diy water jet cutter

[nicko0]

any ideas?

nevermind precision or anything.

lets figure the simplest way to put a hole or a cut of any quality in boro
with a homemade tool.

[Eric S]

water fed drill press w/ diamond bit?

[somewhere]

Sandblaster

Or

Maybe a hammer

Hard to say what are you trying to do?

[barefoot stash]

You can also use clay to make a dam around your drilling area. Pipette in water while drilling in the press using a tube of 9.5. How large a diameter hole?

[nicko0]

ok so i did some research and its not the easiest thing to generate 60,000 psi. and feed an abrasive into the stream.

the pump is just so big and powerful and all the parts between the pump and up to and including the nozzle have to handle such high pressures that i dont see any way to build one inexpensively.

oh well.

[Louie HaHa]

Yea, I worked at a shop that had one and it's a very large (and expensive) machine. Didn't look like something you could effectively replicate in a garage. Also, the glass cuts properly while flat, round boro tests did not fair well.

[somewhere]

I didn't think you really wanted to build a DIY water jet.

If you ever have any work cut with one you will see why that's funny. Never hurts to dream.

I remember when someone talked about building there own vacuum deposition chamber for dicro. I laughed at that also but yes he did and does own and operate his own machine for dicro coating. Anything is possible I guess it's just how deep are your pockets and how long is your attention span.

[nicko0]

im always and never amazed at how creative people can be at coming up with an inspired simple inexpensive alternative to whatever the big complex thing may be.

[Greg Cowles]

How about a cupcake C&C, diamond bits, and add a water line to the bit.
It's the same stepper motors that are used to drive there 3D printer so minute details wouldn't be an issue.

[nicko0]

i actually dont want the cnc ability just a 60,000 psi stream of water and abrasive. stationary.

[VertigoGlass]

You can build a CNC water jet yourself its just expensive. If your idea is a stationary water jet you can use as a band saw that's a BAD idea. That thing will cut your fuckin finger off in a heartbeat.

[nicko0]

so will a band saw

[quix]

I like to freak newbies out by sticking my finger in the bandsaw blade at work. Naturally it does not but me because it is just a piece of steel band coated in diamonds.

[nicko0]

oh yeah that kind of band saw lol. my brain automatically pictured shop class.

[VertigoGlass]

As far as building something like this goes it can be done.....

[nicko0]

i like your optimism

[Greymatter Glass]

you can make a DIY ultrasonic drill for around $1000 for off the shelf parts, cheaper if you get creative.

They will make clean holes in glass fairly quick.

[Greymatter Glass]

you can make a DIY ultrasonic drill for around $1000 for off the shelf parts, cheaper if you get creative.

They will make clean holes in glass fairly quick.

[VertigoGlass]

Its not optimism its fact. There are many gantry style build it yourself CNC kits out there. Some already with plans set up for plasma/water jet water beds. There are kits out there for building your own high pressure pump slurry aggregate delivery systems combine the two and bingo bango CNC water jet for around 10-12k

[nicko0]

oooh im liking the ultrasonic route.

i looked around a bit for high pressure kits and didnt have much luck in the price range your talking about. could u point me in the right direction?

[Greymatter Glass]

Also, a DIY water jet is very possible. And very expensive.

I'm sure for $120-150k in parts alone I could build my own water jet that would work on par with $400,000 commercial systems. It's not like these guys are making them for $500 and selling them for $400,000... QUALITY materials that hols up to serious (professional) use aren't cheap.

Why isn't there a $200 Delta Mag on the market? I mean, it's just some stainless steel tubes and bits of Aluminum right?

Or a $12,000 Ferrari.

I want to pay $20 and make a smart phone, I means it's about that in the elemental component break down, right? Some titanium, some gold, some copper, some lithium, some silicon, bit of carbon and oxygen tossed in for good measure.


Usually when I look at DIY solutions to commercially available equipment the material cost will be MUCH higher than anything a commercial manufacturer will pay, but still less than a finished unit... if I don't account for my time, cost of education/training, tools, energy, R&D, rent, etc...

I made my 3d printer from a kit that was $520. That's about $50-80 more than if I bought all the parts separate from around the globe (I would have spent way more than $50 on shipping from 10 different vendors, many of which are overseas)
I can buy assembled, calibrated, and tested printers the exact same as mind for about $1000. So I "saved" about 50%, which seems huge.... but it took me the better part of 20 hours to build it, it's taken me 3+ weeks to get it calibrated. I've spent probably an additional $100 on parts and tools.... ALL i get from what I've done is the satisfaction of doing it myself, the experience and knowledge of learning the system from the inside out, and of course, a 3d printer I can play with. It was well worth it.

Oh, and I have like 3 new tools I can use in the future (D-Sub crimper, new soldering iron, and a ceramic screw driver)


So sure, save 50% on a DIY water jet, it's still gonna cost ya $100k or more to get a machine that can come close to what a commercial unit costing $200k+ can do.

Maybe you can make a cheaper, sloppier, cludgy, crude machine... but you can buy those on ebay already for less than they cost to build when they were new. I see Waterjets up there for $10k from time to time that need work done on them. Grab oe of those, recondition it, and you might save even more... it's still $10-20k out of pocket.

[nicko0]

thats the way im seeing it with this project.

just trying to get vertigoglass to put a little proof on his numbers

[AndyH]

There are a couple of threads out there on machining forums about DIY waterjet machines that discuss what is involved. CNCzone has a one post that has some really good information in it. Personally, I'd rather not take the risk. The type of pressure we are talking about is unreal. I'd be scared to stand next to a home build machine for fear of a blow out while running. It could easily sever a limb.... That being said, it's and interesting thought process to explore.

[roughnecked]

You could buy the intensifier used relatively cheap. They go up for auction frequently. I was looking at a new machine a year ago and brand new for a 3 axis it was only 160 grand. It had all the bells and whistles. Cut above and below the waterline. Couple hundred pound a aggregate reservoir.

Consumables are spendy. Carbide nozzles and diamond valves don't come cheap. Some people cheap out and use ruby or sapphire valves, but they cut fabrics or lettuce not metal.

The machines make a big mess and are not cost effective for most applications. They have their place, but most fab shops don't cut 12 inch stainless.

I bought a Cnc router instead. It could cut glass with the proper bit. I would need to upgrade the coolant system first though. Glass routers need about a gallon of water per second to keep the cutters cool.

If I was to get an intensifier for water cutting I would mount it on an old welding robot in place of the welder. Just hope sky net doesn't take over after I get it built.
Chuck