Some ideas after 10mins after unpacking

Feature Request
1

Its a rigid machine no doubt.

I just see some things that not really smart.

  • Should have some sort of removeable tray under the machine to get those cuttings debrie out easy
  • Would prob be smart to have some sort of axis protection, slot covers that protects the axis from dirt getting into the grease and seals
  • The machine should be more isolated, its to many openings that can let sound out and dirt out. I would love to see a more built in machine that minimize the sound even more.
  • The hatch sensors… Mine was glued very poorly so it was mis aligned when i got it. It just looks so rookie. Why not just screw them into Place so they are more firm and it does look better, just put some shiny screws on there to match the Beautiful bamboo.
  • It should be a better Emergency stop in Place then the push button for on/off. Machine like this should clearly have a red Classic emergency button on the side thats easy to just press if something happens. I like the on/off btn as it is, but it looks more serious if a dedicated emergency where in Place like seen on real Machines.
  • To make the machine even more nice designed it would be nice to get rid of the outlets on the side for usb and Power. Perhaps put them on the back side to get those ugly Cables out of the way
  • Would be nice to see a built in lamp with a on off swtich both on the machine and in the software
  • Really nice things to see would be to have a built in camera to make time lapse on builds, like seen on many high end 3d printers
  • Built in vacuum system to get that dirt out without having to make a big mess.
  • Fully enclosed drag chain - just to keep dirt out of the Cables (and its really hard to Clean in there)
  • Supply rubber fet to the machine would be really great small feature. I used 4 rubber feet that come with my Arduino housing. 50cents of value. Got rid of 50% of the vibrations and doesnt scratch the Surface where u put the nomad on. (i have my nomad in my Kitchen)
  • Some screen on the machine to be able to do the basics of zero axis and jog and reset tool without a pc.
  • Built in SD mem card to store gcode files etc and start on the fly just by starting the machine and press play. No need for PC.
  • App based Control would be nice to see. For jogging and lighter duties. Or just supervise the machine when away. And also in that case have wifi support.
  • Possibiltiy to change the head and install a Laser engraver, i use my machine to make front panels and PCBs (when im up n running) Would be great to be able to swap tool and just engrave with laser straight after the milling is finished. (know its alot to ask for, just a nice thing to have)

Other then that the machine looks really nice!

Looking forward to try it out!
Just got mine today so!

Have a good day!

2

Welcome to the club.
First off I would like to applaud the Carbide3D team for their enthusiasm and customer service. I think everyone would agree that to build a high quality machine like this for this price is quite an accomplishment. Anyone pricing thick aluminum can see how expensive this will be.

I bought mine based on its solid plate structure with the idea of modding and eventually building my own. My goal is to cut steel and am focusing on rigidity and sound suppression.

I have thought long and hard about this and am addressing the following issues:

  1. Replacing the thin composite top with 1/4" 6061 T6 aluminum and possibly the bottom with either 1/8" or 1/4" aluminum or stainless. 1/8" 304 SS cover for X axis bearing slides. These will be bolted solidly to machine frame and act as a mounting point for future mods. While the Nomad is a rigid machine especially given its low power spindle, this should improve rigidity, sound and chatter.
    There are Z stepper clearance issues because of the way the stock top floats in between the bamboo sides and off of uprights. It’s a very tight fit. I could probably just sand down the top of steppers, but I may make short risers out of 1/8" or 1/16" aluminum bar and add some anti-static rubber mat or thin neoprene to act as a vibration dampener and seal the air leaks. I’m leaving a 1/4" extra depth in case I want to add plate to back and keep stock plastic for a total of 1/2" of dampening.

  2. Plexiglass door has slight play and doesn’t seal all the way. Adding rubber U channel to all sides and adding magnets for alignment

  3. Thin neoprene between frame and bamboo sides for noise suppression.

  4. Design or buy some combination of vibration dampeners/leveling feet.
    I like your idea of the chip tray. Maybe integrating all of these in one unit with mist coolant/vacuum?

  5. If at some point a much taller and powerful VFD or BLDC spindle option becomes available, I would add taller risers and design a thick composite, fully insulated enclosure.

  6. LED lighting around spindle . Haven’t figured out how to power off of Arduino and route wiring cleanly.

As it is, it’s an awesome machine. You can’t get anything better really unless you step up to a Tormach or something. And that is basically a small industrial machine of 400 pounds.
Jerry