newbie from Queensland Australia.

What a great site with so many people helping out, i''m in the process of building a diy plasma table i have a thermacut EX -TRAFIRE 45ds with machine torch it has a cnc port the machine's manual looks like a copy of hypertherms. now onto the board or boards i been researching mesa boards and am lost as to which on to go for, any recommendations on this and what motors most hobbyist are using please. i have 4 stepper motors but not sure if they are big enough 

• Step Angle：1.8°
• Rated current：2.8A DC
• Rated Voltage: 3.36V
• Winding dc resistance（25℃）：1.2Ω±10%
• Winding inductance：2.3mH±20%
• Holding torque：≥1.26N.m
• Shaft diamater: 6.35mm or 1/4″

i have 3d printed a floating head for it, i did try the xpro v5 from spark concepts but don''t like it.
i got the table design from openbuilds site and would like to thank devloop for he's files.
now for my next big learning curve to get my head around how linux works i know ive rushed the build and need to finish it properly.

 

welcome

suggest a read of these two sections of info to get you going

linuxcnc.org/docs/devel/html/plasma/qtplasmac.html

linuxcnc.org/docs/devel/html/plasma/plasma-cnc-primer.html

more common cheaper option
store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=produc...69_63&product_id=311

quite common... more i/os... better option.
store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=produc...69_63&product_id=290

can work, could be very flexible depending on your requirements
store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=produc...69_62&product_id=303

you will benefit from using one or two of the following (you need to read up and decide where you want to end up.... as there are many options of doing things)
store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=produc...83_89&product_id=127

store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=produc...83_89&product_id=328

the above mesa ethernet cards are just options....... you could actually use other options too of their cards too..... as they are very versitile

Mesa cards are available from a few suppliers too.....:
store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=common/home
mesaus.com/
eusurplus.com/
and others listed here:
store.mesanet.com/international-dealers

Really we need more information on what you are driving and how you are driving it, do you have pictures and sketches etc?

Also consider joining the plasmaspider forum too as there are a few posts there too that are worth a read + guys who have 3d printed torch holders etc.

Hi there. I am in Brisbane, Queensland.
Your motors should be ok with 48 or 72 volts driving them. Say a 10 amp supply
Small NEMA34's I found are better for the gantry based on an engineering model we developed
But if you are running belts, you'll save some weight which will help..
The Mesa 7i96 is a nice solution but if you want to use MPG's they suffer for lack of outputs. Has built in relays on outputs
The 7i76e has a lot more I/O and MPG inputs as standard but needs external relays.

If you read the plasma primer in the docs, it has a lot of info which should help understand the plasma environment and help make better decisions...
 

  Here is a picture of where I've gotten too so far 

He's another pic

Thanks Tommylight I will get the right switches mate I have rushed it, I had some micromave switches form one I pulled apart no more rushing the job doing it properly from here out I am really grateful for your help and everyone on this site makes you feel like your finally found the right community

thank you, is there anyone here in Australia that sells Mesa or is an agent for them.
i think i will try the 7i76e

NZ is the closest.

store.mesanet.com/international-dealers