Cost wise, OA cutting is cheaper, you don't need an electrical outlet or an air compressor... you can also cut much thicker material with an OA torch and correct tips. Not to mention u can get a rosebud tip for heating and bending metal as well as freeing rusted nuts and bolts..
Plasma is great for detail shape cutting, excels at sheet metal and will also cut non ferrous metals which OA will not. Under 1/4 inch thick various cold saws and saw blades work well too. Saw blades have the advantage of giving straight and accurate angle cutting. Look at evolution and steelmax saws for examples.

 

Plasma is easier to operate. O/A is more versatile. Victor torches are the standard, can go wrong with victor. Smith and Harris are also good.

 

I don't own a plasma, torches do all I ask of them and more. One day I will call up Jim Colt and buy a Hypertherm when the need arises or I have some extra cash, till then Oxy Fuel works for me.

 

I use both. Torch will not cut Al, but the plasma will not preheat the Al for welding.

You won't regret either purchase. I have a Hypertherm plasma and use a Smith torch set. Love them both.

 

If you do frequent stainless work, the plasma is about your only choice. OA works because steel oxides melt at a lower temp than the steel burns. Metals whose oxides melt at a higher temp than the metal burns won't cut with OA.

 

Cost wise.....plasma is far less expensive than oxy-fuel for cutting. An air plasma system cuts using electricity and compressed air. Todays best systems have incredibly long consumable life. Cutting cost is a function of speed, ease of use, cost of consumables and the need for secondary cleanup (grinding).

Plasma costs considerably more to purchase...but over time based on dramatically faster cut speeds (on most materials) combined with better cut quality....as well as the ability to cut non ferrous (aluminum, stainless)...the plasma always proves to be less expensive.

If you are a homeowner that likes to occasionaly fabricate....do mechanic work, and need an all around useful tool, it llikely is wiser to buy an oxy-fuel setup. It...unlike he plasma....can loosen rusted nuts/bolts, can heat and bend metals, and can cut.

I bought an oxyfuel rig many years ago...long before I had a plasma. Today...I use my plasma torches 99 % of the time...and the oxy-fuel the other 1%. I never cut with my oxy-fuel....only use it for heating, bending, loosening rusty parts.


Jim Colt

 

I my comment its not one or the other, you will want both, you can do stuff with the torch setup that you can't do with a plasma. Plasma is cheaper to operate, faster and better for sheet metal and long straight cuts.

Me I would start with the torch setup, and grow into the need for the Plasma. A positive on the torch setup is it lends itself to truck installation better that a Plasma. Its not that a plasma does fit on the truck its that most of us don't have a 15kw gen set on board ( which is still about 3-5kw shy of my plasma's top end ) to run them, and if you need to do some thick stuff in the field your limited to 3/4 of a inch or slightly better, where the torch will take you up to inches with the right tip.

The torch is more versatile, you can cut, braze, and heat with it, where the plasma does one job very well, just cut. Look at Irish Fixit's post on using a torch, you can do very good work with one if you know your stuff.

 

I do a fair amount of gouging with my plasma, as well as cutting. Just wish I could heat with the plasma.

 

well thanks for everyones input think i am going to go with a torch, now my next big question is ive been looking on victors web sight and i see different set ups and i can not decipher what is what, i see different length ones im sure ones better for somethings than the other but on an average around the house and pipe fence building what should i be looking for ?

 

Jim, I love your products but will fight you on this. Tell ne how plasma is cheaper, I own the torches and regulators, Oxy is $19 per 330 cf, and fuel gas is $25 for 30 pounds. For under $50, I can cut up a lot of scrap, and do not need external power or air. Even if I had to buy a new set of torches for say $400, I still win. Once again I am not downing plasma, I think it is great if you do SS or aluminum constantly. The SS cutting I do is mainly pipe stab ins with hole saw and aluminium is done with a skillsaw.

 

My statement was in regard to hobby use. OA is far cheaper considering what u can buy a used OA setup for with bottles. I figure in an automated production a plasma works out cheaper over the long run. As far as Tozzi is concerned, I think commercial use that is not being used continually would be a toss up as to which works out cheaper in the long haul...
If the question is only buying one of the 2 then OA wins hands down because it does much more than a Plasma... exception is obviously if the user is needing to cut Aluminium etc.. as I mentioned before

 

Get a small one it will do everything u need and is easier to handle. Look at ESAB/Purox with lifetime warranty too. There is a formula on acetylene flow based on size of bottle. Someone will jump in with the details, But get a decent sized acetylene bottle. U will u Oxygen faster than Acetylene so want a bigger bottle of that. Lots of good deals on used setups too..

 

Plasma has to be cheaper on a per inch of cut basis, especially on sheet metal. Your looking at $.7-.75 an HOUR of cutting for sheetmetal if you run the machine constantly. I doubt you can run an O/A torch for that and thats assuming roughly 30a draw.
Initial investment is a lot higher, but long term plasma should be cheaper