TN Makers Meetup and 3D Printer Buildoff

[Tim Youngblood]

Want a 3D printer at cost? 

We are working with Hacker Consortium in Nashville to put together a group of participants from Chatt*lab (represent!) for a 3D printer build party. Essentially, this is a Saturday all day and Sunday morning turbo build of a RepRap Mendel for the cost of the parts and supplies. HC sets this up with the MidSouth Makers out of Memphis and a few more folks in Eastern TN to make this happen. Last year they built 7 or 8 printers in a 36 hour period. It can get a bit smelly by Sunday morning but much fun is had and you can print your own car to drive home in. Okay not really but the fun part is definitely there.

Here are the details which I will update on this post, and eventually on a landing page our our site along with a sign up process. Read the FAQ below, which will be developing as questions are asked below, then if you are interested, please reply below and let us know so we can gauge the number of folks that Chatt*lab would be bringing to the build party.

The ever evolving FAQ:

When will this happen? Winterish 2013 (February)

How much will it cost? The costs for the 3D printer parts offered up is $950. This is a real value as there are hundreds of parts that have to be sourced and even produced to build said printer.

What kind of 3D printer is this? An open source one called a RepRap (see Wikipedia) most often some sort of Mendel or variant thereof.

Is there a warranty with the 3D printer? Hahahahaha! You are in the wrong group! Please see: groups.google.com/thingsIcannotbuyatWalmart. Seriously, Chatt*lab's community is all about supporting one another. That beats any warranty.

What can I print? Just about anything in ABS or PLA. Please see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reprap and google it!

Who are these Hacker Consortium, KnoxMakers and MidSouth Makers people? These are our fellow makerspaces here in TN and they have hosted this buildoff with great success in the past.

We hope this is gets the turnout it deserves! Stay tuned for more info as it develops here.

Tim

[Daedelus]

This looks like fun Tim.  Unfortunately, $950 is not in the budget for me right now. However, if anyone out there wants to build one of these and would like to have an assistant or gopher or whatever, I'd volunteer.  I'm very handy with all kinds of tools and would enjoy the chance to help put one of these together. Let me know.

Tom

[Tim Youngblood]

I think that is a great offer. Once we are up and running we (and other resources in town) will have 3D printers that can be used. 

This is for those hardcore souls who want to set up their own personal plastic factory. For those, it is the perfect opportunity. So far I have 4 folks (in about 24 hours!) who are definitely up for this opportunity and would love some extra help. As we get closer, we'll do a meetup announced here and elsewhere so be sure and show up to offer your help then as well.

Thanks!

Tim

[Thomas Phillips]

Great, thanks.

[Quinntoplus]

I would love to be a part in this other than I do not have the funding and I am still in high school so if anyone would like a helper I would love to try to attend please email me at qwsu...@gmail.com.

Quinn Nash 

[Tim Youngblood]

A message from our Memphis Makers friends. Not much new here but thought I'd put it out there:

I wanted to get a short note out to the folks that have expressed interest in the next prusa build.  I'm currently working out pricing and we are starting to discuss dates/logistics.  I've organized this email into a few sections to help address some key questions you may have.  If you have any questions, please let me know.
Purpose
The goal is to start with a set of parts that we provide and end the weekend with a working printer.  This normally takes people months to get worked out.  At the event, we'll provide you with the guidance to get it built, the familiarity  to use your printer going forward, and experts to help troubleshoot any issues that arise.  
Timing
It takes us about 6 weeks to get all the parts ordered and printed for the build.  That puts us early to mid October for a build.  We do not want to conflict with Skydogcon, so there is a likelihood that we would move the build into early November.  
Pricing
We are planning to offer a single model in our upcoming build event.  Multiple versions are difficult to support during the build event because each requires custom instruction.  The model that I recommend will come with the premiere electronics (RAMPS), linear motion bearings, a heated build platform, an electronics enclosure, a Makergear plastruder, and some other odds and ends.  The cost of participation in the build event for this model will be $950.  This model is engineered for quality, speed, and trouble-free printing.  For those that already have a printer and are working on a second, we'll work out some sort of discount.  Details to follow.
History
We held a similar event at the HC in the first quarter of this year.  It was a big success, with approximately 9 printers being constructed over the course of a weekend.  Some pictures of the last event are here http://www.hackerconsortium.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=17039 .

Sonny Mounicou of Memphis Makers 

On Tuesday, August 7, 2012 4:28:56 PM UTC-4, Tim Youngblood wrote:

[Tim Youngblood]

From Sonny at MidSouth Makers in Memphis:

Its been nearly 3 weeks since my last update, so I wanted to reach out to everyone to answer a few questions and ask a few.  We are still looking for additional build participants so if you know anyone else that is interested, please get me their information.

Timing and Cost

Its looking like the the weekend of December 8/9 may be best with SkyDogCon coming up at the end of October.  Does anyone have a visceral good/bad reaction to that weekend?  If that pans out, we would ask for a $100 placeholder by September 16th, and additional $400 by October 28th and the remaining $450 by November 18th.  

Kits

1) At this point the printers will include:

RAMPS electronics

MakerGear Extruder

Heated bed with glass surface

Linear motion bearings and precision rods

Electronics backpack

GT2 Belts and pulleys

Aluminum couplers

2) I'm looking at the possibility of adding the following items:

Acme threaded rods

SD Ramps + LCD + Rotary Encoder

Aluminum idlers

--- end transmission ---

On Tuesday, August 7, 2012 4:28:56 PM UTC-4, Tim Youngblood wrote: