you decide to sell it, I might be looking for one in a year from now.

The tube cutter is legally tied to my existing Plasmacam DHC2 table and cannot be sold separately. This is because the software license goes with the table (not the tube cutter). Plasmacam does offer the tubing cutter as an upgrade to an existing Plasmacam table - cost is about $2k.

pipe cutter.jpg

What I did was to purchase an additional (spare) gantry, carriage, controller, wiring harness, and a few other parts so I could have a stand alone tube cutter. Otherwise it requires removing the gantry every time you want to use their cutter, and then replacing the gantry when finished. I only did this once to figure out that the stand-alone was the way to go.

Current cost:

Plasmacam DHC2 - $9998 plus shipping
Design Edge upgrades (Advanced Design, Advanced Machine Control, and both levels of Advanced Height Control) - $4000
Pipe cutting attachment - $1995
Spare gantry - $1495
Spare carriage - $1695
Spare wiring harness - $300
Spare controller - approx. $3000

If you want the engraving attachment, then add $1295

Optional Design Edge software upgrades
Nesting - $998
Full 3D capability - $998
Customizable Size - $998

[weldersandblaster]

I'm afraid I can't afford plasmacam in the start-up stages. Costs like that, for me, are afforded after I have been up and running for 6 months or a year and income from the new venture is flowing in. But I do like learning everything I can know about everything.

Too bad we don't live closer to each other. I might sub out building of the sharks teeth to you. You seem fully set up for everything. Or maybe I would just rent a table from you one day a week? But, alas, you're on the opposite side of the universe from me. I live in st Augustine, Florida.

Oh, well. I've always wanted my own table anyhow. I will persevere. Just slowly in the start up phase though. But, the bigger the challenge, the bigger the satisfaction when I succeed in this new venture.

[djreiswig]

This smart guy is closer to you. I think about 400 miles. Maybe you can visit his shop.
https://www.plasmaspider.com/memberlist ... le&u=12881

[weldersandblaster]

This smart guy is closer to you. I think about 400 miles. Maybe you can visit his shop.
https://www.plasmaspider.com/memberlist ... le&u=12881

Brilliant idea. Thank you Djreisig.

And I've met Joe kind of. We've been talking through youtube comments on his channel. And he seems like the kind of guy that thrives on helping others, the same as David adbuch does.
I love that idea.
And I'm not sure if I ever met a man that didn't love showing off his shop.
Our tools are to us, what shoes are too women.

[weldersandblaster]

This smart guy is closer to you. I think about 400 miles. Maybe you can visit his shop.
https://www.plasmaspider.com/memberlist ... le&u=12881

I was wrong. Tom is not the guy I was thinking of. I guess I will have to message him and introduce myself.
Thanks again.

[djreiswig]

I bet you meant Joe Jones. I think he's in Kentucky.

[weldersandblaster]

I bet you meant Joe Jones. I think he's in Kentucky.

You are also being accused of being smart. You're correct.