input needed

looking for some input, i have the opportunity to buy a new Bailiegh Industrial CNC plasma cutting table.... what i need is to know who would have a need or want for custom cut brackets, tabs, mounts, or what ever you need cut that is flat plate. just want to put some feelers out for the market before i invest a large chunk of change in a machine. and go........

Well, I'll have a need..... but.... I don't have a lot of cash to blow either. What's the general cost of that CNC?

the cost of the machine is around 15k but all brackets and parts will be affordable to all hot rodders

cornfield customs said:

the cost of the machine is around 15k but all brackets and parts will be affordable to all hot rodders

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you have to think about it like any purchase for business, how long will it take to make my money back? if you cut and sell 100 parts for $10 bucks a piece profit in a month great, at that pace it's a no brainer..... but then on the other hand what if you only make 100 pieces a year? how much is it going to save you on your custom builds? it is always great to have perfect parts all the time every time, kinda takes the hand built out of it though....

I have a plasma cam table. When I first got it, sales were fantastic. I would buy it again. HOWEVER if I had to buy it again, today, I wouldn't. EVERYBODY has them and you dont get the sales you used to.

With that said though, it sure is convienent to be able to cut out stuff in minutes/seconds for parts I need rather than the time by hand or buying other peoples parts.

If you do decide to buy one, make sure their software is easy to import and design in,,,,, some arent, and you don't make money while it sits there for a year if you hve to learn crappy software.

choppintops said:

I have a plasma cam table. When I first got it, sales were fantastic. I would buy it again. HOWEVER if I had to buy it again, today, I wouldn't. EVERYBODY has them and you dont get the sales you used to.

With that said though, it sure is convienent to be able to cut out stuff in minutes/seconds for parts I need rather than the time by hand or buying other peoples parts.

If you do decide to buy one, make sure their software is easy to import and design in,,,,, some arent, and you don't make money while it sits there for a year if you hve to learn crappy software.

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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^What he said.

Also the time to set up a piece to cut. One of the local shops here has a one time $80 per set up fee per piece programed into the cutter. Once it is programed you don't have to pay the fee ever again but if I don't need but one peice, I'm not going to drop $80 every time I need a different piece. If your not beating anyone up on set up fees it may be worth it, but like said above the biggest thing would be a time saver for you in your shop.

GJunktionMike said:

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^What he said.

Also the time to set up a piece to cut. One of the local shops here has a one time $80 per set up fee per piece programed into the cutter. Once it is programed you don't have to pay the fee ever again but if I don't need but one peice, I'm not going to drop $80 every time I need a different piece. If your not beating anyone up on set up fees it may be worth it, but like said above the biggest thing would be a time saver for you in your shop.

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I dont charge a set up fee, but I do charge a programing fee if the part is something that burns up a lot of time converting. If it takes me 5 minutes to cut a custom grill,,,,, but takes 5 hours to program,,,,,, either I eat it, or they do. Its one thing if its a part that I will sell a tom of, then I at it, but if its a one off,,,, they eat it.

Who is your target consumer? The universal part seekers, or the model specific folks?

choppintops said:

I dont charge a set up fee, but I do charge a programing fee if the part is something that burns up a lot of time converting. If it takes me 5 minutes to cut a custom grill,,,,, but takes 5 hours to program,,,,,, either I eat it, or they do. Its one thing if its a part that I will sell a tom of, then I at it, but if its a one off,,,, they eat it.

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That is a really good point on the custom stuff, and is something I didn't really hit to well. I was talking more on the lines of little tabs and stuff like that. Our local shop won't let you use a preprogramed piece.

I have had my plasmacam for 2 yrs and it has paid for itsself and I would buy again.

I do a lot of customer work but I use it mainly for my own needs.

Set up time to cut something is usually 80% getting it in a dxf file in the
Computer. But then again I am kinda computer ignorant!

Is there any other tables in your area?
Seems to be a lot of them around.

Good luck,
POPS

Bailiegh makes good stuff.
I have a rule about big expenditures like that. If you have the money, the equipment will earn you a heck of a lot more than the money sitting in the bank.
Second rule is, once you have the equipment you'll be amazed at how much it expands your horizons. Learning something like solid works is huge. Once you get good at it you'll be using it all the time. You may even figure out how to build a cnc bead roller.

Also,,,, there are a LOT of used setups available if you look around. They are like a car, buy it, unbox it, if you cant run it, you just lost 50%.

GJunktionMike said:

That is a really good point on the custom stuff, and is something I didn't really hit to well. I was talking more on the lines of little tabs and stuff like that. Our local shop won't let you use a preprogramed piece.

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Little tabs take a minute to program, litterly. I wont cut someone elses programmed parts unless the customer owns the rights to them.

And 10-15 seconds to cut.

POPS

I've been seriously thinking about one too..that or a little Haas CNC mill..both big purchases..my only concern is keeping either one busy..I do cad/cam for a living..I send .dxf files to a local shop with a laser table..most of my projects don't meet their minimum shop cost of $30..

this was a $30 part..laser cut out of 1/4"..they supplied matl. and programmed using my .dxf file

My cousin used to cut stuff out with a cutting torch using a pantograph. I have thought about doing the same with a plasma set up.

Worked great for my cousin. No electronics. see the link. A guy could build a quality piece and cut things other than heart shapes... I mean... only if you wanted.

Gold03

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=J1NGaZZkTn8&desktop_uri=/watch?v=J1NGaZZkTn8

http://pantograph.fix-er-up.com/

You could always do like the guys with one near me. They cut stuff and take it to shows $10/lb They set up racks and racks of precut stuff and I imagine they do pretty well with it.

If you would take a CAD file and cut it out for me, I would be willing to pay for some stuff to be cut, depending on how much it costs of course.....

I have a Torchmate II with a 4x8 table. It was about $14K new. I use it quite a bit but then I could use it a ton more if I was orginized. If I were to do it again I would probably buy a 4x4 table set up. I am also thinking of making a qhick change head so I can run my hand held Hypertherm 380. The machine torch on the Cutmaster 51 cuts 1/8" wide swath. The Hypertherm cuts a 1/16" so artistic stuff will have more detail. If you are thinking of doing your own boxing plates and such then get the bigger table. If all you are doing is brackets and crossmembers then get the smaller table. Just my $.02

Oh and I use Rhino 3D for design and import it to the torchmate. Their design stuff is terrible.