Introduction to Plasma Cutting

Plasma Arc Cutting (PAC) is a thermal cutting process that is commonly found in many welding and fabrication shops. These machines are so affordable now that even a lot of home hobbyists have started using them in their home garages.
Plasma arc cutting has many advantages over Oxy-fuel cutting and is usually my first choice in the shop when I need to do any metal cutting. For one, it cuts any metal that is electrically conductive; unlike Oxy-Fuel which is limited to ferrous materials only. It also cuts much faster than Oxy-Fuel on all materials, this in turn causes a much smaller heat effective zone (HAZ).
Now as with anything in life, we have to take some of the bad with the good. Plasma Cutters are not as portable as Oxy-Fuel systems. In order to run a Plasma cutter, we have to have electricity, whether it is a wall outlet or ran off an appropriately sized generator. The next item we will need is an air supply. We can get this by one of two ways, either high pressured cylinder or an air compressor. Either way, it limits our portability. There are units out there that generate their own air but they are rather expensive. Depending on the type of cutting you plan to do, you will have to make the decision which system is best for you and your budget. Consumables are another downside to this system. On average, consumables will last 1-2 hours for handheld operations and 3-4 for mechanized operations.
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[@Welddotcom]

Make sure to hit that Subscribe and 🔔button!

[@Adam-lv1uu]

Weld.com haha I liked the first video with the blooper\ edit error.

[@daniele3275]

More content like that please

[@billyharp6806]

Forgot to mention that the retainer needs to be seated fully to depress the safety switch in the head. Otherwise it won’t run either. Good info from all your videos.

[@tothbotond5927]

only if you cut your nails :P

[@rebeccagarcia5998]

Po

[@marksalamack6133]

No unnecessary talk...no repetition.....no ummmmm...no "you know"?....one of the best to the point, well explained tutorials I have ever seen...great presentation

[@Slowhand871]

Man I don’t tell people what to do very often but you need to be a high school shop teacher! Your instructions are absolutely perfect clear and concise. Zero boring bill shit. Bravo

[@Mikey-ym6ok]

"even a welder cant mess it up" wow bro, you did us dirty lol

[@abx4t]

Hahah I came to see who caught that

[@dtice6191]

I’m 50 years old and y’all keep teaching me new things! Your awesome, keep it up

[@captainron8111]

You, my friend, are an excellent teacher. You remind me of my shop teacher in 8th grade. Yes folks, there was a time when our schools taught the trades as early as 8th grade. You sir, would make fantastic shop teacher. Well presented and easy to follow. Thank thank you. CR

[@billcallaway5736]

Agreed excellent excellent video. Yeah I do remember back in 8th grade wonderful experience it allowed me to have much more knowledge than just being dumped out after 12 years of school.

[@Richard.Hybels]

Great teacher I agree. In high school I took Drafting, wood shop, auto shop, and i think maybe welding. Anything to keep me away from the hard stuff like algebra. Now at 76 I tinker with something every day.

[@Terribleguitarist89]

I'm glad I grew up going to a well funded rural school. Our ag shop building was bigger than the school itself. Was lucky enough to take wood, metal, welding, and drafting along with business classes. Not that I've used much of those skills after 😶

[@AlessioSangalli]

Even nowadays many (maybe not all) high schools have pretty good shop programs. My friend's sons (twins) built a "baja racer" in the high school auto shop a couple of years ago. For kids that want to do mechanical engineering at college it's a good thing to have experience in building race vehicles or similar. Now at college they get to work with Haas CNC machines and whatnot

[@MaxTSanches]

@@Richard.Hybels I took Draughting, Electronics, Woodwork, and Metalwork - then went on to algebra, calculus, and physics that led to a survey diploma and later an engineering degree. Those shop courses in grade 8 through 12 really helped in understand the math and physics at university. Now I'm retired and still tinkering as well. :)

[@RUSTICW0LF]

Thank you for taking the time to make this my friend. Much appreciated.👍🐺👍

[@IsleDawn]

Did I ever luck out! I just got a commission to provide some artsy designs for 1/8" steel security shutters, and figured I'd better learn something about plasma cutting. Boy did I ever learn. Thank you for providing an intro that includes nuances, such as direction of cut as it relates to desired end results. I am passing this video along to the plasma-cutter-newbie who is building the shutters.

[@Braunschweiger89]

THis guy is a fantastic teacher. Pay him more.

[@russelljohnson6243]

WQow, a ton of information for free! I feel like I have just taken a master class! Thank you so very much for posting this!

[@themotofixery]

Seen tons of crap videos about plasma cutters but this one is great!! Its refreshing to hear someone who knows what they are talking about and has useful information! Thank you!

[@rockymountainfinishing466]

Great vid...I'm new to welding and fabrication but watching your tutorials has taught me so much and given me the confidence to pull the trigger and build it...whatever it is... I'm a finishing carpenter by trade but always loved metal work..thanks to you and others I'm now doing it. God bless you and your family All the best for 2023

[@lawman5511]

One way to judge your cut speed. Divide the recommended speed by 60 ( seconds per min.) . Multiply that by length of cut and do the “ one Mississippi” count. If you're a novice like me, it helped. And thanks for a great tutorial. I was not aware that torch parts were amp specific. Or I forgot.

[@dandexinventor]

Oh man, thanks...just what I needed! Also, good on you to reference using a router. I've been a woodworker for over 45 years...I'll remember this stuff.

[@SD-co5sv]

Hot dang! I've been using my plasma cutter wrong and always get a bevel edge that drives me crazy thinking my unit was a POS! Looking forward to try your techniques. I had no idea travel speed caused the bevel, nor did I know about the CCW swirl. I even tried cutting at an angle to get a straight edge to no avail. Thanks for teaching this old dog some new tricks.

[@user-sb3wh3dd4v]

This video is one of the BEST I've ever seen on this topic. Three weeks of trade-school didn't cover this material half as well, plus it was boring tedious and expensive as hell. THIS GUY, on the other hand, knows his shit and delivers all the crucial knowledge concisely. THANK YOU!

[@lambertmt]

It's what Marines do.

[@CmdrCobra]

I'm doing apprentice plumbing and just finished 1st year at technical college in Calgary, Canada. I like your videos because they explain everything I need to know about cutting/welding for class. Thanks.

[@leosbampa7350]

I'm just getting into tearing down electrical transformer substations, and I have no doubt this tutorial will be very helpful to me. Thanks, brother!

[@MidnightMaker]

This was literally the most informative video I have ever watched.

[@larryarnold5017]

Thank you I learned enough to go make a purchase of a machine to get started.. Retired with a lot of projects in mind. Your site is very informative on all the different skills I need. Thank you for taking the time to make and share the videos

[@vitale6633]

This is the best Intro to Plasma cutting I've watched. I didn't realize there was a difference in cutting side / direction. Great tip. Good safety advise as well.

[@robertrogers7331]

I clicked away from the other guys video, he was not prepared. I found this presentation and I am a fan! Thank you, very clear, I took notes. And thanks for the heads up on stainless and hexavalent chromium.

[@faelwolf1177]

Bought a cheap plasma cutter to learn on and do a couple small jobs I've been putting off, this was just the video to get me started. Thanks! I have a feeling I'm going to end up putting more time into this and moving up to a better cutter once I get the hang of it, this looks like it's going to actually be more fun than work!

[@robertberthiaume7301]

Very very good explanation, you guys are sooo professional on all your video. Bravo! You are THE welding channel to watch and learn the right way from competency to security. Many thanks from Canada!

[@BleuQuill80]

Learned so much in just the first minute thirty into the video. Thanks.

[@Georgiagreen317]

One of the better video's I've seen. Great job!

[@drewnormand6796]

This was a great video for an old guy that is new to plasma cutting. Thanks.

[@808199873]

Hey Jason this is Ralph a long time since we work together at bbcc looking to buy apartment cover happened to see this video and started watching realized it was yours recognize your voice God bless

[@PacificPinesRanch]

Love your channel! It’s helped me so much while building our container house 😊🙌🔥🛠

[@rthomsen351]

I’m an old dog. You’re teaching me some new tricks! New to plasma and had no idea about cleaner edge of cut on the right side. Great info, I learned more in this one vid than in several others combined. Looking forward to seeing more of your tutorials. Keep it up.

[@jpcolindesign517]

Excellent video. Really excited about having the opportunity to work with one of these later on this year. Excellent instruction as the host was very thorough and knowledgeable. Thanks.

[@joejetson9840]

I like the video. You do a good job explaining the things we need to know and not dragging on things we don’t need to know. Seen a lot of fabricating videos , this is the first one I’ve subscribed to.

[@mattfogarty8144]

Jason dont give up making videos man you do a good job elaborating on topics really enjoy when you put a new video out because I learn a lot even with things I'm knowledgeable with thanks again good video

[@vincentc.8069]

You, My Man, are the best at what you do!!!

[@firstmkb]

You are the first one I've heard mention hexavalent chromium from stainless, so thanks! Great job teaching on these videos - much appreciated.

[@faelwolf1177]

Let's not forget to remind the kids of the dangers of hot cutting or welding on anything galvanized as well!

[@Rudabaugh]

@@jamesbond2472 long story short, you shouldn't be eating or breathing any heavy metals if you can avoid it.

[@kaasmeester5903]

Good video, covers the basics for a beginner like me, with no time wasted on unneccesaries. This helped me a great deal getting better cuts from my hobby machine.

[@reevinriggin3570]

Thanks for the vid. Very helpful. I have never been trained in plasma, but just used my oxy rig for everything for years, but I want to try to get a plasma cutter and this helps me understand the settings and consumables. The little nuances of knowledge like the cut swirl is gold. Thanks again.

[@Sparkystacoma]

Can you do video with a cut 50 cheapo plasma. Most of us start with something cheaper like this.

[@ljprep6250]

It's exactly the same, only our machines don't have all the bells and whistles the expensive ones do. I just bought (and love) my Lotos LTP5000D, a $379 beastie.

[@SegoMan]

@@ljprep6250 Over a 5yr period of moderate use the Hypertherm will be a cheaper machine to own/operate / besides your consumables are stuck on the ships anchored in the harbor..

[@ljprep6250]

@@SegoMan I just checked the prices and have to disagree with you. I could buy 3 Lotos units and 100 consumables sets for that price. $379 vs $1,600+ is a BIG gap. And those consumables could be airlifted to me. ;)

[@SegoMan]

@@ljprep6250 Your cutting cost will be cheaper with Hypertherm and the job you save may be yours, I own 3 of them.

[@ljprep6250]

@@SegoMan Perhaps on a commercial basis, the Hypertherm would be the way to go, but I'm retired. My cutting costs so far are much lower with the Lotos.

[@ernieg.1952]

I've been looking at buying a Plasma Cutter for my garage and wondering different things, this vidoe sure answered a lot of my questions. Thanks

[@mattcero1]

There are 5 states of matter young man. Don't forget about the Bose-Einstein condensate. Great video sir!

[@danwessels5688]

i'd have saved hundreds if not thousands in consumed consumables or phuckerd up projects had i viewed and absorbed your metal working vids decades ago..even though i attended trade college back in '70's for welding i found this stuff far more critical and useful..good job

[@davidblunn7143]

Great intro to plasma cutting. You touched on the electrocution risks but probably worth mentioning that plasma cutters have a much higher operating voltage than a welder has, hence the greater care needed to avoid getting zapped.

[@archersfriend]

I don't even remember my manual saying anything about cut direction. Great thing to know.

[@jactroughton1106]

Wow. If i had of seen this video of yours 20 years earlier, i could very well be as good as you with all your knowledge, if not better than your teachings. Only because others master the trade because of you and how you explain things that are easy to take in and others who do things their way should always learn from their own mistakes. What an awesome crash course on plasma cutting. Thank you so much for for sharing your wisdom. Kindest regards Jac Troughton

[@2599robm]

Excellent video to help me decide on a plasma cutter purchase. Very detailed and quality video on using a plasma cutter

[@Ruben901]

At my old job me and another welder found a hypertherm powermax 150 collecting dust and cobwebs in the corner of the shop. We tried to convince our boss about investing in a pipe saddle to cut and bevel pipe, instead of being cut by a saw then machining the bevels. At first they didnt believe us (and possibly thought we didnt know what we were talking about) well 5 weeks later they bought it and they couldnt get enough of it. Just goes to show you that some conpanies do not know what they have and dont realize how knowledgeable their welders are.

[@robdeskrd]

Ruben, what is a pipe saddle? I don't know a damn thing about competent welding..... 😢

[@aguilayserpiente]

Worker satisfaction is valuable to a firm. Workers designing the assembly line lead to worker satisfaction. Having friends working on the assembly line leads to worker satisfaction because they look forward to going to work. These are the findings of the Hawthorn and Ford studies. Firms ignore these findings at their own risk.

[@robdeskrd]

@@aguilayserpiente Yeah but that of thinking matters to professional tradesmen, ethical people care about the job they are doing. The modern neocon/neolib, supply side thinking, corporate bigwhig is not that person., they care about personal advancement & enrichment and "cheat to win, cheat your employees &, cheat the customer" is always their first choice. Take the rampant use in recent years of TARP money spent by companies buying back their own company stock. This is what many C.E.O.s decided to do because C.E.O.s compensation packages are tied to stock performance and this drove up share price which earned those C.E.O.s more money and increased increased the C.E.O. voting powers in board votes. None of this benefited employees, consumers or, shareholders, it didn't address any possible real problems the companies could be experiencing, it didn't do anything but spend a bunch of negative interest government loan money on inflating C.E.O. pay....... That is the mind of the Captain's of industry and as long as they can make enough profits for the owner class to live there lives if opulence & excess than worker happiness in not a thing corporate ameirca cares about.

[@gregwarner3753]

Executive greed and self service soon leads to company collapse. Good for them and disastrous for everyone else including the stockholders that do not bail out in time.

[@drizler]

The same goes for ANY JOB. Try working for he US Government😝. Talk about a bunch of empty suits with mammoth egos. It takes whatever school to get hired but beyond that it’s all how brown your nose is. The Landscape foreman at a federal prison I worked at told me a great one that just happened to him. The warden summoned him on a Monday morning matter of great concern. He was all worked up because the new trees they’d planted earlier in the year looked like they were dying . Something had to be done immediately! The foreman said he said he’d get right on it with the inmate crew. He told me “ how in hell could I tell him that a cold snap September in the Adirondack mountains made the trees go dormant”? I agreed, dummer than a boot considering that useless warden had been there for 3-4 years already🙄.

[@Smiller1068]

Best instructor ive seen. Thks bro

[@dannyl2598]

Thank you. I have never had the opportunity to use a plasma cutter, only watched them being used. I knew there was a lot to them but had no idea it was that much. I'm glad you educated me because I can make a much better informed decision about buying one and avoid getting discouraged while trying to learn to use it. I had no idea about the rotation but can relate it to using a rotary tool for cutting drywall. Thanks again.

[@OFCbigduke613]

You are a damn good instructor. Awesome relevant info at a great pace. You taught me more in this video than anybody I have ever encountered. So cool.

[@bludog4657]

Thanks for doing this, I really appreciate the safety guidance. You all are always very knowledgeable and adding a touch of humor. God bless you all

[@barrysargent1213]

I learned about the direction of cut purely by accident cutting pipe end blocks. Made myself look good in front of my head engineer that day. When he asked where I learnt that from, I told him I taught myself literally yesterday!

[@user-ur7jn7jz4y]

had to talk about this for a POE project, this helped alot!

[@justbis]

Very good lesson and very well explained step by step, thank you.

[@Kevin.L_]

I've barely ran a plasma cutter at all so this was very helpful. Great stuff again. Thanks!

[@bud1412]

Great job really covered what a person needs to get started, thank you.

[@jamesmccann6479]

Great video! To the point, well constructed information, no useless filler (comments)! Had to see to the end and your speed of dialogue keeps one's attention. Very well done!

[@brysonalden5414]

Since my new plasma cutter didn't come with any manual, this video was most instructive. Wish I had watched it before I burned through two tips!

[@completelydisturbed1657]

thank you for the clarity on this episode great job

[@TrevorMcGrathPhotography]

I was going to comment on how great your presentation was but the previous comments cover it perfectly. Simple a Deadly video, THANK YOU Sir!

[@rafaeltorres9878]

Great class! Thank you from Sunny Puerto Rico!

[@J_Lag]

Nice intro into plasma cutting. I never got to that part in school, always wondered about it, but with your demo I think I can conquer it. Cool Demo! 👍

[@vikassm]

Wow! This was my "I know plasma" matrix moment. You're a great teacher, thank you for sharing all that experience so clearly.

[@caananwilliams6786]

Your explanations are so simple to understand. Much appreciated!!

[@johnwurst6691]

Very informative. Thanks for the lesson!

[@garykipfer3004]

Great presentation and instruction, thank you for all of that information.

[@jublywubly]

This tutorial video is brilliant! Thank you for making it. I learned a lot.

[@outdoorzone]

Great tips as always! I work in my home shop so I cut over a metal 55gal drum that I turned into a safe plasma cutting table with water in the bottom. Added 1/8” x 1.5” flat bar every inch cut to length! Took about 30’ of the flat stock! Works fantastic!

[@seansmith1725]

It's prolly alright, but water and a plasma cutter, is that safe?

[@phillipchambers8487]

Awesome Plasma Tutorial, especially on circle/hole cutting

[@shawnspidle2530]

This had so much great information. I need way more practice using a plasma. They are so useful & vleaner then Oxyfuel. Thanks for this video & keep up the great work gang

[@anthonymasovero9439]

Thank you for the great video. Very instructional to a newbie like me. If it wasn’t for folks like you and your team many of us might be too intimidated to try new things. The information you provide is greatly appreciated.

[@benvin10365]

Great video!!! I'm about to unbox and learn to use my Thermal Dynamics 60i. I laughed at, "Even a welder can't mess it up."

[@hopelessnerd6677]

Well done, sir! Amazing how little things hugely affect the cut quality.

[@Hutchy45445]

Great tips, Thanks! I just purchased one, so this video will be useful. 😁

[@melgross]

Great video. Very complete and straightforward. Good thing that you explained that the airports weren’t for airplanes to takeoff from, I wasn’t sure for a moment.

[@billcallaway5736]

Thank u about two years I caught a bad case of brain cancer. I went through chemo and radiation. And it left me without knowledge a lot of things that I've been doing for 55 years. I didn't even know how to use my plasma. I don't didn't even know the set the gas in the oxygen on my torch.My Miller bobcat I don't even know how to set the dials. It's been a really trying experience. Regain what I enjoy doing.. thank you again for the time you spent.it's amazing how I can lose 55 years experience in less than 10 weeks..

[@jamiethomas4716]

I've put your very good advice to practice with my everlast plasma cutter and it certainly has made a difference.

[@theperl9663]

Great job, nice and clear, with extra points, and not so fast. Some guys think it's a horse race. Anyway you showed me what I was doing wrong (with my older machine), thanks.

[@myt763]

taking shop right now and got to work on client's cars, my moms car and now asked to try welding and plama cutting. i love the opportunities I get and I bet this will help me get into a worthy quantom mechabics class.

[@bobperez8414]

Great instructor. If you work by yourself, it may be hard to see the angle of the of the spark (too slow/fast) so showing the beveled piece will help you determine what was not right. Great job explaining the results of the cut.

[@olddawgdreaming5715]

Great job, thanks for sharing with us.

[@rupert1124]

Hi, fantastic video. You gave an excellent tutorial on what's involved and how to set up the machine. I had lots of questions on the subject but you answered them all. Thanks from Ireland.

[@gerrybellaroma4856]

Excellent video. Lots of great information and detail, delivered clearly, QUICKLY and to the point.

[@onemorebastard]

Merry Christmas folks. Love the channel highest quality. Respect.

[@Gears.and.Gadgets]

Thanks for sharing. Great information. Hope Bob is doing well.

[@codyjohnson8545]

This video helped me a ton! Just started working in a shop that has a plasma cutter and never used one before so this helped with learning how to get a quality cut.

[@danielpullum1907]

Great info on plasma temp., cutting directions, ie., the "flow direction of the gas from the torch".

[@Peter-od7op]

Ty very new to this. Great vdo. My 17 yr old cant wait to try plasma cutting

[@geckoproductions4128]

Thanks for the instructive video, very helpful. Pace just right, content just right

[@johnsmith5911]

Great video! Keep up the good work!

[@bud1412]

Good job, you really covered everything.

[@lawrenceheim9666]

Thanks. This was one of the best videos you’ve done in my opinion. And you do great videos all the time.

[@sledsports]

I put that exact Duramax torch on my 100s everlast. Made a huge difference

[@jdjoubert]

That was VERY informative. Thanks mate👍👍

[@richsharp1524]

I couldn’t agree more with all the positive comments... I have watched several videos on this machine and they have all been good. This one was 👍 great. This video sold me on buying this unit.

[@bruced1429]

good vid Jason , you are every bit as good as Bob as a teacher and I di like your style, Like me Bob is just older with a tad more experience of age , again your are very good at teaching and getting the message across to all levels of experience, keep up the great work.

[@miked9104]

Great tutorial, thanks so much. 👍🏻👍🏻 I just bought my first plasma cutter and this video was really helpful.

[@ginginthing]

Very well done video with a lot of great tips and info. These plasma cutters are the way to go for making parts. Yes, gas or plasma cutting is a skill, and if u don't do it often, u get rusty. I use to be a fit up mig welder 50 years ago, but I haven't cut steel with my oxy/acetylene torch in 22 years. I'll be lucky if I don't catch myself on fire.

[@rhiannemoll3386]

Thanks for the tutorial! Magnificent beard and a magnificent lesson.

[@firebird77clonefirebird89]

Thank you. I just got my first plasma cutter, now I know how to use it.

[@staceygreenstien5038]

Great presentation buddy. After using my plasma cutter I have learned some entry level info from you.