@jason.fisher: I thought about that. There are a few concerns.
1) It makes the stepper mount more complicated. Remember that you have to tension the rod between two bearings to isolate from stepper end play.
2) The steppers would intersect the build volume.
3) If you wanted to make a heated chamber you would probably want to keep the steppers out.
All of that can be designed around. However, the rod is relatively cheap so wasting a few inches for form isn't too bad.
Question: how would changing the stepper position change the homing sequence?
1) It makes the stepper mount more complicated. Remember that you have to tension the rod between two bearings to isolate from stepper end play.
2) The steppers would intersect the build volume.
3) If you wanted to make a heated chamber you would probably want to keep the steppers out.
All of that can be designed around. However, the rod is relatively cheap so wasting a few inches for form isn't too bad.
Question: how would changing the stepper position change the homing sequence?