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Re: powermax 800 help

Be mindful if the unit is set for 208 and you plug it into 240 it will also trip the switch.

Re: powermax 800 help

thanks Bob, i have heard that and we have a filter on the machine that is still functional and intact, also my neighbor that i share it with has a nice snap on compressor with filters as well as I have on my quincy, i also keep my tank drain cracked on mine 100% of the time so it is always pushing out moisture when i fire it up, so hopefully between dual filters on both plus the one on the unit on the back we should be ok, i dont know if the inlet on the back came that way but it has an inlet that goes to a filter then into the machine beyond that

Re: powermax 800 help

It sounds like you might be moving the PM 800 around a bit as you share it. I would give some thought to keeping the air supply clean and DRY. Dirty or wet air can cause a lot of grief. When more than one person uses a plasma cutter in different locations, that can fall through cracks. Congrats on getting your unit up and running.

Re: powermax 800 help

I’m curious to see what is the thickest you can cut clean with that torch and the 60 amp consumables. The Thermal Dynamics 60i with the same torch can cut 5/8” clean and sever up to 1.5” iirc. I have not tried either yet but I am sure I would not be dissapointed when I do.

Proper air psi will give the best cutting results. There is probably a happy medium between the powermax 800 power supply and the SL60 torch you are using.

Re: powermax 800 help

nice, well it seems pretty cool from what i know, my neighbor cut the 1/4" metal fenders off his trailer with it, i as they were off when i came home today so it must have worked - I haven't got to talk to him about it yet and see if he made any smiley faces with it ;-) man now i have to try that if i can get it back away from him......wish me luck

Re: powermax 800 help

Shade 5 is adequate for the 50 amps that the Powermax800 produces. Hide the metal or it will all be in little pieces before long! That's a nice old plasma.....it was at the beginning of good inverter technology. Before that model we had early inverters that were questionably reliable! Next after the 800 was the 900, the 1000, then the Powermax65.....each a bit more powerful and more reliable. Jim Colt

Re: powermax 800 help

I'll normally do shade 5 to 6 or somewhere in between the two.

I'm surprised you didn't cut a happy face to show how much you were enjoying the cutter.

Re: powermax 800 help

oh boy, fired up the hypertherm 800 tonight and cut my first metal with a plasma, that was fun, made a circle, made a u shape, made a hole, it was very fun, so what shade do you guys usually cut with using a plasma ? 5 to 7 like a O/A torch?

Re: powermax 800 help

Thanks All, I will let you know how it goes, going to pick it up later today and hope to try it out later this week, got to finish up my fixing my broken septic before the rain hits!!!!

Re: powermax 800 help

Glad you got it running! Jim Colt

Re: powermax 800 help

Originally Posted by searcyfarms

i got the unit for free and we paid a very fair price for the repairs especially since they are not available much anymore he is near smithville lake missouri and has ads on craigslist in kansas city market here is his ad

https://kansascity.craigslist.org/hv...825322722.html

I am more than happy with the price, it was less than the cost of a circuit board ( which isnt even available ) for one let alone the cost of the input diode and his hours working on it, he is a wonderful fair man

id give him a 10 out of 5 stars

good deal, all that matters is your happy with it...

Re: powermax 800 help

i got the unit for free and we paid a very fair price for the repairs especially since they are not available much anymore he is near smithville lake missouri and has ads on craigslist in kansas city market here is his ad

https://kansascity.craigslist.org/hv...825322722.html

I am more than happy with the price, it was less than the cost of a circuit board ( which isnt even available ) for one let alone the cost of the input diode and his hours working on it, he is a wonderful fair man

id give him a 10 out of 5 stars

Re: powermax 800 help

Originally Posted by searcyfarms

ok so the cutter is fixed and working with no modifications done to the torch or the machine - just like i said the torch plugs right into the machine using the standard connection it came with from the factory - what was wrong..................SOMEONE.............likely one of the people that worked at the business presumably took it home and attempted to change the wiring over or ( was an even worse idiot ) and thought plugging into his home electricity would work and blew out the input diode and transistors on the control board - they were smart enough to realize that they needed to try to change the internal wiring around ( possibly after plugging it in and it didnt work at home ) and got two of the wires moved from 208 to 240 but was one wire short of a happy power supplyl!!! Poof goes the board/poof goes the input diodes. So it needed parts, fortunately this person that is fixing it had new parts from old stock he purchased and he is going to put it through some paces over the weekend but he ran it a little today and cut some things and it works great, if any of you are looking for a Hypertherm 1000 he has one for sale. I am not selling this 800 ;-)

so what was the final cost of repair and did you pay for the original unit?

Re: powermax 800 help

Location, shop name and his name might help others determine if the shop you got the 800 repaired at would work for others needing repairs. Glad to hear he was able to get it fixed up for you.

Re: powermax 800 help

oh and yes he had one of those pak 50 TD units in his shop for repairs also, he had all kinds of stuff he was fixing, he is a really smart guy and i would highly recommend him to anyone needing a welder/plasma/any of that kind of stuff fixed. He works on miller/lincoln/hypertherm/thermal dynamics/esab/all the major name brand stuff that i have heard of, i didnt see any low end cheap china stuff in there.

Re: powermax 800 help

ok so the cutter is fixed and working with no modifications done to the torch or the machine - just like i said the torch plugs right into the machine using the standard connection it came with from the factory - what was wrong..................SOMEONE.............likely one of the people that worked at the business presumably took it home and attempted to change the wiring over or ( was an even worse idiot ) and thought plugging into his home electricity would work and blew out the input diode and transistors on the control board - they were smart enough to realize that they needed to try to change the internal wiring around ( possibly after plugging it in and it didnt work at home ) and got two of the wires moved from 208 to 240 but was one wire short of a happy power supplyl!!! Poof goes the board/poof goes the input diodes. So it needed parts, fortunately this person that is fixing it had new parts from old stock he purchased and he is going to put it through some paces over the weekend but he ran it a little today and cut some things and it works great, if any of you are looking for a Hypertherm 1000 he has one for sale. I am not selling this 800 ;-)

Re: powermax 800 help

Wow. Never heard that story, much less ran into that before. Not doubting you at all, just kinda shocked. You must really have some kind of bastardized-hybrid in your possession. This is what came on the original Pakmaster 50 plasma. Called a smart torch. The picture you showed looks like a PCH62 torch that came after the smart torch.
Attachment 1699163Attachment 1699164

Re: powermax 800 help

supposedly the Thermal Dynamics torch that is on mine is made to fit it, per the 30 year certified hypertherm tech i spoke to Hypertherm used to make what they called PAK50 or something like that i cant remember exactly type torches for them when they were new and they were always arcing and troublesome and needing repaired because of some button on the top that detected consumable tip length in order for the torch to work, so they discontinued them and went to the TD type because TD already was making torches that fit many other branded systems Hypertherm didn't need to reinvent the wheel and had the TD torch made to work with these powermax units. It says on the handle of the torch where is screws onto the port on the powermax that it is made for hypertherm plasma cutters. This hypertherm tech said it should work fine and is a descent torch and he will test and make sure it works properly.

Re: powermax 800 help

Looks like someone installed a Thermal Dynamics SL60 torch on that Hypertherm 800. Good luck tracking down the problem.

Re: powermax 800 help

Using one of the adapters is the only way you're going to adapt a TD SL60 torch to the machine unless somebody did a really good hack job. Searcyfarms, can you post a pic of the connection end of the gun?

Re: powermax 800 help

Here is a pic from the pdf I linked above that shows the torch parts breakdown for the torch you have.

Attachment 1699154

Re: powermax 800 help

The link I provided shows you the ATC connectors for different machines. This torch can be adapted to be used on many machines as well as your powermax 800 according to the literature on the page I linked. I would try sepparating the nozzle from the start cartridge as I previously mentioned before paying anyone to check it out.

Re: powermax 800 help

oh dear well crap who knows, see that is what happens when you get a hack idiot like me that doesn't know a hypertherm from a thermal dynamics, supposedly they used it this way for a long time per my neighbor then one day it crapped and quit - not sure what kind of an adapter you mean but the torch screws right into the front with a screw lock type connection, no pigtails or short plug gender changers or anything like that. I am actually headed to the fella that is going to work on it for me so maybe he will show/tell me a thing or two and get me set straight. Thanks for your patience with me trying to learn about this stuff and clarifying my ignorance, I probably have no business having something so nice as i know these are high end machines but i would rather spend money on this one and get it going than a 300 dollar machine that might take a dump on me in 6 mos.

Heck Jim, maybe that is my problem its the wand/torch seems like you said that twice already LOL but my neighbor assures me they used it with this torch for many many yrs - I'm beginning to wonder if someone did a switcheroo trying to get it to work and he didn't know.

This will bring to an interesting conclusion!!!
Stay tuned for more exciting Hypertherm/Thermal Dynamics drama from the guy that is learning much feeling humble

Re: powermax 800 help

Originally Posted by searcyfarms

part number 2Attachment 1699100

This is suppose to be two sepparate torch parts. What you have there is a start cartridge and a nozzle. Sepparate those two. Then look at the start cartridge “ black plastic part ”. It should have a metal inner ring that is spring loaded and should move in and out freely without hanging up or sticking. I am gussing this could be the issue as those two parts are stuck together and should not be.

Re: powermax 800 help

I am curious what has been done to the machine or torch to get a Thermal Dynamics XL60 torch to fit on a hypertherm powermax 800 power supply unit ??? That is the wrong torch for that machine as far as I can tell from when the powermax was sold new. Your Torch and consumables are labled One Torch or TD which are Thermal Dynamics parts. Are you using a Thermal Dynamics ATC adapter for your machine?

Here is a link to the One Torch and adaptors for non Thermadyne machines.

https://weldingsupply.com/1torch.pdf