NM-200 coolant pump problem

[webgeek]

I'm not positive you are referencing my design Joe but it sounds like a better implementation of my system. It's been working great for me for the better part of a year now.

This winter, IF I get ambitious, I'll be adding a second drain and tank on the other side and then plumbing the two together with bulkheads. The reason for this is that I waste a ton of coolant in chips that sit in the tray on the side opposite the coolant flow. The problem is that those chips all hold some coolant and it really adds up after a few pounds of swarf. A single day of solid milling and I'll lose 2-3 gallons of coolant easily and I believe most of it is going to waste because of this when I vacuum up chips. The second drain will also make for much easier cleanup as you can just hose things down.

The idea is that having the chips together in a deep pile in the tank will drain better than having a 2" deep layer around the full base of the mill.

I also suggest getting a better coolant nozzle system. I plan on building a nice one that includes a few heads along with two things I now believe are critical: a hand nozzle for spraying things down, and a nozzle that puts out a large thin stream of coolant to blow chips off the table. These two things are badly missing in my current system.

Good luck to ya!

-Mike

[bob-morey]

Hi I have a second generation NM200. Check the corrugated feed line from the tank. Mine seems to clog frequently which causes the coolant flow to dribble to nothing in a few minutes. I plan on replacing the stock tubing with smooth reinforced vinyl tube which should stop the clogging,
bob

[kvom]

After running the coolant pump for a while now, I was finding that after several minutes the pump would start to lag, giving an interrupted flow. It looked as if the hydraulic head was too much. I have now cut several feet of hose off, shortening the length of the liquid column, and that does seem to work much better.