501Cobra,
Good idea! I will look into putting part numbers on the block. You are right, it certainly can be a replacement block.
quickjack,
We had the billet heat treated before we even started. I didn't want the trouble of it warping after it was machined. You are right, by the time you count up the spindle time, I am sure there will be far more parts we make that we will have better margins with.
Steve,
I know you are just joking and it is interesting to look at raw material costs.
Actually, you can not buy aluminum for $1.50/pound. Forgings are more like $3-$5/pound and that does not include the price of tooling. We currently pay $2.25 for extrusion (not forgings) and over $3 for plate--when you can find it. The forging we had made was almost $2000.
Then add:
$125,000 milling machine
$100,000 in tooling, cutter, holders, etc.
$50,000 in CAD/CAM software
200 hours of design time
200 hours of programming
100 hours of proofing--(so far)
and I haven't even paid to turn on the lights yet, paid for opportunity costs, or received a guarantee that it will actually work and people will buy it.
As for material costs, the CAD/CAM programs that I paid $50,000 had a raw material cost of maybe 0.50 cents for the discs they came on.
The raw material costs for the Mona Lisa are probably a dollar.
BUT if you want the "best" raw material cost vs retail cost...
just talk to a lawyer!!!
I know you were just joking, and sometimes I wonder why things cost so much too. I am sure everyone realizes there is WAY more to making something than just the raw material cost of whatever you start with.
David