Hey guys, just started this weekend with my new system and I have some questions / thoughts that I have not been able to get past. Simply put, I am getting divots on my internal features and I have not been able to remove them.
Here is my setup.
CrossFire XL
Everlast Plasma 52i with PLASMADYNE X45 machine torch.
Standard 35-50A Torch Tip (0.045" / 1.1mm)
75 PSI
21A
12 Sec Post Flow
Barn Siding - Sheet Metal 0.020"
Lead In - Arc 0.125 in
Lead Out - Perpendicular 0.125 in
TOOL Setup
Pierce Delay 0.2s (I tried 0.1 but it could not take a voltage reading fast enough.)
Pierce Height 0.1181
Plunge Rate 50 IPM
Cut Height 0.060
Pause at End 0s
Lean In / Lead Out - See Above.
Please also comment on the following
Is this material so thin that this is more likely to occur? (Learning on scrap.)
Have you done a test to measure your kerf and have you checked what your actually cut height is? I don’t see anything glaringly wron g in your settings.
The reason I asked those two questions is if your kerf is correct and cut height is correct I believe your lead in and lead out setting are ok. If you’re cutting higher than what you measured your kerf at your plasma stream could widen a bit causing the burned away material. If ur height is correct…I check mine just by pausing fire control mid cut and measuring… then I would increase lead in and lead out just a little bit. I say change both because sometimes it’s difficult to tell if the extra metal is being burned at the start or end of a loop.
A good trick I learned to narrow down if it’s your leadin or your lead out is start a cut that you know will divot repeatably. Stop it halfway thru, see if there’s a divot. If there is a divot then your issue is leadin, if there’s no divot your issue is lead out.
But also considering you’re running .020 material it is going to be very sensitive to heat input. I don’t usually run material that thin so I unfortunately have no baseline on settings for you
I would get rid of the overcut and change the lead out to an arc. If you are running back over an already cut area on metal that thin, its going to eat away more material on each side of the cut. That perpendicular lead out causes a sudden change of direction which can cause the torch to slow down momentarily at that location and burn away more material.
Thank you both for the suggestions. Here is where I am currently at…
Cut height is good at 0.060. I did try 0.040 to see, results were slightly better.
I understand the point about perpendicular vs an arc. Again a slight improvement.
I gave up and moved to some 0.097" that I had. What a difference. Little to no divot and fairly easy to dial in.
For now I could not get rid of the divot in the 0.020. I will pick up a fine tip nozzle and resume, if for no other reason than to learn.
.020 is basically 24/25 Gauge sheetmetal, i can’t recall seeing anyone here talk about cutting 24 Gauge but possibly you could find some tips searching through here for that.
