Hi Alan,

You will note one major error with the build, this being that the table is to high. I guess this is the result of not preparing drawings. I am reluctant to reduce its height as it is good and square.

The table working area is 4′ x 4′ for the majority of the work I will be doing I should be able to lift a sheet of 4 x 4 plate onto the table without to much trouble.

The initial wiring is messy as you will see in the photos, I did change most of it to shielded cable as I was seeing interruptions in the program as the stepper motors were operating, so it looks a little better now that its finished.

The table is ready to go now, all that is left is for me to make the decision on what make of Plasma machine to purchase, it will probably be one of the Thia supplied machines either Welcut of Longwell. The American made machines are also available but they are very expensive.

As for the programing I have been using trail versions of Sheet Cam for the nesting of parts and MACH3 for setting the cutter path, these I will purchase as soon as I can, but I am having difficulty purchasing them without having to pay UK VAT, despite the fact that the programs will be used only in Thailand.

The Colt logo was just vector drawing I found on the internet, I am not sure of its origin, I thought it may be American (beer possibly).

Over the coming weeks I will try to send some information that you can add to the Model Engineering website, this will be of interest to anyone looking for used machines, tooling (end mills, drills carbide inserts etc.) and measuring instruments.

I will try to upload a clip of the shaper in action on Youtube, once done I will share the link. The file is to large to email.

Well I will be spending Christmas and New Year working in Myanmar, so it will be a quiet one for me.

Merry Christmas to you and the Model Engineering community.
Many thanks for the link to Henrys equipment, I guess he imported the lathe mill and tooling at some point. I do like the selection of lathe tooling and quick change holders.

I have to agree that there is a wealth of expat knowledge in Thailand, it is just a shame that we cannot all share our expertise. I have met a number of Thais who run their own workshops on a commercial basis, who are also interested in one off projects, also having the time to talk to us and sharing ideas and knowledge.

My past few weeks has been spent setting up a 600mm shaper machine, all up and running now. Quite a challenge getting the two tonne machine into the workshop up an 8″ step but my wife and I managed with a little engineering and brute force.

The plasma CNC has taken a backseat at the moment, I have not forgotten to put together some pics of the build. I will be back in work in the coming week so will put the photos together and a small clip of the shaper in action.

Merry Christmas to you and the Model Engineering community.

Regards,
Philip.

Firstly I would like to thank Alan for his time and patience in posting the photos and text on the Model Engineering website.

Alan,

Thank you for your comments and questions.

I have followed a number of Plasma table builds on “youtube” rightly or wrongly I thought I could do that, so started the trolling through web sites looking for ideas and equipment. The only criteria I had to work to was the size of my workshop (home shop), so I decided at the time that my machine should be mobile to some extent and not too heavy.

My decision to use cam gears and belts was primarily to save on weight and to minimise maintenance. As you know cam gears and belt drives provide smooth operation with little or no backlash, in addition these are readily available in Thailand.

The stepper motors are “NEMA 23” these are driven by HYQD20-5700 controllers. The breakout board is a five axis type. Power is supplied by a 500w 36v power unit, these I purchased from a company on Aliexpress. The machine is for home use only so I hope the components will stand-up to a little use at least. If not they are easily available as individual components. Again all available in Thailand but far more expensive and being of the same quality.

My first job when I return home is to upgrade the power supply to the workshop, this will allow me to comfortably plug in a plasma machine without worrying about undersized cable etc. Once that is complete I will purchase the plasma machine, so it will be either a “Welcut 60” or a  “Longwell cut-100”. I have been putting the purchase off until the power supply is uprated.

Once again thank you for the interest, and other questions and I will be happy to answer them.

Well I must get back to work, wishing Model Engineering and all its members a very Happy New Year.

Phil.