JWB, excellent! If this machine is a loaner, how can we use it to make an enclosure? Won't we have to return it? We'll have to see though if the Zing enclosure or parts thereof will meet the robustness/size of the device we decide to build.

I already volunteered to do the documents, but you can start it (them?) if you want. Google Docs allows sharing of documents too. Let's just keep the information flow very alive here on the forum so participants know what's happening with the documents.

Thanks JWB!

Great Project! I'm in!
I'm willing to contribute time, programming, parts, whatever.
I think making a rep-(st)rap as a first iteration is a great way to go, then learning from that experience build something bigger, faster stronger.

I've been following the rep rap blog for a while & its fascinating to watch the iterations as various variations on the desgin are conceived, discussed, executed, tested & included or discarded in the evolution of the machine.

Wammie - I think the idea is to use it to laser-cut parts, not canibalize the cutter. Check this link: http://www.makerbot.com/

I wonder if other parts could be fabricated using the laser cutter by cutting the part out in layers an laminating them together.

Pat, I believe they can. We could create blocks of acrylic by gluing lasercut strips together.

Wammie: huebner5000 is right, we could lasercut acrylic or wood to form the enclosure.

I created the Google Docs doc, anyone who wants access, email me their info @ jbgeekdad@yahoo.com.

Ah, of course! My brain was just in the "parts gathering" mode, not the "parts making" mode!

I've got a question: Have you seen if some of these machines have been used as plasma cutters?

Also, from your studious experience, do you have any hints or tips to avoid roadblocks that others have run into? Any cool mods to suggest?

Email sent!

I wonder if we should challenge ourselves by doing two extruders? That way we could do 2 different materials or two colors of the same material?

That would be cool, but maybe we should keep it simple initially. It seems like the extrusion head may be a somewhat discreet component that could be swapped out with an upgrade at some point.

I think it would just be cool to get to a point that we could produce parts for more RepRaps.

JWB, after further thought, as per your suggestion on the Google Doc you started, I do think this is better managed on our wiki. Could you start a page on the wiki and migrate the content?

JWB, I went ahead and created a wiki page based on what you had started in the Google doc. The page address is: http://www.tcmaker.org/wiki/index.php?t ... er_Project