WaterJet Machining Fact Sheet
Overview: Water is pressurized to almost 50,000 psi
and mixed with 80 Grit Garnet abrasive. The pressurized mixture forms a jet that
is .035" in diameter and travels almost 3 times the speed of sound with the
ability to cut through 4"+ of steel. Positioning accuracy of the jet is within
.002" over an area of 26" x 52". The cut is completely cold, without recast
layers or heat-affected zones. The surface finish of the cut resembles something
that has been sandblasted. The straightness of the cut from the top of the cut
to the bottom (Kerf) is around .002"-.004" of taper per inch of depth. When
combined, this will allow us to cut to tolerances of + .010" all day
long. With all of this pressure, there is only 1 pound of force put onto the
material, due to the small surface area of contact to the jet, generating an
extremely low cutting force, allowing thin or unusual profiles on delicate parts
without inducing stresses that can cause distortion, and requiring very low
clamping forces during machining.
Materials: Practically anything that can be put on the machine can be
cut. This includes metals such as Inconel, Stellite, Hastalloy, Stainless
Steels, Chrome-Moly Steels, hardened tool steels, plain steel, titanium,
aluminum, brass, copper and bronze. Other materials such as plastic, fiberglass,
composite, glass, marble, concrete, Corian, laminates, phenolics and wood can
also be cut with ease.
Extras: WaterJet Machining can pierce from a solid, and interpolate
holes, allowing many different configurations of holes to be cut with only one
tool. Minimum hole size of .045". Parts can be etched with part numbers and
other information at the same time it is being cut, using any true type font
with unlimited sizes.
Advantages: Parts can be nested within a blank of material, increasing
material utilization and in many cases more than paying for the cost of
JetMachining. Faster than a laser in parts that are over .125 thick, and able to
cut reflective materials without any surface preparation. Much better than flame
or plasma cutting in that the finished parts are finished, without the need for
re-cutting or dressing up rough edges. No heat distortion or re-cast layers.
Parts can be cut to net-shape, or to near net, requiring only finish cutting of
critical surfaces. Ecologically proper using no toxic fluids, only water and
sand. Clean and dry parts and scraps.
Why Us? : Immediate firm fixed price quotations. 3 shifts, 7 days a week
for quick service. Free Pick-up and Delivery on our trucks. No Set-up charges.
Expedited Service Available. Over 20 years experience in manufacturing and job
shop service. UPS Service Daily.
WaterJet Machining Tip Sheet
The purpose of this document is to give buyers and engineers insight into
the Water Jet Machining Process, in order to better design and buy water jet
cutting services. This will give you a better understanding of the peculiarities
of the process, in order to save your firm money when purchasing these services.
The item to be cut must be reasonably flat. Water jet cutting is a 2 dimensional
process. Due to inconsistencies within material, uniform depths can not yet be
achieved.
Radiused corners cut faster than sharp corners. Large radii cut faster than
small radii.
Surface finish is directly proportional to cost. There are 5 levels of surface
finish available. A standard surface finish is defined as grade 3. This
approximates a 125rms finish. A grade 1 finish is a roughing rate. A grade 5
finish is an extra fine finish. A grade 3 finish takes 3 times as long to cut as
a grade 1, and a grade 5 takes 5 times as long to cut as a grade 1. Grade 3
should be used as a starting point for finished edges. Grade 1 is useful for
surfaces that will be welded, or will receive secondary finish machining. Choose
finishes wisely and point out the areas to us that do not need to have a great
finish.
Surface finish grades can be mixed throughout the cut profile with ease and
without additional cost.
Thick materials take longer to cut than thin materials.
There is never a set-up charge at Paradise. The work is programmed during the
quoting phase. There is never a charge for program modifications. They are very
easy and can be done on the run, if desired.
We will quote you on your material, or on ours. Be aware that the least
expensive way to purchase from us is for you to provide the material, either
drop shipped, or picked up on our truck. The reasons for this are very simple.
If we provide the material, we will buy it from the same material suppliers that
you use, at the same cost. In addition to this, we will apply a charge to it
that includes a general and administrative fee for the logistics required for us
to get it, plus costs for holding it in our inventory while we work on it, plus
a profit. This is your savings if you provide the material. It is our policy to
treat your material like it was our own. We go above and beyond standard
industry practice in that if we scrap your material, we will pay to replace it
and re-run the part.
Nesting of parts can achieve significant savings to you in material cost. We
only need .100" between part surfaces to allow the jet to pass through the area
twice. Provide the part drawings and blank sizes, we will nest for maximum
efficiency.
Let us put the holes into the parts for you. We can pierce from solid down to a
.045" diameter hole. Multiple sized holes as well as weird configurations all
get cut with the same tool using the same offset. For close tolerance holes, let
us put the rough hole in on location, leaving only finish reaming or machining
stock.
Our positioning accuracy is .002" total over an area of 26" x 52". Combining
this with average taper of .002"-.004" per inch of depth (harder materials have
less taper than softer materials) allows us to cut + .010" all day long with
statistical accuracy on most work.
We can cut down to a .015" inside radius. Outside corners can be cut dead sharp.
Parts are burr free and clean.
Total pressure of the cut is only 1 pound. This requires us to use only 2 pounds
of clamping force to hold the part, allowing for both a stress free cut and no
or very little costs for fixturing. Distortion from cutting and clamping is
eliminated.
We can use your DXF file to create a program. This can be sent via the Internet
to us.
Etching of part numbers, logos, etc. can be done very quickly as a part of the
cutting, using a variety of fonts with unlimited size. We can also scan items
that you have and create a program from those.
This process really shines on aerospace alloys.
