NOTE:
Keep moving while cutting. Cut at a steady speed without pausing. Maintain the cutting
speed so that the arc lag is 10° to 20° behind the travel direction. Use a 5° - 15° leading angle
in the direction of the cut.
2.2.2 Operating Techniques
1.
Piercing
- Materials (up to 3.2mm/1/8in. thick) work. When piercing thicker materials (up
to4.8mm stainless or carbon steel) at an angle, position the torch 0.5mm (.02” ) above the
work piece.
It is advisable when piercing thicker materials to drill a small pilot/starting hole in the work
piece which makes it a lot easier and gives increased tip life. Start the cutting arc, then
immediately raise the torch to 1.6mm (1/16”) stand-off and move the torch along the cut
path. This will reduce the chance of spatter from entering the torch and prevent the possibility
of welding the tip to the plate. The torch should be angled at about 30° when starting to
pierce, and then straightened after accomplishing the pierce.
2.
Grate Cutting
- For rapid restarts, such as grate or heavy mesh cutting, do not release the
torch switch. This avoids the 2 second pref-flow portion of the cutting cycle.
3.
Edge Starting
– For edge starts, hold the torch perpendicular to the work piece with the front
of
the tip near (not touching) the edge of the work piece at the point where the cut is to start.
When starting at the edge of the plate, do not pause at the edge and force the arc to ‘reach’ for
the edge of the metal.
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