This log is a little bit disjointed in that I'm posting it after the fact to help any others who want to take this on. Feel free to ask any questions you might have and I'm happy to share my files, source code, etc.
As I write this, here's what my build looks like now:
I started the project in April 2014 and now in Sept, I'm making my first cuts and finishing up odds and ends. I started by looking as most do at the various others designs (Blacktooth, Lasersaur) as well as Chinese eBay lasers, Full Spectrum, etc etc. I settled on the buildlog 2.x design as the most flexible and I also had some previous experience with CNC machines, 3D printers and even makerslide).
I knew wanted to scale the design a little bit to accept roughly 18x24 sheets so I used the parametric_buildlog_laser tool (
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:12864) to scale it up and create my list for Misumi.
My other goal was to print all the plastic parts. For the end plates and lens carriage, I was lucky enough to buy a set from one of the users here and all I had to do was sand them a bit and have them anodized.
The plastic parts that would support moving parts, I printed in Nylon so that they would have a little bit of give but yet be strong. The other parts were printed in PLA for rigidity and strength. So for example, this part is the Z motor mount printed in Bridge Nylon (Tauman). I moved the motor to the bottom of the frame instead of the top because I didn't like how close the whole assembly was to the tube and I wanted the tube within a few inches of the first mirror.
Here's an example of where I used PLA. All the electronics is mounted across the rails in the electronics bay. I added a middle rail and then made mounts for each of the items. These set of mounts hold the 24V power supply. In this way I avoided needing a tray for the electronics and the extra weight.
Here's another example. This part holds the water input and output as well as the solenoid valve for the air assist.
Here's the tube brackets:
Here's more pictures from the electronics bay. The part standing up with parts on perf board is my power supply card. It has a 24V-9V buck converter to power the Arduino subsystems controller, as well as the relay modules for the water pump, air compressor, blower, and aux. It also has to five volt supplies. One for the relays, and an isolated supply for the ma meter. The second relay module laying down is for the solenoid valve on the air assist.
This is the front panel area. The AWC-608 controller sits on top. On the front is a touch screen interface to an Arduino Uno which controls the sub-subsystems. It also keeps track of the laser running time of the job and total time on the laser tube. Brought out to the front are all the AWC-608 inputs (Ethernet, USB, USB key) and the all important, "Oh Sh**" button. Trivia fact, the key switch is from a Macintosh Quadra 950 that's been in my parts drawer for going on some 17 years!