Some disadvantages of water jet cutting

Like the laser beam, the water jet cutting flow is most effective when it is most concentrated. However, when cutting pipes, voids can cause the flow to spread, rapidly losing its precision and cutting ability.

Similarly, stranded or fibrous materials will act like honeycombs and can also "squirm" in streams, resulting in poor cutting. In addition, when cutting fibrous material, some of the water jets "slide" around the material to be cut, rather than passing through it and making a clean cut. This can result in defective end cuts, often called nibs.

To ensure optimal cutting for water jet cutting, the correct support height (the distance between the outlet of the water jet nozzle and the workpiece) is 1 mm (0.0394") to 1.5 mm (0.0591"). This is impractical for 3D parts that simply don't allow this kind of proximity.

A more common result is that, for precision dimensions, the waterknife slit always has a tapered shape. This taper can wreak havoc on precision tolerances and has conical and barrel effects. Although modern water jet cutters compensate for these effects by "tilting" the nozzle, the cutting surface may display a curved pattern, resulting in a slant of the cut.

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