I took a vacation last week in phx and since the steel shop didnt have my order ready yet I decided to do the z axis upgrade to my cnc table. I have had it sitting in boxes since the first of the year but with all the prototyping and cutting i havent had time to put it together. i had an early table so part of it was updating the lower rail which meant taking it all apart and even changing the control box. i also did the machine torch upgrade, and the new control software (so much for that lifetime license i bought for the other system)
honestly the difference is ASTOUNDING. before I set torch height manually with shims, and that meant pierce height was cut height so it was hard on consumables. I also had to stand there because you could only set torch height as an AVERAGE of the steel flatness, so at 0.069 it could vary from 0.00 (sticking to material) to .250 (big terrible kerf). but now it pierces at about 0.20 and maintains the right height. its only been working about two days and i already have 1000 pierces and 3 hours of torch "on" time. I dont have to hover around the table like i used to, I can just do whatever else and cut a big nest of lots of parts. anyway, just geeking out, cutting isnt a chore any more.
another trade in, longbed chassis with pedals. now i have a spare chassis for whatever, in fact this is the FOURTH spare chassis i have. might be time to get to work,
regular readers of my projects might remember that i got a set of 15x8 clip cap steels as a bonus on a run out of town, and i needed good matching set of fronts. well...
honestly worth the trade in price right there
today i am finished cutting and caught up, so i am back on the 54! its SIXTY SEVEN DEGREES out there, the first time in months our temps havent started with a nine and ended with something higher than five. wooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP