I bought a Pro on a whim a month or so ago with the little Razorweld unit. I didnt have a safe space to operate it, so i had a slab poured and put up one of those cheap 10x14x8 ft tall steel sheds to put this thing in near the back of my property. I only have 15 amps of 120v utility power back there, but I have a heavy duty diesel 25 kW generator that can easily handle something like this. Pure sine wave, minimal droop, even with block loading.
I plan on running the controls and plasma off the generator subpanel, but do I have to? Could i run the controls on utility and the torch on the gen? I have a THC for it, but even without one, i feel like there is a potential (haha) for the gen to short to utility through that configuration if a problem occurs. The MR-1 spec sheet requires the spindle and the controls be on the same panel, but thats a no brainer as the controls wire into the spindle motor alongside the 240v circuit.
Yes, i have a MR-1, its in the garage with the knee mill, the 14x40 lathe, the surface grinder, bandsaw, etc…
I originally bought a MR-1 because i am primarily interested in machining, but as Im sure most of you know, the Langmuir plasma stuff is very affordable and tempting, so i decided to get one. All the other outbuildings and decent spots for the Pro were either old wooden structures or full of flammables. No room left in the garage, so I put up a metal shed.
Anywho, how does the THC read voltage? If it was just reading current, i could understand using CT’s or something like that. However, with it reading voltage, it makes me wonder if the power source from the plasma cutter (gen) would short to the controls (utility). The gen isnt parralleled to utility and i dont have a reverse power relay, not that it would matter much.
The THC reads the DC voltage between the torch and the work clamp. That voltage varies based on the distance between the torch tip and the work piece. The voltage increases as the distance between the torch and work piece increases. It shouldn’t be affected by the AC power supplied to the plasma cutter, as long as the current is stable.
@ds690 and @toolboy are correct. Please keep this thread updated. I would love to know how your setup turns out! Not sure if you’re the first to inquire about/setup this way, but you definitely won’t be the last.
Absolutely, will do. It will probably be another month before ive got the shed wired and the table built, but im eager to start learning and start making mistakes, lol.
It would be nice to be able to play around on the computer out there and zero out axises and whatnot without firing the gen to do it. That way i just flip the gen start switch up when im ready to cut and start blasting.
Im running my plasma and air compressor off a gas generator 9500 watt/12500 peak. Seperate 240v 50 amp (plasma) and 30 amp ( air compressor ) outlets. Without THC cuts fine. (As long as everything is flat). With THC the THC cuts off the torch when the air compressor turns on.
I fill the air compressor before I start my cut and turn it off. I taped off my air regulator guage so i can not see the needle until the regulated air drops below 100psi. When I see the needle or when I know a long cut is going to happen i just pause the cut and turn on the air compressor and turn it off the unpause the cut. Yes it kinda suck but so far its worked great and my cuts look great.
Working on rewiring the garage panel buts its not my garage so this works for now
I would run 220 lines from house meter to new shed, install 100-amp panel. I Tied into my meter to a new breaker box, then run 100 feet of direct burial 220-2/0 line to my pole barn.
Id love too, but its not practical. The distance to the shed is significant and the cost i incurred to run cable from the gen to the house years ago is something id rather avoid doing twice. The gen is more than up to the job, its just something i havent run across before.
For reference, the last time I load banked it, i block loaded it, 88 amps @242v. Voltage fell to 239 for less than a second. Thats better than utility does at my house. Its a 2-71 Detroit Diesel, engine, hydraulicly governed, large continuous rated alternator. I was a marine heavy diesel mechanic for years, so i built this thing when i moved out to the country and have used it ever since.