Jump to content
I Forge Iron

plasma cutter verses titanium


Recommended Posts

can a plasma torch cut titanium.i do not have a plasma torch yet. i am planning to buy one to cut titanium plate i am going to buy from china. i know that a plasma torch can not cut wood because it is not conductive enough to get the plasma going.i have taken classes cutting with a plasma torch on mild steel only.by the way if any of you are interested in titanium i can give you the email for this guy. for most things the min order quantity is 50 kilos. for most things the price is in between 18 and 30 dollars a kilo. so that is a lot of money for the average smith. so please tell me if any if you know if titanium is conductive enough to get plasma going in a plasma torch.thank you

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Before you buy from China be sure the person you`re getting the unit from will stand behind the unit and is here in the US.
There`s a thread here from a fellow who bought off E-bay and may as well have thrown his money in the woodstove.

Remember all that cheap Chinese sheetrock that turned out to be toxic?Guess who got stuck holding the bag for that.
I`ll give you a hint,they live in North America and pay taxes. <_<

I see you already read and posted to that thread.Still thinking about a Chinese unit?
Silly rabbit.
Don`t be surprised when you lose your tail to the Fu dog.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i am not going to buy from china. i am going to buy from the us. i always planed to. i am buying titanium from china with a pay pal account. so if it is bad then i can get my money back guarantee. i want to know if titanium is conductive enough to get cut.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, They cut ti just fine. Not as nice as steel, but passable. Plasma torches will cut just about anything, even glass for a few moments on the start up cycle. Then the machine says to itself no ground here, and quits. Plasma cutters seem to tempermental lot, so getting a Chinese unit would not be an option for me. I doubt any local welding suppliers would even take a look at It, if it were to go wrong, let alone fix it. Then there's the consumables.........................mb

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have worked with alot of titanium in my career. I don't mean to discount anyone elses comments but even though a plasma cutter will cut titanium it takes a larger one to do it. An easier way to cut it is with a oxy-acetylene torch. Just make sure you cut a little bigger and grind away the cut edge for it will be contaminated you would have to do that with a plasma cutter also.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a little advice that I feel you will probably ignore.Focus on simple stuff first.
How many carbon steel knives have you made?You need to perfect technique on the simple stuff first before you try the more advanced materials and processes.
Basic skills come first,then advanced skills,then advanced materials.That`s the progression that brings success.
If you don`t even know the alloy(I`m assuming that`s what you meant by "model") of the material your buying then it`s a pretty safe bet you are nowhere near ready to step up to that level yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Just a little advice that I feel you will probably ignore.Focus on simple stuff first.
How many carbon steel knives have you made?You need to perfect technique on the simple stuff first before you try the more advanced materials and processes.
Basic skills come first,then advanced skills,then advanced materials.That`s the progression that brings success.
If you don`t even know the alloy(I`m assuming that`s what you meant by "model") of the material your buying then it`s a pretty safe bet you are nowhere near ready to step up to that level yet.

i have made hundreds of steel knifes. i said the grade or alloy was grade 5 also i work with some grade 1 pure titanium. i have made 250 titanium knifes out of bar i want a faster way to do it. i have 5 mm titanium plate and i want to cut out blanks then forge from there.i do not know if you have ever forged titanium. if you have not then i will tell you it is no harder then any steel. if you have then you probably are not working with grade 5 or 1.i use both. i do not know about you but this is my profession not my Hobie. and the model of the plasma torch is what i meant.i custom ordered every aspect of my titanium how much aluminum, titanium, ect. so i know about my titanium. ( in the titanium business we refer to it as what grade it is not what alloy. alloy is for scientists, or people who live at home and know almost nothing about titanium.)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can see that Bob's suggestions annoyed you. But you should understand that the questions you ask do not seem to square easily with your claims of experience and expertise. For example, if you're "in the titanium business" and have made 250 knives from the stuff, why are you asking folks here whether you can harden Ti by quenching -- or whether you can cut it with a plasma cutter? The hardening question never occurred to you when you were making those 250 previous knives? And you couldn't ask one of your buddies "in the titanium business" for an expert answer to that, or to the cutting question? It's things like this that might make some people doubt whether you are what you claim to be, and have done what you claim to have done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i am not in the titanium business i just work with them a lot. i made 250 knifes the same way. that is not this way. i have not cut titanium i have forged knifes out of it. i do not know if it needs to be temped because i always treated it as if it were steel.i bought 110 lbs of 2 in bar stock before not plate. i want to know if ti is necessary to temper it. i want to save time that is why i want to do it by cutting out blanks and forging it to the fine shape then sharpening. i did ask my friends in the titanium business and they did not know they said they make it not make blades from it. am in the knife making business not the titanium. i hope this answers your questions. oh ya and they roll it out and cut it with diamond and titanium saws.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A plasma will cut it as well as an Oxy-Acet torch. Cuts like butter.

As to Ti knives. They are not good for edge holding,but I am sure that won't stop people from buying them. Just look at the xxxx sold on late night TV infomercials. Titanium as a label is getting slapped on everything lately. Kind of like "aircraft grade aluminum". Lot's of common aluminum alloys used in aircraft, but common isn't sexy.

Some SCUBA divers use Ti knives, and there are beryllium knives for non magnetic, non sparking applications. Not great edge holding blades, but they have a purpose non the less. Not defending PIWIH just mentioning that it is used for knives.

The largest Ti plant is just down the road form me in Henderson NV. Timet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thanks guys. yep they do sell a lot of xxxx on infomercials. ti does not rust that is it upside. if you say aerospace grade ti they will want to buy it. the last ti knifes i made sold like crazy.hey it will hold it edge better then some knifes made in china. they use mostly aluminum in there steel. they use just enough steel for it to be magnetic go to wallmart see what i mean.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As has been pointed out, there are several grades, specs, etc for both titanium and for aluminum. Please site references, chemical analysis, grade and spec, ASTM numbers, etc for the metals you are discussing so we can all be on the same page. Otherwise your titanium may not be even close to the other fellows experience with his titanium.

I would like to see more photos of TI work posted. A lot of folks are trying it and we need to show them what can be done with that material.


PIWIH,
I can see where some would consider this a conflict as to whether you are or are not in the titanium business. Can you explain things a little better please?


Post 11
in the titanium business we refer to it as what grade

Post 13
i am not in the titanium business


Another place that may need a little more explanation is post #4
i am not going to buy from china. i am going to buy from the us. i always planed to. i am buying titanium from china with a pay pal account.

Are you buying from China directly or buying titanium from China through a US middle man or broker, or buying US made titanium? I am sure that you have done your homework and realize that paypal sometimes has problems. I am also sure you also have done your homework and are specifying the particular type material your buying, and plan to have tests made before receiving the material, to insure that it is indeed up to spec. Good luck with your purchase. Please let us know how it works out for you.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

No one else has mentioned this that I niticed so thought I would add this note. If you use a cutting torch or plasma on titanium you will get LOTS of white smoke while cutting. THIS SMOKE WILL KILL YOU if you breathe too much of it and it doesn't take very much at all to make you sick. Ventilate, ventilate, ventilate.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

i am not in the titanium business. i just deal with the ti business a lot.i do not buy though a middle man i buy strait from the factory in china. i could buy thought a middle man but they would add on $5 per pound. i buy it $2 less per pound then scrap ti in the us. and thanks for telling me about the smoke i was going to do it outside. now i might want to do it out side with my industrial strength face mask air filter i can not remember what its name is right now but u no what i mean.when i said i am not going to buy from china i meant the plasma cutter because a person had a bad experience with one from china.lets just say he would have had better results with putting his money on the steel and lighting it on fire.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You give the impression of not knowing whether to cut bait or fish. RE post #4... not buying from China...buying from China thru a paypal account. Then there is the post where you stated, "i do not know if it needs to be temped because i always treated it as if it were steel." You can't treat TI as if it is steel, not even close to the same. As for the smoke, it puts off the same when grinding...so how are you removing the stock by grinding but there is no smoke? You would need to wear a good repirator then as well. And of course there are pictures...none that we can see. Surely, as fciron mentioned, you have pictures, at LEAST ONE. Sorry, but your posts give us all reason to doubt your claims.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


thanks guys. yep they do sell a lot of xxxx on infomercials. ti does not rust that is it upside. if you say aerospace grade ti they will want to buy it. the last ti knifes i made sold like crazy.hey it will hold it edge better then some knifes made in china. they use mostly aluminum in there steel. they use just enough steel for it to be magnetic go to wallmart see what i mean.


Large amounts of aluminum cannot be alloyed with steel, it just can't be done that way. Even if it could, WHY would you, given that aluminum is more expensive than steel.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

i buy it $2 less per pound then scrap ti in the us.


So you could buy 1000 pounds, sell it for scrap and put $2,000.00 in your pocket?

When things don't sound right, they usually aren't right. You sound more like a troll with every post.

Titanium damascus knives by my friend Tom Ferry:

ferry_timascusfolders_8x10.jpg
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...