Opinion on Cheap Plasma

[stevewm]

I bought a "uprated" Cut 40D from Parker Metalworking (parkermetalworking.com) about seven years ago and it has worked flawlessly. The company buys welding equipment to spec from China and puts its own enhancements on the machines. A week ago I used the machine to cut half inch with no problems, The torch uses ESAB consumables that are easy to find.

The guy also repairs most import welders as well. He is a retired Navy radar repairman and is pretty familiar with the designs and parts in the import welders. He either does the work by the hour or has a flat rate and provides a i yr labor, three years parts warranty.

By contrast, I bought a Cutmaster 39 a month ago from a pawn store. It looked to be in good condition, didn't show much use on the torch, not banged up or anything. I fired it up but it wouldn't work - the built-in diagnostics showed a bad DC power supply. I checked with Thermal Dynamics for a replacement part and they were asking $600 just for the part.

Morale of the stor is that cheap plasmas aren't always that bad and can actually be cost effective especially if you need one repaired.

Steve in Central TX

[SidecarFlip]

Too bad posters on here don't look a t the 'for sale' ads. I had my Hobart Air Force 400 plasma on here for a while at 500 bucks and no bites. It was Mint, less than 10 hours, extra consunables (yep, you can still get 'em), ran a motorguard filter on it at all times, not a scratch on the case or mark on the ICE hand torch and it worked just fine.

I let it slip up town it was for sale and sold it 2 days later to a guy who owns a fabricating shop that already has 2 Hobarts. 500 cash., 5 one hundred dollar bills.....

I went the Jim Colt/Hypertherm route for the new plasma table machine and hand torch with CNC interface. It wasn't cheap but quality stuff isn't.

...and I agree, Jim is a standup guy. He does great Webinars too. Check him out at www.hypertherm.com/resources

[wmgeorge]

"By contrast, I bought a Cutmaster 39 a month ago from a pawn store. It looked to be in good condition, didn't show much use on the torch, not banged up or anything. I fired it up but it wouldn't work - the built-in diagnostics showed a bad DC power supply. I checked with Thermal Dynamics for a replacement part and they were asking $600 just for the part."

That was the one I also looked at until I read the Reviews! US name but Made in China. HyperTherm is the way to go if you use all the time. I also had one on my PlasmaCam table, worked great!

[Hotfoot]

...and just yesterday I ordered another machine, this one made in a "Sub-Chinese" country...Malaysia...a Thermal Arc 181i MIG/TIG/ Stick Combo (that also accepts a Spool Gun. I checked all the major brands carefully, and it was tight decision between The ESAB, Miller< Hobart, and the TA...not all that much $$$ separating them. I realized the Miller 211 would have the highest resale, the Hobart would be completely reliable and an excellent performer (as my HH180 has been for years, and my 125 EZ is) , the ESAB Caddy 200 is hard-hitter...but the ability to run the machine in all four functions is what sold me...and my complete satisfaction with my Chinese Riland kept the foreign assembly from being a negative.

I am also a guitar player, and guitars have more than a few Chinese made models that are well respected and play very well...Yes, I have one of those, as well.

I know there are those who will never have anything made other than the USA, and that is their prerogative...they vote with their dollar...but their old tube-type TV's and AM radios must be getting hard to keep in repair. Still plenty of American cars..but not many (if any) 100% American...no cell phones, I guess, either (or maybe they are relegated to older dial phones)...I haven't tried to find a US made wristwatch..or camera..or...

Times change, no matter how desperately we may try to cling to the past...it now a world economy.

[SidecarFlip]

My philsophy is that if you succumb to a 'world economy' and that economy revolves around Pacific Rim (Chi-com) products, then your living standard becomes the same as.... exactly what is occuring in this coluntry right now. Myself, I don't want to eat with chopsticks and I don't like raw fish.

Buy imported from China and beome one with the import country or........

Buy American, support American workers (like you hopefully) and the economy.........

Think about it. Your livelyhood could be gone, gone because a third world import 'ate' your job.

Once the manufacturing base (in this country) is all gone, all thats left are service jobs that for the most part, don't pay a living wage.

Cheaper isn't always better, esepcially imported cheaper and imported goods are really lopsided as far as balanced trade is concerned. The very countries that sell their goods here, don't allow us to sell our goods there because they impose strict trade regulation and excessive import tarriff's.

If it's not available except as an import item (like cameras and computers) for instance, I have no issue but when American made products are available, I try to buy American made. Not all the time, but I am cognizant of the repercussions of buying import.

People in this country have consumed too much government kool-aid.

[clcjek]

This guy, Clark Heintz is great to work with and has quality products.. check him out if you want to...
http://www.nhproequip.com/c/31/plasma-cutters

[leftlanetruckin]

I ran a China one a few years ago, which I bought from a friend when he was moving to an apartment etc.
Yeah, it worked.
After a while though, when it needed consumables, I gave up, sold it to a buddy that wanted it and bought a Hypertherm Powermax30 on sale at the local Airgas place.
To say that the Hypertherm is only "rated" at 2/3rds of the China brand, it does a **** of a better job.
I have used the Hypertherm ever since, and would never go back to an off brand.
Just today I sold my Lincoln Promig 175 to as guy that has been looking for a used machine that he could get parts for. The Lincoln fit his needs perfectly.
Moral is, buy quality, and you can ALWAYS sell it later down the road. Kind of hard to sell something that you cant get parts for, and is "cheap" to start with, not to mention ever falling prices as the labor rates etc drop in China....
Just my .02, but I do firmly agree with "be part of the problem, or part of the solution" when deciding what country to support in your purchases.
Used quality trumps new junk any day of the week IMHO.

Martin