Can you CNC Plasma Cut a NEMA Electrical Enclosure? Should you?

I've been searching for a good way to cut NEMA electrical boxes. They're ornery and nothing I've tried to date has worked as well as I'd like. Today we're going to try CNC plasma. Against the better judgment of the Internet.
Tools used in this video:
*This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Hypertherm Powermax 30 XP Plasma Cutter (eBay*): ebay.to/2JgTrK6
Bondhus Metric Hex Key Set (Amazon*): amzn.to/3eqZzwb
Bondhus SAE Hex Key Set (Amazon*): amzn.to/3h9bJLZ
3Dconnexion SpaceMouse Compact 3D Mouse (Amazon*): amzn.to/2TSJ2q9
2" Kant Twist Universal Clamp (Amazon*): amzn.to/2UG76wv
120mm Fan Filters (eBay*): ebay.to/39J95pS
Noctua 120mm 5V Premium Quiet Fan (Amazon*): amzn.to/3Lu1oa3
Drill Hog M42 Cobalt Drill Set (Amazon*): amzn.to/3ore9sq
Shars 440V 4" Mill Vise (Amazon*): amzn.to/3hZooyD
Wera Kraftform Screwdriver Set (Amazon*): amzn.to/2UzK6CL
Wiegmann 20x20x8 NEMA1 Enclosure (eBay*): ebay.us/UpVh5w
Centroid Acorn Motion Controller (Amazon*): amzn.to/3GboLRU
Raw Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...

[@Clough42]

SAFETY NOTE: It appears that this particular cabinet is powder coated over phosphatized (paint lock) steel. From what I can tell, this does contain zinc, so all the cautions around welding and cutting galvanized steel would apply. Make sure you have good ventilation and don't breathe the fumes.

[@jack_brooks]

One test is worth a thousand expert opinions.

[@pyrobeav2005]

A trick that we use with our laser is to coat the surface with dish soap and let it dry. Any stray particles condense on the soap instead of bonding to your material and a quick rinse removes it all, no elbow grease required. Works fantastic for glass and acrylic etching. Might have to be careful about splashing with the flooded catch pan.

[@Bob_Adkins]

Maybe anti-spatter or CRC silicone in a rattle can.

[@glenntrewitt]

Hah! Same trick as in Boy Scouts - cover the outside of the cookpot with soap-ish stuff before putting it over the (camp) fire.

[@dasworkshop4967]

As I was watching the video, I was thinking masking tape over the back might work.

[@pyrobeav2005]

@@dasworkshop4967 Good call! That said, masking tape might have some issues with denaturing and bond a bit too well from the heat. Have seen issues where the charred edge of the tape had to be scraped away with a razor blade.

[@somebodyelse6673]

You did glass etching with a laser? The few times I tried glass cutting or etching like that for my own amusement it all went well, and shortly later the pieces broke just sitting on the bench. The little information I could find implied that to prevent it, the glass had to be preheated, and popped into an annealing oven for an extended cooling profile. Did you accomplish it in a simpler, less time consuming way?

[@maxcactus7]

Wait! Do you mean to tell me I SHOULDN'T trust and believe everything I read on the Internet?! Great work, as usual. A great example of trusting your own instinct and experience for excellent results.

[@UncleKennysPlace]

Back in the mid-1990s I helped write "quote-to-cash" software for a large electrical control manufacturer whose name rhymes with ■d. You'd pick out your components, it would take into account minimum space requirements and heat generation, space for wiring, etc. and let you know the size of the box required, or tell you if your selected box wasn't big enough if you started with a box. They were calling it AI, but it was just rules-based with a craptonne (metric) of rules. Everytime I see a nicely laid out box I think of that project, one of my favorites.

[@Clough42]

That's cool. I actually tried one of those calculators, and got a price list that made me cringe. I also looked into having the box fabricated to order. Same result. :) If I were paying me for my time, I might feel different.

[@crazytrutas]

Smoke in the shop....... CNC cutting........ CNC Mill back.......... and Windex! What a great show.

[@dannywilsher4165]

I was the lead man on a job where we built two 60 foot by 60 foot buildings full of switch gear and computer controls for a new manufacturing facility for Rolls Royce. We must have punched 10,000 holes on this project. It would have been awesome to have been able to plasma cut all of them holes back then. Thanks for sharing, James.

[@SegoMan]

A trick I use when i cant get it on the table is to use a drag shield on a hand torch and make a cut pattern on the plaz table to guide the torch. Just clamp a straight edge on some scrap do a hand .cut and measure the offset of the kerf vs the OD of the drag shield, then add that amt to the shapes dimension. Cutting templates can be made of Masonite as the heat is concentrated to the tip, which is why there is very little paint burning with a plaz.

[@steamfan7147]

I've cut quite a few large cabinets using a hand held plasma and HAC. Hardboard Aided Cutting, I make a template of the shape I need from 1/4 hardboard. Locate that template where I need the hole and use it as a guide for the plasma torch. Quick,cheap and accurate enough. I used to hate cutting electrical cabinets for all the same reasons you mentioned.

[@chisdalton9652]

to all those people who said it was a bad idea, will of course now be following your brilliant example good job well done

[@patchvonbraun]

Knowing that you can cut through a painted surface with a plasma cutter is very useful info for me. I have to cut a 6" hole through 1/4" alloy steel in a mechanical cabin later this spring--to take the vent hose for a portable A/C. Knowing that I won't have to grind out the area that I need to cut first will save time, and repainting.

[@yngndrw.]

This came out great. Using a CNC plasma cutter for the doors would have been such a time saver when we used to make control panels - We had many buttons and indicators which needed 20mm round holes each with a small square notch. You could done your test cut in the middle of one of the fan cutouts so that you could test using the real material and coating without the risk.

[@Trust_me_I_am_an_Engineer]

Hm. For standard notched cutouts of 22,5 and 30,5 mm you can use notched round knockout panel punches. I am not familiar with 20mm notched. Does not sound like a standard size.

[@yngndrw.]

@@Trust_me_I_am_an_Engineer Sorry you're right I am misremembering as it has been many years, they were Moeller units - the M22 range I believe. Each notch was filed.

[@Trust_me_I_am_an_Engineer]

@@yngndrw. ooh Kloeckner Moeller . Haven't used those since 1985 or so ? So they're called Moeller now ? I've filed a few slots myself, when I had to add a button on site and couldn't find the slotted punch :) .

[@SegoMan]

A trick I use when i cant get it on the table is to use a drag shield on a hand torch and make a cut pattern on the plaz table to guide the torch. Just clamp a straight edge on some scrap do a hand .cut and measure the offset of the kerf vs the OD of the drag shield, then add that amt to the shapes dimension. Cutting templates can be made of Masonite as the heat is concentrated to the tip, which is why there is very little paint burning with a plaz.

[@samjohnson7325]

Hey James. You should add some lead in and out runs on the last tab in fusion. That will prevent the little half circle dent in your parts from the pierce. Can be a pain to get a good length in smaller holes and sometimes you have to add multiple tool paths to accommodate different size features but it works better

[@Clough42]

Yup. I had the pierce offset really small for the screw holes and didn't change it for the larger holes.

[@joshuamazurek6746]

Absolutely loving the content on this channel. Even has some humor. Langmuir cnc plasma cutting a high dollar enclosure for a $10k+ avid cnc build but the poor guy can't get a full squirt from his windex. Somebody please get this man a fresh bottle

[@Clough42]

I bought a fresh bottle, and it has something wrong with the pump, so I'm still struggling. :)

[@matthewlee8917]

Man who doesn't hate cutting those enclosures! Great work and totally worth the effort!

[@TannerFrisby]

Great content as always. The dustproof fan shrouds are my big takeaway. Seeing what other makers use in their projects has vastly expanded my knowledge base of methods/products/design (most of which has come from watching your videos specifically). Thank you for naming and linking products in the description! I hope my occasional affiliate dollars show my gratitude.

[@timderks5960]

Agreed, I've learned so much more from seeing others fail (and succeed) than I've learned from my own failures (or successes). And best of all: all other people's failures/successes didn't cost me a thing, and yet I still learned something.

[@joell439]

👍😎👍

[@orionpco]

There are a lot of comments already, so if I'm late to the game, my apologies. Most panels are cut out with tooling. The burn marks and splatter can easily ruin the look of an enclosure. I commend you. You did a good job.

[@rennkafer13]

Since I have the same plasma table you do I'd figured out how you were going to do the front panel, but the inner box cuts, that solution I hadnt. Well done, James... it worked perfectly! And now I have a new trick for my table as well.

[@robgoald]

Came to the comments to recommend blue tape for the bottom and aluminum tape for the plasma torch side, but a few people below beat me to it. Nice job James.

[@RRINTHESHOP]

Worked out great. I love it when I hear the words don’t and can’t.

[@p2ezone359]

this video made me think about how i convince my boss to buy a plasma cutter. we are doing 100's+ of electrical panel each year and last year i propose them to use plasma cutter because it was a pain in the *ss to use punch hole. we aren't using cnc for this instead we have made different template according to our needs. in first step we use the template to mark up all the screw hole and use a drill to make those hole. after this we use quick release rivet to maintain the template on it using the screw holes + we use welder blanket inside the panel so we don't have a huge mess to clean. now 1week of work is done in 1 day. great video thanks! i like it

[@davidhaywood9071]

Great work as usual. I really like your approach to everything you’re going to do in a methodical well thought out process which I’m sure helps most procedures come out as you planned.

[@bigdogbrosadventures8371]

Great video and project. I designed and built a 4x4ft water plasma table 5 years ago and I would not have hesitated to do the cuts as you did. Nice job! I have video of the table on my channel.

[@i_might_be_lying]

Thanks for this experiment. Now I know that it's possible to cut electrical boxes with plasma. On a side note: if you want your 22mm switch holes on a front panel look good without black circles around, you can cut 10mm holes with plasma and then use screw die punch for making clean 22mm holes afterwards. Usually panel makers are cutting those holes with a drill first, then using die punch, but plasma will make that job way easier.

[@9z4clb]

I do it all the time here in the shop for custom controls! ......never had an issue.

[@stephenjohnson6841]

Turned out great. Thanks again James!

[@mikenewman4078]

Well done. Back when I was wiring switchboards for a living, whenever possible we sent cabinet doors out for laser cutting, it worked well. We still needed to cut penetrations in the box by mechanical means as they couldn't fit then in like you did. The doors are always the hardest part anyway. Careful CAD layout like you have for your gland plates is a really good idea, I've seen a few overly close layouts otherwise. The small heat affected zone can be make good with a quick touch up using a cotton bud / qtip. In my salty climate that would be necessary. For painted surfaces, a little car polish before cutting should make the smoke easier to clean.

[@100899wot]

Very detailed 3D model. Nice job.

[@johnconrad5487]

Wonderful! I knew you would have success. and now you have a method to follow forever.

[@EverettsWorkshop]

That came out quite well! I was honestly expecting more discoloration but the covers, fans, and panels hide it all. Looks good!

[@ComgrowOfficial]

Brilliant video as always, dude. You're really informative and creative. Keep these helpful videos coming, plz😘

[@danieldunham9978]

You do such a professional job of building your cabinets, i wish i had the knowledge you do on the components that go into them!

[@imlassuom]

...And that is well planing and perfect execution!

[@rosswoolley2854]

Looks good. I really need to update my control box after watching this!

[@michelecrown2426]

Great job. If you do more of this in the future, I would be concerned about the fumes given off without having good ventilation. Thanks for being willing to test this method and proving it could be done.

[@Clough42]

In the summer, ventilation would be much easier.

[@jimsmith6284]

Better than punched no distortion great work as always.

[@raulc398]

Beautiful work!!cheers from Toronto!!

[@temyraverdana6421]

Wonderful, great solution. Thanks for share your ideas

[@markfletcher6511]

I would say that I am dying to know what the cnc project is, but that would date me to the sixties, so I will not dye anything. I do want to say that I always enjoy your style of presentation. The testing of potential problems prior to the final cuts is always appreciated. My only beef with your channel is that I find myself ordering a lot of tools. I hope that it is not tool envy, but rather a realization that the things I have wanted for a long time are available and validated by someone that I trust. Keep up the good work, outstanding videos, and positive outlook for all of us that are watching.

[@bendingsands87]

This was suggested to me today. For some reason I hadn't seen it but glad I watched. I'm commenting because your use of that cooling fan made me think of a KZbin channel : Major Hardware that has a series called Fan Showdown where people submit fan blade designs that run on that fan base to see what designs are most interesting, air moving, quiet etc. It's pretty interesting to see what people come up with and I wondered if you'd have any opinions on it or whether or not you'd consider making a submission. I ask because the way you explain your thought process and the outside the box thinking you do in your projects, you could probably make a pretty interesting video about it. Thanks for your contributions to the community of machinists, makers, and really anyone seeking knowledge on KZbin.

[@localhawk1]

if others say it doesn't work, it gets interesting :) well done

[@ScottDube1]

I love the idea of trolling the trolls! Way to go! I was thinking you could use a thin piece of sacrificial metal on the bottom but it turns out you didn't need it! Thanks James!

[@SegoMan]

A trick I use when i cant get it on the table is to use a drag shield on a hand torch and make a cut pattern on the plaz table to guide the torch. Just clamp a straight edge on some scrap do a hand .cut and measure the offset of the kerf vs the OD of the drag shield, then add that amt to the shapes dimension. Cutting templates can be made of Masonite as the heat is concentrated to the tip, which is why there is very little paint burning with a plaz.

[@RJMachine62]

I've done a bunch of them from 22mm or 30mm operator holes in the doors to custom cutouts on the bottom. I never ever have to touch up the paint/pc. Always worked great for me. Make sure the ground is good. I've had better luck cleaning the haze on back with water and soap, but a lot of times I will put blue tape on bottom if it's critical.

[@m3chanist]

James you naughty, Naughty, NAUGHTY boy! You did not do what you were told!....... Well done.

[@stephenormsby3662]

Excellent. Thanks for posting.

[@Ohmcrazy2]

Nice work! Been doing enclosures and panels for over 10 years in a somewhat similar fashion only on our waterjet and laser. Secret sauce is in fixturing to get around z height limitations. Much better outcome than having the resident raccoon chew out the openings

[@erickvond6825]

That went shockingly better than I expected. I guess that's the benefit of CNC over manual.

[@outsidescrewball]

Enjoyed…super quality/finish

[@steveu235]

You do such beautiful work I'm jealous

[@theundergroundesd]

Good job. Keep up the good work

[@jaimeandrade9973]

Realmente un placer verlo trabajar. Quedo de lujo. Felicitaciones. Really a pleasure to see him work. I stay luxurious. Congratulations.

[@KennyEaton603]

This is what I like about you. Even if people tell you that you can’t do something, you still think for yourself and draw your own conclusions. I do the same thing. Sometimes what I was told ends up being true, other times it wasn’t. In both cases, I learn something and understand why it did or didn’t work. Personally, I want to know “why”. I need to understand the process for myself so I can relate it to other things in the future (hopefully that makes sense)

[@Clough42]

I agree completely. I want to understand why. Because almost always, it's a reductionist viewpoint. It may be a bad idea for a given set of circumstances or goals. Engineering is always a tradeoff, so something that is a bad idea for one application may be ideal (or at least less bad than other options) for another application. When someone comments "X is the best" or "Y is better" I usually respond with "better for what?"

[@tysleight]

Love your stuff. I was just watching Fab Rats and you're both amazing fabricators but on the opposite end of the spectrum. Fab Rats moto is "we do it nice because we do it twice" yours is more measure twice dry run and end up with a perfect item. Both amazing just so much different I love it.

[@Clough42]

There's a lot to be said for the productivity that comes from moving fast. This being a hobby, I enjoy moving slowly and doing the best job I can.

[@routercnc9517]

That went really well ! When you made the extension I thought the box was going to be clamped to the side of the table with top flush and the rest below. But your way worked too !

[@Clough42]

I considered it.

[@premiermartialarts1067]

I really enjoy your videos!

[@mith5168]

So many Naysayers….so little Time. Nice piece of work James.

[@lazorus6926]

Good work!

[@2OO_OK]

That is way better than a jig saw. Clever of you to make a longer torch mount. I was originally expecting you to take out the slats and the water pan, or make the torch reach over the side of the plasma table. Well done.

[@Clough42]

I thought about all of the options you mentioned.

[@srmofoable]

Having cut some of those panels for my cnc router and laser table with a combination of jig saw and hand files I completely understand your pain. No cnc plasma for me, but I do have a plasma. Might just have to give it a go with templates cut from the router next time.

[@Clough42]

Yeah. I usually end up with sore hands and wrists from fighting the drill and jigsaw, or a huge mess (and actually more burning) from a grinder.

[@harrywoods9784]

Great job👍👍

[@tylerhensley2312]

I've cut out electrical panels all the time on a plasma table at one of the places I worked a few years back, no issues at all.

[@qcnck2776]

Worked out great!

[@Neptune730]

Yeah I wouldn't have listened to the internet either. Good job, it looks good. I would 3d print a plate with ON & OFF for the switch. I need to go back in your videos to see how you did the multi-colour prints on your other parts.

[@Clough42]

Yeah, I was thinking about this. I'm also thinking about some other options. :)

[@summerforever6736]

looks perfect!

[@jhawker2895]

Nicely done .... Thanks for sharing .... Stay Safe...

[@r1mein54]

Nice job cutting that Hoffman Box, cut lots of holes with jigsaws and knockout when I was a Journeyman Wireman. I guess the torch work might void the UL cert. now.

[@MyLilMule]

Nice work, James. Sure beats using a hand nibbler.

[@Clough42]

Oh, yeah. I tried that once back in the day. I think I got it to bite and then it jammed in the workpiece. It was really ugly.

[@tamiamibusch]

I like how you marked "bottom" on the box for the benefit of the viewer. 😉

[@Clough42]

That was for my benefit so I didn't end up with the door opening the wrong direction in the end.

[@cody5495]

we use a waterjet in our panel shop. We also find 3D modeling a box before actually building it cost too much in labor. An experienced engineer can just make a quick 2D drawing.

[@bobweiram6321]

God I love this channel!

[@tstanley01]

I built my AVID with Clearpaths and an Acorn, and the nema box was the worst part. I cut the fan holes with a big bi metal hole saw in a cordless drill. The holesaw hung up, torqued around and broke my ring finger. It's been two years, and it doesn't hurt anymore, but the knuckle is a lot bigger...LOL

[@AmateurRedneckWorkshop]

Great use of the plasma torch. Ask people on the internet but take it all with a grain of salt. Many of them are wrong. I love to do cnc projects but right now I am not in possession of the cash. I recently incurred a few bills that will need clearing up. Thanks for an interesting video.

[@Clough42]

Hey, Harold! Great to hear from you. Yeah, I wasn't really concerned with whether people thought it was a good idea; I asked because I wanted to know what problems I should worry about. And then I used my own brain to figure out if they would be a big deal for my needs.

[@DougsMessyGarage]

The Crossfire did a nice clean job of cutting the box.

[@Clough42]

I'm pretty pleased with the Hypertherm 30XP plasma cutter and FineCut consumables. I still need to experiment to get the dross situation dialed a little better.

[@donteeple6124]

James, those nay-sayers evidently don't know you. Where there's a will there's a way and if not well, Clough42 will prove them wrong, in a nice way. Great job as usual. This project came out so well that the finished product looks factory made.

[@EcoMouseChannel]

That's funny... I didn't even think of the plasma table. I bought large knock-out punches to be used with a hydraulic pump. Now for the square, or odd size holes... I'm going to have to add this to my repertoire.

[@Ddabig40mac]

If the internet says to not do it, and you do it anyway, AND it works out great - is that not a violation of "Community Standards"? Excellent results! If it mattered for the appearance, extending the lead-in further into the drop might reduce the heat effected area at the pierce point.

[@DavidStapley0982]

About a year ago I needed to make a spider box and so I used a 2414 GE breaker box as the base and then cut holes for one and two gang outlets using a cheap Chinese plasma cutter. The only thing I needed to do was make a pilot hole as the coating was a little too much for the electricity to start the arc but once I made a pilot hole it was no big deal and it cleaned up really nicely. Way better than using a grinder or any other tool for that matter. Obviously a water jet would be the preferred method but when you have a budget of around $400 then cheap Chinese plasma cutter it is.

[@Clough42]

The Hypertherm plasma cutter I'm using has a pilot arc, so it burns through the coating with that and establishes the current flow to ignite the cutting arc.

[@DavidNayer]

II love your laid-back and thoughtful style. f you had a material you couldn't clean the smoke from and you really had to keep it clean - you could simply mask the area to protect it. Depending on the amount of heat exposure that could be as simple as masking tape and paper to something more heat resistant, like foil.

[@Clough42]

I thought about it. I was a little worried about the blast traveling under the foil. I thought about tape, but didn't want to add anything that would burn and make my day more exciting.

[@Reducer]

12:54 Cool, it can play the Jaws theme.

[@evert311]

Please build a a magnetic pick up handle to remove the cutout plasma parts. Seen a few online but I think it will be a great tool for the shop. Thanks for the great content.

[@dennispope8160]

I use a small but strong on off magnet turn the knob on the engage magnet, works great.

[@Clough42]

I have a Noga Popeye magnet sitting on my toolbox, and this is what I usually use.

[@JoeVolcano42]

When you plasma cut metal that is coated/painted you *sometimes* have to grind off the coating at the start point. This is so the torch height control has electrical conductivity to the metal. Once the arc is started - then its fine for the rest of the cut. If you don't have DTHC you don't need to worry about this!

[@Clough42]

I do have a torch height control that measures the height using the arc voltage. In this case, though, the machine touches off to establish the initial height, the pilot arc blasts through the coating and once it has established the cut and moved a set distance, the height control reads the voltage and then takes over to maintain that voltage. So if the coating affects the voltage, it doesn't really matter.

[@rbyt2010]

Nice!

[@rpavlik1]

Wow, that turned out great. That was some nasty looking smoke, though.

[@MichaelLloyd]

I enjoy when someone proves "the internet" wrong. :)

[@peterciurea7771]

Have you thought about making an enclosure from scratch? Cutting the sheet metal on the plasma cutter, using a bending brake, rolling the hinge etc... Might be a good how to for others and a challenge in thinking through the steps needed. There are a few videos on youtube by Dan Gelbart that showcase a number of tools he uses in manufacturing high precision end products for prototyping. He covers a number of things that are part of crating custom cases, but only as disconnected examples.

[@Clough42]

Possibly for a future project. This one is a little large for my plasma.

[@waynec369]

Yeah.. the internet is FULL of arm chair experts. I make my living cutting holes in electrical enclosures. The thing to remember is the enclosure loses its NEMA rating the instant ANY modification is made. ANY MODIFICATION. Electrical enclosures are made of low carbon, malleable, gummy steel that is a BITCH to machine, drill & saw, but easily bent, sheared, punched, plasma and/or laser cut, and can even be torch cut if you're in a bind and ready to re-paint.

[@ocAToccd]

Thanks for the info... Unmodified enclosure surely is useful... Without a hole to get the power in... Again some dumb rule/law...

[@dogcreek-customs5168]

As long as you use a non-ESD powdercoat. I design and make full custom ATX computer cases or Pc towers with my CNC table and i use non conductive powder coat.

[@mountainmanfab]

may wanna look into a machine type torch for the plasma cutter with maybe some diy quick connects to make it easier to use for other things....that way you can easily do submerged cuts...less HAZ and lowers the noise(not a lot just less high pitched) and drasticaly lowers the smoke and fumes in the shop...course you will end up changing your water or filtering more often

[@Clough42]

This plasma cutter is a Hypertherm 30XP, which has a permanently-attached hand torch and no machine torch option. Of course I could always make something.

[@djtopherau]

great video. have you considered doing what alot of midsize CNC machines do, where you can extend the cutter (torch in this case) over the edge of the table so you can cut oversize pieces, obviously it wouldn't be over a water table but it does allow you to add a huge amount of flexibility in regards to what you can cut.

[@Clough42]

On this table, it's possible to take the tray off, and leave the entire inside open. If I ever have a project that requires it, I might try it.

[@Trust_me_I_am_an_Engineer]

Dang, you can cut through a painted panel with plasma. Very interesting. Don't worry , James, you'll come up with another fine reason why you HAVE to buy or build a waterjet attachment for your CNC cutter :)

[@Clough42]

This plasma cutter has a pilot arc. Without that, I don't think the torch would have lit.

[@somebodyelse6673]

I do not miss plasma fumes from previous employment. Cutting coated stock and boxes for entire days was awful, it was actually the reason I left the place. So, yeah, keep those shop doors open when doing that :)

[@Clough42]

Yeah, if I did this vocationally, I would definitely invest in ventilation.

[@Rowow]

why did everyone say to not do this. Amazing idea!

[@blahorgaslisk7763]

Take out the filter in the grill for the top ventilation hole. It's an exhaust so it really don't need the filter and it would improve the airflow slightly.

[@brianm9962]

I thought that at first, but it would then allow general workshop dust and debris to get in when the machine is off and there is no airflow.

[@Clough42]

Correct. This is why I used the filter.

[@Artiken1]

My first thought about the slag/dirt on the paint was....Why not use the Teflon spray for mig tips/cones? Readily available at good welding supply places. Cheap(ish). High temp. Clear. Dries quickly. In production env. it lasts about 12hrs. Huge difference in slag buildup on the tip/cone. I wonder if it would keep the smoke, soot, slag from sticking to the paint?

[@timkramer2854]

I would have added an 8 inch extension and cut it off the front of the table. I really like you extension design. I will utilize that on my Langmuir table for cutting holes out of big stuff that wont fit otherwise. The other way I have done this is use the CNC table to make a template that is about 1/4 inch larger on all dimensions, c clamp in place and use that as an edge to hand cut. This works good on vehicles etc.

[@Clough42]

If you extend the arm, be sure to check the springback. I had to change the springback from .010" to .028" to compensate for the flexibility.

[@ianrobinson509]

Genius.

[@Oberkaptain]

Hey James quick question on the ELS kit. I bought one from you last week on ebay and i have a F28379D laying around, do you think I can use that as opposed to the F280049C? The boost board mounts fine and the pins seem to all line up as far as function. Other than the jumpers being in a different place they are the same as far as function and the processors seem to be the same. No one seems to have a 280049C in stock and unknown when they will be back in stock. EDIT: Easy fix for your power switch on the door could be to add a thin rubber gasket which will also help with stopping dust intrusion.

[@mabmachine]

That turned out excellent. I had already thought about this type of scenario, good to know it can work. I'm curious as you run your water lower than I do, any particular thoughts on this? I like the results of running the water higher other than it can make a bigger mess.

[@Clough42]

I drain the table into a bucket and store the table dry, so I try to keep the volume to what will fit in a 5-gallon bucket.

[@cantsolvesudokus]

When you clean that plasmacutter water table please remember to do a video. Im curious as to what hides down there :)

[@Clough42]

I'm thinking of the Dr. Who episode "Gridlock". I don't want to know what's down there.

[@martinandersen7955]

If you want to completely cover the black stain around the red switch. I have seen it is possible to buy a label holder for these switches. It is a black square thin piece of plastic, it mounts like a washer.