im so sorry, you are correct. i initially read the instructions a few months back and since then clicked on the download files tab, which if im not mistaken comes with the older style set up. either way i misread and you have linked exactly what i needed. thanks again!
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Several of the components here are sold out: http://maslowcommunitygarden.org/The-Meticulous-Z-Axis.html
Is there a more up-to-date list or a kit with everything?
The BOM was recently updated. Like a week ago or so, not very long at all. Which parts are you needing to source?
Update on my own sled:
I have it actually mounted on my machine!
Still a little bit more work to do before itās making chips, but this has been a long time coming for me. Iāve got a ton of things for it once itās back up and running, so Iām really working on getting it going now.
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Okay, so I messed up in the BOM. 
The item I linked for the lead screw pulley was entirely the wrong one. The pitch was right, but it had a bore of 3.175mm instead of the needed 8mm bore.
The required specs for that pulley are: XL series belt, 10 tooth, 8mm bore.
I updated the link just now. The item it is now pointing to is this one. Itās out of stock at the moment, and wonāt be back until December-ish.
Something like this, which is in stock, would also work. However It wonāt move the carriage quite as fast because itās a 12 tooth. Itās not by much, weāre talking 0.33 ratio vs 0.4.
Supply chain is quite a tricky task. Iām worried that having links going out to Amazon may be a little too unpredictable when it comes to if things will continue to be in stock. Iām going to have to think on that one a little more. 
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@md8n Omg Iāve been to Timor-Listre! It was called East Timor when I was there. I helped build a school house and two out houses for a location in the mountains. Had to get a Japanese encephalitis shot lol. This was just after the army pulled out and wrecked everythingā¦ how goes the build?
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@ynemag - Well, Iām about to make sled #3 and go back to my previous router now that Iāve made my emergency cut-off with speed control (AKA light-dimmer), which means Iāll also be making a new hacked up not-so-meticulous z-axis
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No worries, you have gone above and beyond to help the rest of us, donāt sweat the small stuff.
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So here is where I am at. Where do I start: bearing blocks, when the tiny (and I mean tiny) bearings fall out (my fault) you are going to have a long night. The linear rails and lead screw kits are cheap, until you buy the hardware to mount them. If I continue down this path with the 3D printed mount I will be limited to long shaft bits. I have not yet determined if the ring kit will be compatible with this setup.
I like to think I am pretty handy, I guess I grossly overestimated my own skills.
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I think it looks pretty good. The router clamp looks like you could slide the router down another inch. Can you move the lower ball screw blocks up on the router clamping board to get more z travel on the lowered position?
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@ShadyG: Looking good so far. I do agree that it looks like you can lower the router in the clamp. I had a similar problem with mine, but I was able to lower the top clamp to position the router lower. Ideally, you will want to mount the router so that the collet is maybe a quarter inch above the workpiece when it is at the bottom of the travel.
The problem with moving those is that the bottom of the carriage plate can crash into the dust chute at the bottom of itās travel.
Yeah, most bearing blocks have that flaw. In hindsight, you should leave the blocks on the rails, 'cause otherwise all the bearings will want to wall out. I guess this is a warning for the people who havenāt built theirs yet.
Do you remember what size screws are needed for the blocks? Iām pretty sure theyāre something metric, which means theyāre wrong in the BOM.
I would like to try and find stuff that isnāt so expensive to source.
Itās hard to say from pictures, but it looks like the hinge side is good. The latch, on the other hand, looks like it projects too far. It doesnāt look like it needs to be so big, though. I wonder if it could be redesigned to work? I donāt have a ring on my machine myself, so Iām not sure where the exact interferences are.
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Is it the clamp that hits the dust collection or the plate? The plate can be notched, but maybe not the clamp.
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Great comment. The bottom piece of the router clamp has a lip that the router sits on. It is a great design but, in this case with the dust chute, it creates an issue. I could leave it off and move the body clamp down but I really like what it does for stability. I do need to cut off about an inch of the plate that the router is mounted to. I used the original design when I printed my parts so there is a gap at the bottom where the wooden router clamp would have been mounted.
Yeah I learned to keep the rails on, probably a good idea to use zip ties on the rail to prevent it sliding out.
I used M4x25mm. It was tricky because the threads in the bearing block do not go all the way through the holes in the bearing block. My plywood is 17mm, the length needed will change for different ply.
I have been wondering if the kinematic system is empirically better than the ring system or what the substantive differences are. I have nothing but praise for everything you have done but, I am considering purchasing a sled and axis kit from metal maslow. It uses the kinematic system.
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@Orob: As I designed it, the bottom clamp should be flush with the bottom of the plate. Looking a little closer at the pictures, though, it looks like the clamp is actually sitting above the bottom of the carriage plate, which means it could be moved down to be flush with the bottom. IMHO, I think thatās easier than moving both of the bearing blocks and gives you the same result.
Now thatās an idea! That never occurred to me, but thatās a good suggestion.
Iāll update the BOM in accordance with that. Most big box hardware stores should have those in their specialty hardware section. I just looked at Home Depot and they have these zinc plated, M4 x 30mm machine screws for $0.86 per two. All 12 screws comes to $5.16.
You could always get a M4 tap to increase the thread depth in each block, but I am aware thatās more work. 
Stupid that the rail kit doesnāt just come with the damn screws, though.
There is no solid data to back this up yet, but my hypothesis is that the linkage systems are more inherently accurate because they have a smoother motion. Awhile back, I had started to test this, but life got in the way before I could test the ring. I am planning on re-doing those tests in the future, but I need to finish setting up my machine again. I donāt actually have a ring to test, but I could probably fix that pretty easily.
And to your second point, there certainly is the appeal to just purchasing their kit and not having to do all the legwork to make my setup. While I have done my best to keep up with development, there still is a lot more to be done before I consider this a polished product.
I donāt want to take away from the meticulous Z axis, I prefer to make as much as I can and when folks do the kind of work you have it makes that possible. My problem is deciding how best to spend my limited shop time. Some day, if I live long enough, I will retire, and I can spend as much time as I desire tinkering, that is the plan anyway. 
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Amen to that! Thatās become a huge factor when planning out my own projects.
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A little update, had a job to cut and decided to recut the carrier with machine drilled holes for the bearing blocks and router clamp. Finishing up some loose ends on the dust collection ring. Decided to use rare earth magnets to hold the lexan on. 6mm magnets expoxied in the hole 4 each. Used a 6mm drill bit to create a divot in the lexan for 1 each magnet to epoxy on top.
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First operational test of the Meticulous Z-axis!
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