i am just finishing up with yet another 5 year contract on my torches, and it will be the last one because i've gone to a plasma cutter. i will still have the portable torches and tank setup i've had for the last two decades, but for any cutting done in my shop, i will be using a plasma cutter. my current tanks are a 118cf acetylene and 250cf oxygen, and the last time i checked, it was over $100 to fill both. if i go through 2 tanks of each a year, that's $200. around here, bottle contracts are $35-$50 per year per bottle, so there's another $350-$500 for 5 years. tanks never run out at the same time, so every year that's four round trips to exchange tanks - $12.50 fuel per trip, give or take, plus all that wasted time. just that is $1600-$1750 over the next 5 years, which is pretty much what i just paid for my hypertherm 45. in the first 5 years i'm breaking even, and i'm thinking that i should make at least 10 years before the cutter fails. the cost for gases over the next 5 years will be the same, or likely more, based on inflation. what i spend on electricity and consumables will be far less than the second 5 year contract. i figure i'm break even somewhere around year 6 or 7, and past that i've saved money. sure, it's more up front, but that's also because i bought a more expensive machine. buy a cheaper one and your 5 year contract and first fill will not be much less than the cost of a plasma cutter.
the tips shipped now are called "drag" tips for that exact reason - that's what they are designed and intended for.
i haven't used mine other than one quick test - other things taking priority right now, but i can say that the cut is far better than a torch. i made one cut with a straightedge and i didn't take any care in paying attention to travel speed or anything. when finished i was left with the slag/dross along one edge. i smacked it with a hammer and it fell off to reveal a clean sharp edge. i have spent two decades with a torch and i can make pretty decent cuts when i need to, but i can make better cuts with the plasma on day one. i can guarantee that i will be saving money and time on grinding.
another plus for me is that i won't have to spend any of my off time getting tanks. i'm decades from retirement, so when i need to get a tank filled, it has to be in the tiny window of their business hours and my off hours, generally saturday morning. that limits my evening time that i can do anything if i have to wait until saturday to get tanks swapped.