yep pretty much finished design and testing.
Final parts are 20mm longer than 2x the diameter. It's now entirely parametric, so length is now proportional to the glande diameter.
Last one was 60x35 (first with the new length settings), rolled real quick and easy. Slow roll with gentle pressure worked really well. Guessed damn near right amount of clay first time and took about 10 seconds to roll it.
The extra length made a noticeable difference.
Got new filament supplier
www.3dexfilament.co.uk who sells a couple of filaments coloured with metal powder. Copper and aluminium.
About as close to metal looking as you can get.
Stuff isn't cheap but if anyone wants a metal looking mould, filament is on order
I don't have enough sample filament to print a mould. But printed a couple of nut and bolt sets.
The aluminium bolt is on my balearic target centre. In the 'flesh' as it were it looks a lot more metallic.
The copper one is nest to a piece of copper pipe and is virtually identical in both colour and sheen.
I'll generate some images showing the three launch design shapes and how different ratios of length to diameter effects the shapes and set up a seperate thread in the mall section.
I honestly have no bloody clue on pricing. And as my accountant will tell you, I also have no clue what other people are prepared to pay for stuff. Being generlly skint myself, I always underestimate stuff.
p&p should be Around £3-5 for one,
If I follow the guidelines people have told me: ie: design time plus print time plus material cost. They work out stupidly expensive.
So I'm aiming for a sensible middle ground.
Price per mould. Somewhere around the £10 mark i was thinking. Larger ones - obviously - more than smaller ones. And an extra £3-4 for the metallic ones (the filament is around 3x more expensive than normal pla and while the filament cost is the least of the expense, it does make a noticeable difference with the premium stuff).
I can also offer moulds in pet-g for a small extra cost - probably £2. If anyone is planning on using some substance that eats pla. I have no idea what that might be - but it's an available option should it be required.
Discount available for more than one mould
They are simple looking things, but made with engineering precision - and each one is custom made.
While not indestructible, they are extremely durable and should last for many years with a little care.
Don't drop from a great height on a concrete floor. That said I've bounced a couple on the concrete floor of my workshop with no problems. I'm just not recommending it
Don't hit with hammers or drive over with your car or let your dog chew them.
I'll throw in 1 text stamp free with each mould. Short words or phrases work better than long ones. But I'm not putting a character limit on it. If it's too long to get a clean impression - I told you so
So that's what I'm thinking at the moment.
Other pricing suggestions and justifications welcome
Is that too cheap ? Do you think it's too expensive.
I've been self employed for nearly 25 years and never had much money - so I genuinely have no idea what other people think is a reasonable price for anything.
Let alone something completely unique like this.
Be gentle with me