newbie to cnc plasma

[mcmental]

Afternoon folks, i am currently putting together a cnc plasma table and have got the table,motors,drivers,power supply and breakout board and plasma but im now looking for the thc ive seen various items advertised but theres so many that i seem to be going round in circles.
this is just a tool im using for home use so not got a massive budget.
ive seen
myplasm
tmc3in1
proma thc

[acourtjester]

Good to see more DIY types, having a THC is very handy as it helps to get better cutting experiences. Cutting thin metal or metal with a warp can cause problems which can cause wasted metal due to bad cutting operations. Choosing a THC is dependent on many things, your electronics, and software used. Does your BOB board have 5 inputs, as you need 3 for the THC at least one for home/limits and one for the Probe input. Check with member here for each type as part of your research before buying.

[mcmental]

im really open to suggestions on all the parts and software, ive seen mach3 which looks ok and myplasm comes with its own software too. my BOB is here in these photos

0A9D9211-CAA9-4C5B-B5FF-EFF89395BFB0_1_105_c.jpeg

ABF824AD-AD41-4827-8510-242070F1A1EC_1_105_c.jpeg

C89B5882-F39A-458E-925B-D5031F58AE00_1_105_c.jpeg

3900C394-823A-42FD-8D07-098B8A734832_1_105_c.jpeg

[acourtjester]

Ok that is a standard Parallel Printer post BOB, if you have a PC with a printer port output you can use it like that. It can also be used with a motion controller electronics package, (UCCNC) that would require additional electronics and software ( about $200) but still no THC. Do you have a license for Mach 3 or 4 yet, that is about $180. So for similar cost you could buy the UCCNC electronics and software which is better, again still no THC. You have not gone into detail about your table, software or electronics to help with the questioning. You can use the DEMO versions of Mach 3 or 4 and SheetCam to run tests with short G-codes, but need to have them licensed to have a fully functional operation. Understand you do not need a THC to run your table and cut projects, it is a better operation with one. Attached is a simple drawing showing the components for a CNC Plasma table.

Table over view.JPG

[mcmental]

Ok that is a standard Parallel Printer post BOB, if you have a PC with a printer port output you can use it like that. It can also be used with a motion controller electronics package, (UCCNC) that would require additional electronics and software ( about $200) but still no THC. Do you have a license for Mach 3 or 4 yet, that is about $180. So for similar cost you could buy the UCCNC electronics and software which is better, again still no THC. You have not gone into detail about your table, software or electronics to help with the questioning. You can use the DEMO versions of Mach 3 or 4 and SheetCam to run tests with short G-codes, but need to have them licensed to have a fully functional operation. Understand you do not need a THC to run your table and cut projects, it is a better operation with one. Attached is a simple drawing showing the components for a CNC Plasma table.
Table over view.JPG

i have a 1m X 1m table with 4 nema 23 motors,power source and Dm556 drivers, i havent got software yet so im looking for the best option to get me up and running

[acourtjester]

I assume with a 1 m table designation you are either in Europe or Australia so based on that I would say Myplasm looks good as it seems to have a complete package of controller, THC and software so you would not need Mach or SheetCam. If you are in Europe. Now for Australia LinuxCNC would be the setup, Either due to their location and supply of components. Both are different software packages with you just starting your not changing software but learning it from the start. Now if your in Canada whoops getting these may be a little harder, there is a Us distributor for the Myplasm system. I have no experiences with either just going by their locations.
I'm sure other member will give their opinion as to what you should get, just do more research.

[Rodw]

Have a look at Linuxcnc and its Plasmac config. There is a section for it on this forum but the manual is here.
http://linuxcnc.org/docs/2.8/html/plasm ... guide.html

An old PC and $200 in hardware is all you need.

When you see Tormach taking the same approach to Plasmac, surely it can no longer be ignored. Tormach use a custom board that folds two $69 cards into one and their own custom FGPA card which has replaced Mesa hardware they used to use - which is what Plasmac prefers). Really external THC's are yesterday's technology. Just let Linuxcnc do it and get super tight integration with the motion controller.

[Rodw]

Ooops, I missed the breakout board. You can use a $69 THCAD board and your BOB to control our machine. Performance will be somewhat limited but it does work.

[mcmental]

Ooops, I missed the breakout board. You can use a $69 THCAD board and your BOB to control our machine. Performance will be somewhat limited but it does work.

i have a windows pc in the garage that i plan on using, i dont know anything about linux, is that requiring another computer??

[mcmental]

I assume with a 1 m table designation you are either in Europe or Australia so based on that I would say Myplasm looks good as it seems to have a complete package of controller, THC and software so you would not need Mach or SheetCam. If you are in Europe. Now for Australia LinuxCNC would be the setup, Either due to their location and supply of components. Both are different software packages with you just starting your not changing software but learning it from the start. Now if your in Canada whoops getting these may be a little harder, there is a Us distributor for the Myplasm system. I have no experiences with either just going by their locations.
I'm sure other member will give their opinion as to what you should get, just do more research.

hi there, im in the UK

[Rodw]

Ooops, I missed the breakout board. You can use a $69 THCAD board and your BOB to control our machine. Performance will be somewhat limited but it does work.

i have a windows pc in the garage that i plan on using, i dont know anything about linux, is that requiring another computer??

Possibly, it depends on system latency. A lot of guys use old Dell or HP corporate PCs. Linuxcnc is installed as an ISO containing Linux and Linuxcnc all rolled into one.

A computer is just a tool. I use Windows, Linux and my Chromebook every day and I don't really find any difference. There is a very experienced guy on the LinuxCNC forum called Clive based in the UK who would be more than willing to help if you ask questions on that forum. He even found the time to visit me in Australia pre covid.

[acourtjester]

I bought a lease returned Dell small form factor with win 10 on a small SSD, I pulled out the SSD and bought another to put Linux on in that PC.
If I want to switch back I can just change out the SSD. I am very close to building another table and that is what I will be using on it With the Linux already installed.