Sinclair ZX80 / ZX81 / Z88 Forums

jomac wrote: ↑Sun Dec 15, 2019 8:24 pm The 4 versions are quite simple, its the hole for the antenna connector, looking from the rear, the UK etc the hole is nearest the power socket on the left, the USA version its next to the edge connector on the right. Most clones its dead centre and there will be a version available with no hole at all

Excellent, understood.

I'm interrested in one as well.
Kind regards
Paul

You will find many posts in the Sinclair groups on FaceBook or look for me John Lannigan with an orange T shirt

Please keep us informed here because some people do not want to use facebook.

A former member of the german ZX Team, Ali Schams, made some replica cases and I own three of them. You can see the cases in this video (made on the ZX Team Meeting in 2014):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDx58BozFEU

Unfortunately, Ali has passed away and nowbody knows how he made the cases.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/sinclairc ... view=group

This is "public" Facebook group. You don't have to be a member, I'm not. I've been able to read it without any problems. However, you do get a persistant NAG screen though.

Regards;

Greg

Frustratingly on mobile devices I have, I can read that and other public groups (sometimes, randomly for days, Facebook decides I can’t even see the main posts unless I sign up) but not any of the comments - not to mention finding /searching any posts after a few days seems archaic. It’s how I lost touch with the Spectrum Next project many times when that moved from a classic forum to mainly updating on FB.

I’m intrigued by new case projects, I’ve been musing over building a vac-former or investing in a large area 3D printer to have a go (Jupiter ace case mainly) for a year or so..

Hi Daeve,
After going through a very steep learning curve here and a month of work, phone calls and meetings, it depends on what you want to achieve. 3D printing is fine if you want a 1 off and not too bothered if its a close mock up. Vacuum forming is hellishly expensive when you consider that machining the moulds alone will set you back circa £1,200 and that doesnt include the costs of someone doing the CAD file in the first place. Then someone has to CAD the CNC for the cut outs and holes, someone else has to set up the screens for the screen printing. Expect the first case without cut outs or screen printing to come out at circa £35.!

If you then wanted to do a run of these for fellow enthusiasts as i hoped that are exact in every detail, you then hit copyright and trade mark issues, and believe me, after the Sinclair Spectrum Vega+ issues and RCL the copyright owners are watching the scene like hawks, i know, i've spoken with them.

I've worked hard on an idea to help others by hopefully producing an exact replica, made from the same materials, cut out in the identical way and screen printed in the same colours as the original. To be able to do this, i have had to apply for a licence from the copyright owners, i wont know the outcome until early in January. This certainly isnt a venture to get rich, i even doubt it would come to paying 50% of minimum wage, but it would give original owners of damaged cases, and owners of ZX80 clones a pretty good copy of the original case.

Lots of effort there, I wish you the best of luck! I’d not figured how to cut out the plastic. I may have a go at 3D printing as a challenge for 2020.

An original case is scanned, similar to 3D printer scanners and the resultant cut outs identified. A jig is manufactured to hold the cases rigid and then a CNC milling machine is used to do the cut outs and the holes.

In all there are 3 different stages and 3 different manufacturers involved. The hard part was getting all 3 to talk together so everyone was singing from the same song sheet.!

How are these cases coming along jomac?