Amada FO-3015 NT. Eco Swap 1

[hookie1985]

Sorry if this has been discussed already but i couldn't find the thread anywhere. My company has had the FO-3015nt for 8 years and we were wondering if there's any real benefit to switching to an Eco set up. We have the EZ cut system and most of the material we cut is Galvaneal steel between .090 and .180 thickness and also .25 through .375 HRS.

we currently run the AMADA 71502035 head and cone. Any ways just thought this would be a good place to ask. Thanks a ton!

 

[laserdog]

We purchased the first 3015 sold in the states from Amada over 18 years ago and it has the HS-98 head and it works great. I use the 1.2 and 1.4 ECO nozzles and I can tell the difference so if you have never tried them that might be an option. These nozzles are expensive from Amada but the quality is worth it on a newer laser so I would find someone cheaper if you want to try them.

 

[hookie1985]

Thank's and ton Laserdog. yeah we had to replace a cone which ended up around 6000 and we have found the HS-98 online for under 1000. Our cut quality is rough as it is with the zinc coated material and low pressure system. so if that would save us money in the long run i believe it would be nice. Our welders de-burr* all parts before they weld. Do you get crazy slag/drauss on anything from the Eco? Thanks in advance

 

[laserdog]

This is our cut on heavy plate, the 3/8 is a bit rough so we're cleaning the optics today. If I find out the parts are going to the other departments with dross on them I will make the laser operators clean them. One of the first things I drill into the laser department is we have to have a clean cut dross free because our customers paid for it. Now some materials you just can't cut real clean so you do the best you can but mild steel should always be clean. Who is you Amada rep? Do you do your own maintenance?

 

[hookie1985]

Beautiful cuts sir. i have my stainless steel and my HRS all dialed in very beautiful. However our Galvaneel* just always leaves a little dross from the coating or something im not sure. it warps and curls a lot though so we always have to watch for cutting head collision. we do have maintenance plan. Our rep is Mark Abrook. They are very good to deal with for sure. I was the programmer of this machine for 7 years before we had to down size and I inherited everything with it so I'm self taught on everything just reading the books and forums trying to tread water. haha. But i believe it can cut our GNL steel better even though we have the low pressure ez cut. Maybe im just a dreamer lol

thanks again

 

[laserdog]

I made these from 18 ga Galvannealed steel. When I cut my 18 ga Galvannealed I used a 3.75" focus lens and treated it like stainless. I used 5kg of nitrogen with a 3.0 nozzle and the cut was great. Have you used the stainless cut conditions to see how it would work? One trick that works on the warping is to double tab the part but make sure to put them on opposite sides and as close to the middle of the part. I've been doing it all for over 20 years so if you need help and tricks I should be able to help I know the machine inside and out along with programming.

 

[hookie1985]

i havnt tried my SS settings like that on gnl. we cut 7ga, 10, 12, 13 in gnl. the smallest lens i have is a 5" though but right now we run everything on a 7. with a 2.0 on 12 and 13 cut awesome. 10 and 7 not s much. I focused our len's the best i could but Like i said ive never ran a laser. i ran cnc lathes and mills at my grandpas shop all summer growing up and fell in love with machine work. I landed this job being the only one who could write programs in MS Dos lol. i Appreciate any help you can give. One tech said just lower the focus until it stops cutting then back it off .030 so that might not be good lol

 

[LASERNINJA]

On the origional FO, with the 160i control, there were three different cutting heads, ECO, standard, and water. On the NT there is just one head with the different nozzle adapters. In my opinion, the two or three mm single is about the best you can hope for.

I think everyone has at least a little trouble with galvanized. But in your case, I wonder about the EZ cut. For those who don't know, it's a membrane nitrogen generator made by Parker sold by Amada. On the first day of operation you might get 95% purity. The next day it's less pure and so on. Eventually the membrane ruptures and you are just cutting with shop air, essentially. I would like to see what happens to your edge quality with a bottle of pure nitrogen. You may be pleasantly surprised.

 

[laserdog]

Not sure if you have this but it is a good place to start.

 

[hookie1985]

Awe yes the membrane, Yeah we had to replace that and all the coal inside back in June. That was a dirty job for sure. I had it cutting a lot better before the membrane swap though. Then we had turbo blower motor replaced, and a Chiller Pump rebuilt, and our internal Tracking cable busted so we had to go external and then the Tech accidentally statically fried our board because he forgot his ground straps... so we had to get that re done and... well it has just been a very long summer to say the least.

We did run straight Nitro once. they told us just hook it up and we ended up freezing the whole dang thing all the way to the head. That was 6 years ago. Yeehaw

 

[laserdog]

This system has been great for us.

 

[laserdog]

I uploaded the wrong photo this one should be good.

 

[hookie1985]

That chart is awesome thank you so much! Yea i will upload pics of our set up tomorrow morning. Its a fraction of what you guys are running. We manufactor skateparks and safe rooms though so it gets the job done but id be stoked if i could make it better..

 

[hookie1985]

Ok here is our little setup we have run through our shop. EZ Cut system.

 

[laserdog]

Some time ago that was just like our shop. At one time we had so much 3/8 stainless to cut we had 3 tanks piggybacked and a full truck outside so we could refill them. It sounds like you’ve done a good job with things so keep it up and if you need any help just ask the people here are great.

 

[hookie1985]

Thanks a ton laserdog. It's nice to be able to bounce ideas off of people with the know how. It's greatly appreciated