Yes Dave, I thought of the Dynamic Component thing too but I thought it best to ask for just the static stuff first.
The whole point of a 3D model is, as always with paper, to solve these problems whilst an eraser can still be used to fix problems. I'm was hoping a Ruby Guru could just whip up something and I have to believe that something like this would be useful to all of us troglodytes who are foolish enough after modeling to actually try to MAKE our model using "Materials" such as "Wood" or "Metal" or "Glass."
And thanks for all your information and selfless sharing.
Richard