Listers,
Larry and I had a little off-list discussion about the economics of doing a run
of LAT-9 center caps using the laser-lithography/lost-wax casting process; the
details follow. Does anyone care to comment on the number of LAT-9 sets out
there?
Just so you know, I don't have a set of LAT-9's and haven't seen a set close up
(just pictures). The feasibility of doing a machined or cast set of caps depend
on the presence or absence of reverse-taper profiles, etc. I'm assuming that the
caps do not need anything like that.
Theo Smit
tsmit@novatel.ca
B382002705
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Wright, Larry [SMTP:lrw@aop.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, December 02, 1998 12:16 PM
> To: 'Theo Smit'
> Subject: RE: inquiry 120298d
>
>
>
> Lawrence R. Wright
> Purchasing Analyst
> Andrews Office Products Div. of USOP
> lrw@aop.com
> Ph. 301.386.7923 Fx. 301.386.5333
>
>
> * -----Original Message-----
> * From: Theo Smit [mailto:TSmit@novatel.ca]
> * I just talked to the mechanical designer who got the quotes etc.
> * Die cost: $5-10K (apparently a die is still required)
> * Per piece price: $60 for 50 to 100 quantity.
>
> Thanks, Theo. I think you should consider sharing all this with the List
> so the guy with the LAT 9's sees all this.
>
> * These prices are canadian dollars, I think, but still not
> * cheap (I thought the
> * per-piece price would end up around $20). The cost could be
> * reduced by making
> * one die for four endcaps; if a run of 100 sets was done, this
> * would give a cost
> * of $16000 or $160 per set. I'm sure that some people would
> * pay that much to
> * restore their LAT-9's but not 100 people. I don't recall
> * anyone ever mentioning
> * how many sets of LAT-9's there are out there.
>
> I'm picking #'s out of thin air, but from the # of Tigers made, the %
> imported, the % sold before the switch-over to LAT 70's, the survival
> rate, and so on, I would not be surprised to learn that +/- 500 sets
> were ever sold. Subtract those never modified and, yeah, I see your
> point.
>
> However, if _I_ had a set of cropped 9's, I'd probably be exploring
> every possibility. I would then, still, take a long hard look at some
> form of home-brew casting.
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