Cutmaster 52 WoW

[jimcolt]

Actually...the T-D units used to be built in the USA.......now the inverter power supplies are USA built (West Lebanon, NH)......the mechanized power supplies are imported from a company called Sanrex....and hand torches are built in Mexico! thermal laid off many US employees in the process of farming their business outside of the US.

Hypertherm...on the other hand are built in Hanover, NH, USA by employee owners of the company. Try out the Hypertherm Powermax 30 and Powermax 45......fastest speeds, longest consumable life...best cut quality! Hypertherm | Plasma Cutters | Plasma Cutting Equipment | Metal Cutting Equipment

This 3/8" steel part was cut with a Powermax 45.

 

[toy]

jimcolt the metal pieces that you show there shows a good cut quality. I am glad to hear that hypertherm is made in the USA. and it should be in big letters on the box the machine comes in and the machine itself. A lot of the products that are made in the USA had it in such small letters and hard to find that many of the products that have been bought that are imports is because USA businesses don't make the country of manufacture on their product large enough so that the buyer can readily see it and if you have to hunt for that label then chances are that you have lost that buy american edge. By the way since we are talking about buy American, where is that stainless steel ruler made?

 

[toy]

Does anyone know how many amp breaker it takes to run a Thermal Dynamics 82 plasma cutter? It is single phase 220, not a three phase.

 

[Rio_Grande]

Toy I think it takes 65 amps, but that is just my opinion based on it's requirements.

Thanks Jim for turning another post into a powermax comercial. I do apriciate your imput but powermax is not the only quality unit. I in fact wanted to buy there product but couldnt get the deal on it localy I could on the TD. Nice looking part.

 

[jimgerken]

This 3/8" steel part was cut with a Powermax 45.[/QUOTE]

Someone should point out that this part was cut with computer-controlled equipment. It would be misleading to let people think that they can hold the torch with their hand and get that result.

 

[jimcolt]

The current draw for the Cutmaster 52 on single phase input power is 50 Amps at 208 volt, 45 Amps at 230 volt. This unit has a 60 Amp output at 6.2 kW, at 40% duty cycle. The correct breaker size should probably be in the 50 to 60 Amp range....so it won't trip when you have maximum arc stretch.

It is not Amps that makes a plasma cut thicker and faster.....it is Kw (killowatts). The Hypertherm 60 Amp system (Powermax1000) produces 60 Amps at 8.4 Kw at 50% duty cycle.

It is less expensive to build lower duty cycle plasma systems with lower output Kw capacity. Kw is easily calculated by multiplying the output load voltage (which is calculated by the ability of the power supply to produce this voltage at a given duty cycle rating) x max output amperage. Actually, when you look at the specs....the Hypertherm 45 produces almost the same Kw output at a higher duty cycle that the Cutmaster 52 does.....with 15 Amps less output power. It pays to understand and look at the design specs when shopping for plasma and welders. In many cases for hobby level use....these specs do not have a huge effect.....but when you have that one job that requires that you stretch the advertised capacity of the system....or if you are using the machine to earn a living...then better specs will make a better performing system.


Just pointing out some facts in my previous post.....I'm not here to sell anything......I actually think Thermal Dynamics plasma systems are great products....their factory is in my hometown (West Lebanon, NH).....and it makes me a bit upset to see less cars in their parking lot every year. There are no compelling reasons to farm out manufacturing when there is an available high quality workforce right here! It likely comes from corporate greed....as opposed to taking care of the people that work for you! I have some friends that were laid off from T-D after decades of loyalty....those jobs were exported. Some of them now work at Hypertherm...8 miles away.....which is employee owned and had no layoffs during the economic downturn.

And....yes the part I showed was cut with a Hypertherm plasma on a PlasmaCam cnc machine.... You can install the Cutmaster 52 on a cnc table (need the optional interface).....cut quality will be drossier, holes will have more taper. The Powermax 45 has some new torch technology called "conical flow" that dramatically improves edge taper...that is what I was showing. I could also compare the 45 cut quality with other Hypertherm air plasma systems....the 45 will show improved cut quality in comparison as well.

 

[jimcolt]

The Mitutoyo ruler was made in Japan, but it was a freebie from a machine tool dealer.....I'm not sure you can get a 6 inch stainless rule made in the US anymore. I have an old one (was my grandfathers) that is from Brown and Sharp in the shop.....I think it was made in the US!

Jim

By the way since we are talking about buy American, where is that stainless steel ruler made?

 

[SensibleNick]

I agree Jim.

The same thing happens here. Companies deciding to make things cheaper, and some "streamlining Guru" decides to suggest that we can save millions by shipping all the work out to China.

Now... I hate that and want to give people a slap when they say that it's not avoidable...

BUT... I just ordered a Chinese tractor.. We're all hypocrites really.

 

[jimcolt]

And I have a Kubota.....but in my defense, I bought it used (5 years old, had 94 hours on the clock) I don't buy new anything imported....unless it just isn't available domestically. Ford F250 diesel, Ford Explorer, Miller, Hobart and Hypertherm in my shop!

Jim

I agree Jim.

The same thing happens here. Companies deciding to make things cheaper, and some "streamlining Guru" decides to suggest that we can save millions by shipping all the work out to China.

Now... I hate that and want to give people a slap when they say that it's not avoidable...

BUT... I just ordered a Chinese tractor.. We're all hypocrites really.

 

[toy]

jimcolt I was just kidding you a little about the ruler, I was asking about the amp breaker needed to run the td 82 plasma cutter. I try to buy USA products when I can and I was told that the td plasma was made in USA, and some of it is, but some of it is import. When I asked the local supply house what they wanted for a hypertherm plasma that could clean cut what the td said that theirs would ,the price of the hypertherm was a lot higher. A lot of people said that either machine was a good machine and given the limited amount of use that mine will have The td won out. If the supply house jacked their price up so that they could negotiate on the price then they lost a sell.