A machine, is a machine, is a machine. Everyone will point you to their favorite machine. Some people will 'dis the other in some chest pounding ritual that mimics tribal mating dances. Basically, a cnc machine moves a carriage along a gantry to move around a work area so many inches +/- X and so many inches +/- Y. Some offer a Z option. The machine you choose is of little importance. I can post a DXF file here, and
every person with a cnc plasma table will be able to cut out the design. You will never hear someone say, "My machine cannot cut
that shape."
So what really matters when you choose a plasma table?
The software. You need to make a few decisions before you buy any machine.
Are you going to rely entirely on design files and library collections that you can buy, copy or steal? Are you going to want the ability to make changes to those designs to suit your needs? Are you going to create your own original designs from scratch?
Most cnc plasma tables use some form of G-Code software that moves the machine torch around using stepper motors. Some of them use servo motors. There are simple programs that give you basic functions, and there are complicated programs that dazzle you with a screen full of dancing numbers, and scrolling lines of coding, and flashing lights, and bells and whistles.
Many of the machines require two or three different software packages to get from a blank sheet of steel to a finished piece. You draw with CoralDraw or AutoCAD or whatever. Then you convert the file to a format you can use with the machine, and finally, you load the file into the software that runs the actual machine, and the cutting process begins.
When I went shopping for a cnc plasma table, the one thing that irked me, was the complexity of the process. I just want to lay down a sheet of metal, draw a square with four holes in it and cut out a base plate!
This is why I settled on the PlasmaCam line of products. The table does not require a washing machine sized computer console standing next to the table. There is a small controller box mounted to the table, and a parallel cord that connects that box to your PC which can be several feet away from the table if necessary, or it can be right there on a car or an articulating arm, or whatever.
What sold me on the PlasmaCam was the SIMPLICITY of the process. Their proprietary software does everything in one package. The software is simplistic in nature. I did not need to learn a computer language in order to control the machine. The screen is a black field on which you draw vectors lines that resemble the 1980's era Asteroids game. There are no complicated formulas, or graphs, or anything else. You simply draw what you want, and cut it out on the table. When you learn how to use DesignEdge, it is actually FUN to use!
People will dis' PlasmaCam, and believe me when I tell you that I have even locked horns with the company now and then. However, the FACT remains that the table is functional and accurate, and with a little maintenance, it will serve a person well for many years.
Sure, you can pound your chest and shout, "It is a BOLT TOGETHER table!" Well, the Golden Gate Bridge is a RIVET TOGETHER structure that has stood the test of time. Most railroad bridges, and nearly ALL of the bridges, overpasses, and such in places like Chicago and New York and St. Louis are all built by bolting or riveting pieces together. so it is not fair to put down the PlasmaCam tables simply because they do not arrive as a single welded iron hulk.
The fact of the matter is, a lot of people make a lot of metal art and other things with these tables, and given that the table has been MAINTAINED like any other machine, it will continue to serve the owner for many, many years.
What I do not particularly care for, is PlasmaCam's business model. They sell the BASIC table with the minimum software in order to keep the price low for the new owner. You are then able to add various upgrades to the license to enhance the table's capabilities. Most of the upgrades are $998.00 each, and that can add up, for sure.
I do not like the piece meal approach to software. So when I bought my first Samson 510 table (the 5x10 version of the PlasmaCAM table) I purchased the Full Monty of software upgrades, so I had (nearly)
everything at the start. I only waited a while to add the Metric Conversion Upgrade which I almost NEVER use, just to make sure I had the full Monty of upgrades they offer.
DesignEdge is a very easy program to learn, and it is very powerful for drawing designs. There are a few additional functions I would love to see added to DesignEdge, but PlasmaCam does not see the need for them, and I do not own the company.
I have not used, and therefore cannot speak about the other tables and software. I can only tell you that I seriously doubt there is anything that another three-axis cnc plasma table can do, that cannot be done on a PlasmaCam table., and most of the time, you will be able to create the design and cut out the part FASTER with the PlasmaCam than with any other table out there.
We now return you to our regularly scheduled chest pounding ritual.
Joe
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