Recommendations for purchases

[Peter Matteson]

Originally Posted by Akash Rastogi

Was it a Torchmate?

If so, what materials did you use it for mostly? Did you modify the cutter head at all or what gas you were using. I'd love to hear more about the setup if you used it for FRC parts because MORT just got a CNC plasma cutter as well and they're looking to set it up for the season. I'm not sure what company or model this one is though. I believe it is a PlasmaCam.



Thanks!

We cut mostly 6061 on it. Although be warned it it will take the heat treat our of the aluminum near the cuts in the heat affected zone. We cut a variety of thicknesses up to 1/4 and were cutting parts in minutes of making the designs.

As far as I know we used the standard plasma cutter head. Our machine is the plasma cam that you show a picture of and is set up in our welding area for ventilation. Be warned in your setup the computer that runs it needs to be well protected from spatter and that the vaporized metal does move.

The gas we use it just filtered and regulated shop air nothing special.

I will suggest making several test pieces before build. We spent a lot of time learning the best way to make our parallel plate drive and came up with some great processes to make what used to take days in a couple hours, although I can't garuntee everyone has the tools needed to make the types of setups we divised I recommend some trial and error.

Akash, look at my FB photo album for Build Season 2012 to see pictures of the setup.

[Wetzel]

Mindstorms and the Carnegie Mellon Curriculum or Vex and Swept Away. I've taught a 6 week summer school class around the former, and am teaching a two week class this summer around the later. The Legos keep, until sets get mixed up or pieces lost to the vacuum, but that is a slow and minor degradation of ability. The Vex will last as long or shorter, depending on how much you let your students cut the material. One feedback I've gotten from a PLTW engineering teacher who has used both FTC and VEX was that the students all preferred FTC because it wasn't so open ended, that the LEGOs were easier to deal with. YMMV

There is a classroom bundle from Vex for about $6k that gets you a field, a game, and kits for 5 robots. Getting enough so that they can work in groups of 3 or 4 makes a huge difference when hands are engaged. I'd take these rather than one big machine for a classroom.

Wetzel

[Akash Rastogi]

Originally Posted by Peter Matteson

Akash, look at my FB photo album for Build Season 2012 to see pictures of the setup.

Will do, Peter, thanks for the information. Since you most likely have the same setup I will be bugging you during this Summer.

Thanks again!
-Akash