Howdy,
On Wed, 20 Oct 2004, Skip Albright wrote:
> I find my self needing to cut up cars, maybe one a month.
>
> Sawzall and circular saw with metal cutting blades work, but are expensive
> to use, and ugly , noisy work.
>
> whats the next step up?
>
> cutting torch? what specs do I want?
> can I use the same torch for general work?
>
> Plasma cutter? expensive?
Depending on your goals... If you want to make large pieces smaller and
don't particularly care what they look like, a regular cutting torch will
certainly do the job. Fairly inexpensive, and the same stuff you want for
general work (there are different tips available for torch handles, but
most any reasonable kit comes with a cutting setup as well as a heating
setup). Fairly inexpensive, handy to have, get this no matter what.
A Plasma cutter is really nice for sheet metal when you need to be precise
with your cuts. But unless you can get the head right next to the metal,
its useless. Sometimes (like a boxed frame stub or similar), that can be
a hassle. The plasma cutter also will only handle up to 1/4" or so
(assuming we're talking a smaller 220V or 110V unit). Figure around $1k
to $1.3k, unless prices are way lower now than they were 3 years ago.
A big cutting wheel or sawzall is still really useful for those cases
where you can't get next to the metal with the torch or plasma cutter.
I'd probably want at least the torches and cutting wheel/sawzall...
Mark
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