I know it’s even more trouble. I don’t believe a bead cells will restrict you to the point of starving your plasma. To remedy that a lot of folks put a dry air tank after their drying system to prevent pressure drop.
Jim is also in the selling business the more consumables people ruin $$$$.
And To prevent short cycling of the compressor
I vote for that!
I’m in North Carolina, not the driest place on the planet, and have an unconventional ‘drying’ system, inadequate by most measures, and don’t have a problem with moisture. I do have a Motorguard to filter particulates and it has never shown an issue. However, I am also just an occasional cutter, so YMMV.
Jim is a renowned guru on Plasma Cutting and wouldn’t give advice to ‘sell consumables’.
There will alwsys be differnt opinions on air and anything added can restrict flow. So my view is to dry as much as possible before going to tank by using aftercooler. This will catch plenty of water. Then the tank will catch some more. Use a cooler be it copper tubing or refrigerated dryer to catch more after the tank. Personally i think cooler and dryer is the best way. By using a desiccant dryer and say a motoguard filter right at the cutter is again the best. Yes they restrict the flow but even if they are low at say 15 cfm they will still provide enough cfm for the cutter plus will be dry.
So many people create restrictions through small hoses and quick disconnects and that is the often unseen problem. If the air system uses 3/4 piping from compresor out into the shop and the compresor has good cfm then any restriction by desiccant filter be of no concern.
I am not trashing him at all. He is a business man as well…
If you are selling something let’s say gas are you going to tell people how to double their gas mileage or leave well enough alone…
Honestly no one is telling you to spend a lot of money you just have to start trying to see what works for you.
My experience where I live. I seen a very big difference in cut quality and consumable life. I Also run my table 2 or 3 days a week some times 2 or 3 hours of arc time per session. I needed it.
Someone just knocking off a part here and there will never see the difference.
I guess I didn’t realize Plasma cutters could run on such low CFM. I just looked up Hypertherm’s filter, and it only flows 20 CFM. But then again, the much-lauded Motorguard is “submicronic”, and supposedly advertises a 100 CFM flow rate. I think there’s potentially some male cow excrement existing in the vicinity of these numbers.
I know that, Phillip, but neither is it very cut and dry. It kind of seems like you can either spend a lot, or roll the dice on whether the mid-priced thing you’re purchasing even does anything. I’m just frustrated at all the $200 regulator/filter/dryer combos with a bunch of 1 star reviews interspersed among the likely-paid 5 star reviews, as is always the case, when you’re shopping for anything ‘mid-grade’. It’s a frustrating exercise, and it’s compounded by the fact that I wasn’t ready to become an expert on air systems this week. 
Gotcha. There is a lot of use that didn’t see it coming. Cheap cheap advice grab a quart size bead cell on Amazon. Then you need some sort of filter to catch dust and stray beads. Run it and see how fast your beads change… mine was like 15 minutes I could already tell they was changing.
I also have a wild setup to dry my air. I am still amazed by how quickly the beads change.
Does all this help I think so for me anyway. Now you live I a dessert what you need I can’t tell you I have only drove through one.
I did a little at a time and was amazed at how much water it catches.
Air drying always has been an will be one one the many great debates on here.
That, I am gathering. 
I want to commend this group on reading through the thread and not just commenting on the OP…much better forum experience than many others I am a part of.
I’m kind of leaning towards just sticking the ole Motorguard “toilet paper filter” on there and seeing how it cuts. Only because all of the inexpensive desiccant traps seem to be a crap-shoot at best. A lot of reviews claim they will bypass water as soon as the bottom beads start to change color, long before all the beads are saturated, which tells me there is something inherently wrong with the way these cheap traps are designed.
Though, that’s just the way I’m leaning, right now.
Say I go that route, aside from any obvious issues like the machine not cutting at all, how do I really quantify my level of success?
I do hope to “eventually” do some light production with this unit…
That is kinda a double edges sword question. In short are you satisfied.
There are a few ways to tell if moisture is a problem one you can get swirl markings on your electrode. Your consumables will not last a very long time before you get bad cuts. As in not cutting through at the start scaring not cutting and other things. These are some I experienced I am sure others can add more.
As long as you are satisfied that’s all that matters.
On another note the motor guard will Catch moisture yes my understanding it is more of a filter than anything else. For what you pay for a motor guard you can get a bead cells and hf sells a filter cartridge type filter that is way cheaper. How good is it?? Well it’s harbour freight you know how that goes. Does it work?? I can’t tell you.
That’s where I’m struggling.
Motorguard claims (and reviewers confirm) that their filter traps “a ton of moisture”.
On any less than the most expensive bead cells (and even the cheap ones seem kind of pricey, for what they are), their are always a handful of reviewers commenting that the bead cell bypasses moisture almost immediately, and before the beads fully change color.
In short, it’s really hard to know that a bead cell under…$200…is actually going to do much to reduce moisture.
That said, if YOU have one YOU would recommend, I’d certainly take a look at it.
Well the motor guard I honestly don’t see it removing suspended moisture that’s what you are after.
I use two of the small bead cells from Amazon or eBay can’t remember I would have to look. I have them back to back. The first will turn colors the second never does. I always change my beads before the first one fully changes.
I know money is hard to come buy. If I was you and as dry as your area is I would consider one of the cheaper ones at first then see what you need say it’s a 50 dollar shot might save you 150.
Mine work and I think work well when air is running you can see all the beads moving around a lot.
Right, but the prevailing wisdom of this board seems to be suggesting that I still have to have some sort of filtration after the dryer, which leads me to this question.
All of these affordable import multi-stage deals have the filtration before the desiccant dryer. And that’s how I’ve always seen systems like this set up. I’m sure this is to preserve desiccant life as long as possible.
This board is the first and only time I’ve seen it suggested to run filtration after the desiccant dryer. Do the desiccant beads actually produce “dust”? I can’t imagine actual beads traveling through the dryer, as they have a very fine screen internally, don’t they?
I can buy a filter/desiccant dryer combo on Amazon (just under $100 for 2 stage and just over $100 for 3 stage), but should I really take it apart and put at least one of the filters between the desiccant trap and the plasma?
I can understand where Jim Colt was coming from, talking about CFM being hamstrung by over filtration…
I should also add that I already have a regulator/filter combo 10’ off the compressor, and anything I add will be another 40’ or so feet past that, through MaxLine, at the air station that will feed my plasma and sand blasting cabinet.
PS-Thank you for all the back and forth on this…
My rw 45 touch due to my abuse has a bead inside the internal filter it will happen. Then they rattle around and break apart making dust .
The separator before I would assume is to catch the un suspend moisture and oil.
Interesting…
I feel like what little I do understand of air systems, that a desiccant dryer is going to struggle if it’s the first stop after a 40’ run of 3/4” line. I don’t currently have a secondary water trap and filter. Wisdom suggests that it should be multi stage (5 micron to .01 micron), and then I should have some sort of filter after the dryer. So, that’s a 4 stage system. Added to my existing stage, and it’s a 5 stage. Unless I buy a 3 stage system, and separate the .01 micron filter and move it outside the dryer. Though that still has the possibility of introducing oils to the desiccant. I would one of these three stage deals and put it where my single stage is currently, but it’s really too close to the compressor to be ideal.
And just like that I’m leaning towards just running that Motorguard again… 
One trap at the compressor will do the trick I think. I would add the bead cells and a proper filter. . I am very curious to see how quick the bead would catch moisture.
Man oh man I hope you don’t feel like a guinea pig!!
Lol! I totally do.
Actually, since my existing first stage is a 10 micron, I guess I could probably purchase one of those inexpensive 3 stage setups, and basically just move the first stage to the last stage.
Essentially, I’d have a 10 micron, going into a 40’ run, followed by a .01 micron coalescing filter, desiccant dryer, and finally a 5 micron filter/regulator to catch any beads or bead dust, and have a dependably regulated supply for the plasma.
I would think that’s a start. Being as dry as your area is. You put just a motor guard on there you would really think we are looney.
I truly think now I am no expert I can learn from a box of rock(they sit still and keep their mouth shut) but anyway I think the beads would be a advantage for you.
Everyone here will be looking for results of whatever you choose I am sure it will help someone else