NM-145 delivered.. initial thoughts

[CNCwilson]

Just received the NM-145 yesterday, its already up and running. Some thoughts:

-It made it in one piece shipped from Canada to the USA.. which is a small miracle in itself.

- the machine is heavy... i configured it with every option including the built in computer ( great idea ) but its a 2 person to move it around a few inches, forklift to move it any further machine.

- This is a true turnkey machine. I received no instructions, no manuals, and a few screws seem to be missing from the catch trays, but the computer was loaded with Mach 3 and tuned, visual mill installed, and literally all i had to do was hook up a few hoses, plug it in and load some g-code... and everything worked. pretty impressive.

now for the not so good-

no instructions... not even for the simple setup stuff.. that would of been nice.

i have a few leaks going on.. one from the cooling hose connection that goes from the rubber hose to the hard bendy flow valve.

- a much bigger and problematic leak that seems to be happening internally, in a cavity that you cannot get to, that i assume is happening under the machine xy table to the base that leaks out one of the bolt holes on the feet. this is gonna be a pain in the ass to fix, as i have no idea where it even is leaking from.

- the machine is solid.. but you can tell its not a german machine, but nor is it priced like one. overall its of average cosmetic quality, looks really great from afar but up close you can tell the shortcuts. The thin flashing used to cosmetically block off the top shaft rattles like crazy when the machine is cutting ( i put some rubber grommets behind the bolts that seems to have helped ) and the bolt holes for the splash guards do not line up very nice.

- the vice i ordered from them with the table sucks.. will buy a new one.

no after hours support.. we ran into the bolts missing problem and called a few times to them and no answer.. i guess we will need to wait till monday.

no free magazines that they say they give you.. this is a small thing, but since they make a big deal of it on the order page, it would of been nice to get it.

those negative thing aside.. i am extremely happy so far. the machine works right out of the box, and it seems to work very well. I would definitely buy another... even though its only been a day.

[ihavenofish]

pics!

"a much bigger and problematic leak that seems to be happening internally, in a cavity that you cannot get to, that i assume is happening under the machine xy table to the base that leaks out one of the bolt holes on the feet. this is gonna be a pain in the ass to fix, as i have no idea where it even is leaking from."

do you mean the leak is in the main stand, under the machine itself, and not in the little wings you bolt on? (or maybe it came in one piece?). its probabaly pretty easy to seal the leak with silicone. FINDING the leak and reaching it i guess is the tricky part.

"no after hours support.. we ran into the bolts missing problem and called a few times to them and no answer.. i guess we will need to wait till monday."

if you email khai, you might get an answer even on weekend, but you arent likely to get any resolutions til monday - unless is something he can solve easily over email. what bolts were missing?

" the vice i ordered from them with the table sucks.. will buy a new one."

which vise did you order? what exactly about it sucks? i was planning on ordering the 4" model.

"no free magazines that they say they give you.. this is a small thing, but since they make a big deal of it on the order page, it would of been nice to get it. "

my magazines came in the mail. they basically sign you up for a trial subscription with digital machist etc. wouldnt be much point mailing old issues (that and dm can pester you to renew, doh! nothings really free is it)

"The thin flashing used to cosmetically block off the top shaft rattles like crazy when the machine is cutting ( i put some rubber grommets behind the bolts that seems to have helped ) and the bolt holes for the splash guards do not line up very nice."

the thin flash, is this the one on top of the spindle head, covering the ball screw in the column? my immediate thoughts on seeing that were to just remove it. didnt look like it would rattle, but just be in the way.


no instructions is a pain. they may not have the manual prepared yet. on the other machines they got manuals in chinese, and then had to translate. it wasnt toobad though cause you could get manuals from smithy or sieg that were nearly the same. the 145 is more unique.

[CNCwilson]

it was the 6" vice.. horrible. no place for direct bolting, looks like it fell off the back of a truck in 1965.

about the magazine.. when you order it says " package includes Complimentary copy of Digital Machinist " etc. and says nothing about trial subscription. it would of been great.. cause as soon as you get a machine you usually want to buy stuff for it, which the advertisers in digital machinist could appreciate. Instead I went on google and found a new vice and end mills and about $2000 worth of other bits and pieces..

the flashing is the 18" or so piece that covers the front of the arm of the motor, above the flexible boot. I think you are talking about the little cup that sits on to cover the tool bolt, and yeah that shakes around as well as it literally just sits over the hole with no secure.

[ihavenofish]

the type of vise is ground on all sides. most dont allow direct bolting, they need little toe clamps. i agree its a little annoying, but ive designed some clamps that work with my little maqchinist vise that should be scaled up and work on these (and other like it).

as for looking like it fell of a truck? not sure what that means, ahah. all scratched up i assume?


the top cover i think im all confused on now.

- theres a panel on each side of the column like a spash guard.
- theres a panel above the spindle head covering the column - this moves with the spindle.
- theres a stainless cover on the y axis behind the table
- theres a telescoping cover in front of the table on the y axis.

do you mean any of those, or something else entirely? maybe you could post a picture.

[CNCwilson]

yes that is the correct piece.. can i attach photos here? first day of posting

the vice does have a spot for feet but its a bit primitive and restrictive. I found this vice last night that seemed to be leagues above and about the same price.


http://www.glacern.com/gsv_690

[CNCwilson]

yes that is the correct piece.. can i attach photos here? first day of posting

the vice does have a spot for feet but its a bit primitive and restrictive. I found this vice last night that seemed to be leagues above and about the same price.


http://www.glacern.com/gsv_690

[ihavenofish]

mmm glacern does make some nice stuff. the main reason for the design of the novakon one is to put vises on their side, or side by side etc. if you look at glacerns double jaw models youll see the same, as well as on precision tool makers vises. glacern includes the clamps though which is nice (for $600+ they should, hehe).

oddly glacerns gound single jaw 6" has bolt mounting, which i never noticed before. its only $100 extra. i wish they made a 4" version, i find 6" a bit too big and heavy for my needs. that glacern 6" will hang over 10" off the nm145 table and probably hit the coolant guard at the front on full table travel. i imaging the novakon 6" is similar.

[CNCwilson]

Attachment 110728here is some photos

[ihavenofish]

vise looks ok actually, just need to clean off all the cosmoline. its there to prevent rust during shipping.

the top cover i presonally will remove on mine. if i think debris will be an issue i might just get a second bellows and find a way to attach it.

the one thing i find with some of the cover plates on inexpensive machines in general is they tend to actually catch more dirt and make it harder to clean.

[CNCwilson]

vise looks ok actually, just need to clean off all the cosmoline. its there to prevent rust during shipping.

the top cover i presonally will remove on mine. if i think debris will be an issue i might just get a second bellows and find a way to attach it.

the one thing i find with some of the cover plates on inexpensive machines in general is they tend to actually catch more dirt and make it harder to clean.

yeah i took it off.. and there is a big open bolt in there that looks like it might be good to keep clean.... maybe one of the first things I will machine is a better 2 piece cover for it..

[ihavenofish]

yeah i took it off.. and there is a big open bolt in there that looks like it might be good to keep clean.... maybe one of the first things I will machine is a better 2 piece cover for it..

yeah, you need to keep dirt out of there, but being above the column, its not likely to see much unless youre doing something very dusty.

[CNCwilson]

Well I spoke too soon... Machine had complete failure tonight...

everything was working great, kicked off a job, came back 30 minutes later and the machine was completely dead.. power is going to it, i can see the green light on the motherboard, and the monitor connected to the power port on the side of the rear control box remains on, but it is completely dead, and wont turn on when I press the green or red start buttons on the control box.

Any ideas?