Manufacturing Or Fabrication

Whatever you want to call it, I am an absolute fool for it. 3D printing is an introduction to CNC. And I love it because it teaches me all the fundamentals of working with CNC but without the mess. Sadly I have fallen short of achieving any type of a facility to house a mill or lathe of any kind. So I feel as though this can never grow past plastic. And with the realization that there is no real money to be made with my 3d printers I am gonna just focus on honing other skills, now. Like welding. I have a few decades now under my belt playing with the MIG welder and have made some cool stuff: https://www.superchargerforums.com/t...ring-gto.3135/ . And that paid me dearly, BTW. So it is with this knowledge of the ratio of what I have made working with the metals vs. what I haven't made working with the plastics that is driving me from playing with the printers to learning to TIG weld. And so Off the deep end I go, right? What do you guys think of my first TIG welder? https://primeweld.com/products/tig-2...-dc-tig-welder

And here is my new TIG welder perched atop my toolbox, the PrimeWeld Tig225x.. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/xq90/923/GD1h03.jpg

I still have to get one of the MIG welder's tanks switched out with pure argon. But this right here makes money hand over fist.. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/xq90/924/xEP9sW.png

And here is my new Plasma cutter. Because what good is being able to attach the stainless and aluminum and other metals if we cant cut it into pieces, right? http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/xq90/921/dm40mt.jpg

This portable welding station is just missing consumables. Pure argon and filler rods.. http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/xq90/924/xjVfXx.jpg

I feel that I now need to build the MPCNC for some CNC plasma cutting.

lol - you're like a kid in a candy shop !

cnc plasma cutter could be much fun :-)

Everytime they have the little rod welders in lidl I think about it.
But the toys I have aren't paying their way, and I've got nowhere to weld and dogs.
:-)

Looks impressive. And interesting!

I have been seriously wanting to learn to weld for almost 10 years, but never got to enrolling in a course.
Then if I would be welding for customers, it would need to be quality work.
How much time do you think you need to get good at this?

Well, I personally have 20 years of welding experience on a near daily basis as I started my career at a muffler shop. The brunt of my experience is with MIG but I have some experience with stick welding and a plethora of experience with a soldering iron. I expect to spend a few hours while I get the feel for it.

Speaking of welding, Have you guys seen this 525hp 6-speed Flyin' Miata i have been building on? I am done building and have it on the dyno right now: https://www.superchargerforums.com/t...da-miata.9454/

Well in the face of building a cnc plasma cutting table, I can maybe just buy a cheap one. I mean they aren't that bad. And if I supply my own plasma cutting tool, they are even cheaper. What do you guys think of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdsCEx_YaJk&t=

The only thing holding me back at this time is a place to put this. Or i would already have it: https://store.langmuirsystems.com/pr...BoCxDMQAvD_BwE

looks good :-)

Seems weird only having the gantry supported at the one end - but guess it's not a problem.

But for under $2000 - with the extras, seems like a good buy to me.

I need a sponsor. Or a silent investor. Or even friends that live close by and share in my interests and visions that can share in the cost. And i can find the freedom in fabrication that i so desperately seek. Have you seen this man's youtube channel, CA? I can't get enough of this Colin Furze. I can only dream of being so free to create: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT8QkEK0X8U&t=

In fact the very first project I have planned for this cutting and welding cart is this inset metal brake from this video right here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ggy1DHwAh_0

you are aware of what you do for a living, right ?

How is fabrication equipment not both a genuine business expense and a valid piece of cost reducing equipment.

Now what you do with that equipment out of hours - that's your business :-)

I cut out this plate with my new plasma cutter. Using a straightedge as a guide I can make nice clean and straight cuts.. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/xq90/921/aB2yEn.jpg Then I drilled some holes, tossed on some paint and began mounting fuses and relays.. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/xq90/924/ldiueC.jpg And here is the end result mounted and grafted into a 1965 Chevrolet Corvette.. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/xq90/924/gFK1Mg.jpg

That answer depends greatly on your definition of 'good'. If by good you mean learn how to prep your metals, attach a ground strap within a foot of your welding area, and get good penetration with a MIG so you can get a job done, then maybe not too long. Definitely less if you are used to soldering as it is very much the same process just scaled up a bit. If you want to be good enough to make the pretty welds we all love to look at on social media this can take a while and requires lots of practice like playing a band instrument. And if you want all of your welds to pass X-ray tests then you should have a bunch of experience laying the pretty welds. One of my first jobs in the automotive industry was at a Midas muffler shop 20 years ago, now. There I learned to weld and also to use a pipe bender. And today I can make stuff like this: https://www.digitalcorvettes.com/thr.../#post-3085545 . And this: https://www.digitalcorvettes.com/thr.../#post-3441096 . And also this: https://www.superchargerforums.com/t...ring-gto.3135/ . Or even this: https://www.superchargerforums.com/t...n-a-7-0l.3130/ .