Hello!

[Bigrednick]

Hello everyone! I’m pretty new to the world of plasma. Decided to jump in the deep end and bought a ShopSabre sidekick 8. Really looking forward to learning from everyone. I’m located in Midland, MI. Anyone close to me?

[adbuch]

Welcome aboard Nick! I'm in Arizona - so can't be of too much help with a personal visit. Just checking out the ShopSabre site, I see that for software it says:

"12 Month Subscription for Hypertherm ProNest LT Unlimited & EnRoute Fabrication 7 – Features Nesting, 2D CAD/CAM, Shapes Library, Sign Making, Photo Importing, Lead Ins & Outs, & more!"

I wonder what the cost is once the free period runs out. In any case, many here use Inkscape (free) for drawing and Sheetcam (very moderate one time purchase) for their cad/cam. What sorts of items are you planning to make once you have your new table up and cutting? Let us know if you have any specific questions and we are here to help.

David

[Bigrednick]

Hi David,

ProNest and EnRoute year subscriptions came with the table. Never even opened ProNest. EnRoute is about 500 annual for the fabrication version. I dabble with inkscape but I have to be honest, it’s not user friendly at all. So I’m looking for another option.

I’ve been making signs mostly. Some tool holders, helmet holders and some art. I did start a small sign business which took right off much to my surprise.

I have sheetcam, but it’s been on the back burner just because of a time issue. I’d like to learn it more though.

[adbuch]

Hi Nick - I was just checking out an Enroute tutorial video. It looks like a very workable program for general cnc plasma cutting projects. If you like it and are comfortable paying the $569 per year subscription price, then perhaps stick with it after your 1 year free trial runs out.



Another solution might be something like CorelDraw for cad and Sheetcam for cam. You can purchase CorelDraw 2021 full version for around $100 on Amazon. I purchased the 2020 version last year for about $105 for a perpetual license.

https://www.amazon.com/CorelDRAW-Graphi ... 44318&th=1

Of course there is a learning curve to any of these programs. LightBurn is another one that is pretty easy to use. I think the cost is about $60 for a perpetual license.

https://lightburnsoftware.com/

Inkscape is great for more artistic projects, and is really pretty easy to use once you get the hang of it. I just posted some useful Inkscape tutorial links here:

viewtopic.php?f=98&t=34972&p=220687#p220687

I personally use all of these programs, and sometimes a combination of several of them to achieve my desired result. Let us know if you have any specific questions about any of this software and we will do out best to help you.

David