Bubble Tech Engine Cover (Coming Soon!)
04-23-13, 08:44 PM
#52
awesome!
Yeah it is a bit pricey but there is so much labor involved in making these parts. Another thing to remember before comparing our prices to other common companies, we are not buying a piece and making molds off them. WE are designing these parts from SCRATCH. Carbon fiber is also not cheap, nor is the process we use (resin infusion)
Thanks for the compliment!
Never knew how much the KS one was, but it appears so
Thanks for the compliment!
So it's almost the same price as the knight sports carbon honeycomb one?
Knight Sports - Tower Plate, Honeycomb & Carbon - Nengun Performance
Knight Sports - Tower Plate, Honeycomb & Carbon - Nengun Performance
hopefully after this next meet i can start popping out some parts....
06-08-13, 08:46 AM
#59
Work in Progress
06-09-13, 04:07 PM
#61
While that maybe true, how many options are there for thiss piece? there are dozens of companies making a half dozen styles. looking for a bay cover, you will find used ones, im unfamiliar with any new options (other than this). also keep in mind its a small operation, which will generally create higher demand. it really comes down to supply and demand. If he sells them for that, more power to him.
06-09-13, 04:19 PM
#62
As someone noted above, the STRUCTURAL CG/honeycomb cover from KS is only a few hundred more, and eliminates the strut brace. Almost all U.S. RX7 parts companies are small garage businesses anymore, and like I say, they are selling far more complex parts for this cost.
Just sayin'.
Just sayin'.
06-10-13, 01:25 PM
#63
Ah yes the great debate about price! In the end its all time = money and for me to produce this, this is what my time is worth. Please excuse me in advance if I come off a bit defensive, I am proud of the products I produce and will stand behind them and defend them.
I will break this down into 3 sections, Difficulty, price, and quality
First of off, people have been asking companies to produce a part like this for YEARS. And there is a reason why no body has done so yet, simply because it is far too complex for them to make. Most of these composite companies that everyone is familiar with REPLICATE other companies parts (which is easy to do). Yes you may be able to get a "hood/hatch" for the same price but to design a hood is also way easier to make. For example, a hood you just take a stock hood, cut/add vents and there is your plug to make the mold from. For our engine bay cover we dont have and "base" to start off of. Everything is fabricated from scratch, we had to make MULTIPLE molds and fuse them together to make one part. which takes a lot of time = money.
With that said, there is a lot of design time into this part. from how I wanted it to look, and how to actually fabricate the plug, so i can make a mold off of it. Comparing our product to another companies "hood" is pointless. The consumer market is so saturated with replica companies that they created the "standard" cost of items. so yes, theoretically you could get a hood or hatch for this price, but you are just paying for the PART. Because these replica companies purchased and Authentic part and ripped it off. Hence, they can charge less because they do not have any design time involved in it. If you look at JDM companies sites, you can see all their hoods are 1K+, because they need to charge for their design time they have involved in their part to recoup the all the time invested. Another reason this part holds its price is because of its quality.
A HUGE misconception is what many companies claim "carbon fiber XXX" 99.% of Companies sell FRP and Carbon Fiber versions. Majority of consumers think when they select the "carbon fiber" option, they are receiving a "carbon fiber" part. However they are receiving a Fiberglass part with a TOP layer of Carbon fiber for appearance purposes. Also many of these companies either, do not clear coat their part, or they use a clear gel coat. Clear gel coat is great to speed up production and cut labor cost, but it is typically considered fragile, which is why you may see some "spider web" cracking in some lower quality parts. In addition, Although most clear gel coats have UV protection, they are not as strong as a true clear coat, hence why it will yellow.
Now, this product is FULL Carbon fiber. Keep in mind, Carbon Fiber is about 6x the cost of Fiberglass. Not only that, our Carbon Fiber products are clear coated by a Professional body shop using HIGH quality clear coat (~$300 per gallon) This provides much better UV protection, and a deep clarity to get the Carbon Fiber luster to show.
Now comparing it to the Knightsports version, well, yes is has more function, but personally I think its hideous. This product was designed for aesthetics purposes, and I think it achieves everything I was shooting for. Then again this part is not for everyone. We are priding this product as one of out flagship parts and will only offer it in Full Carbon fiber. Again its not for everyone, nor will everyone like our price, but with the time I have invested into it, if I charged any less, it simply would not be worth my time there has just been too many hours and money has been invested in this project to get it to this stage.
I will break this down into 3 sections, Difficulty, price, and quality
First of off, people have been asking companies to produce a part like this for YEARS. And there is a reason why no body has done so yet, simply because it is far too complex for them to make. Most of these composite companies that everyone is familiar with REPLICATE other companies parts (which is easy to do). Yes you may be able to get a "hood/hatch" for the same price but to design a hood is also way easier to make. For example, a hood you just take a stock hood, cut/add vents and there is your plug to make the mold from. For our engine bay cover we dont have and "base" to start off of. Everything is fabricated from scratch, we had to make MULTIPLE molds and fuse them together to make one part. which takes a lot of time = money.
With that said, there is a lot of design time into this part. from how I wanted it to look, and how to actually fabricate the plug, so i can make a mold off of it. Comparing our product to another companies "hood" is pointless. The consumer market is so saturated with replica companies that they created the "standard" cost of items. so yes, theoretically you could get a hood or hatch for this price, but you are just paying for the PART. Because these replica companies purchased and Authentic part and ripped it off. Hence, they can charge less because they do not have any design time involved in it. If you look at JDM companies sites, you can see all their hoods are 1K+, because they need to charge for their design time they have involved in their part to recoup the all the time invested. Another reason this part holds its price is because of its quality.
A HUGE misconception is what many companies claim "carbon fiber XXX" 99.% of Companies sell FRP and Carbon Fiber versions. Majority of consumers think when they select the "carbon fiber" option, they are receiving a "carbon fiber" part. However they are receiving a Fiberglass part with a TOP layer of Carbon fiber for appearance purposes. Also many of these companies either, do not clear coat their part, or they use a clear gel coat. Clear gel coat is great to speed up production and cut labor cost, but it is typically considered fragile, which is why you may see some "spider web" cracking in some lower quality parts. In addition, Although most clear gel coats have UV protection, they are not as strong as a true clear coat, hence why it will yellow.
Now, this product is FULL Carbon fiber. Keep in mind, Carbon Fiber is about 6x the cost of Fiberglass. Not only that, our Carbon Fiber products are clear coated by a Professional body shop using HIGH quality clear coat (~$300 per gallon) This provides much better UV protection, and a deep clarity to get the Carbon Fiber luster to show.
Now comparing it to the Knightsports version, well, yes is has more function, but personally I think its hideous. This product was designed for aesthetics purposes, and I think it achieves everything I was shooting for. Then again this part is not for everyone. We are priding this product as one of out flagship parts and will only offer it in Full Carbon fiber. Again its not for everyone, nor will everyone like our price, but with the time I have invested into it, if I charged any less, it simply would not be worth my time there has just been too many hours and money has been invested in this project to get it to this stage.
06-10-13, 01:36 PM
#64
Thank you!
A bonded part really isnt all that complex you just need a 2nd mold for the underside, which you just copy/modify off the stock hood.
Thanks Dan, the only other option that i know of available to the public is the Knightsports one which is more of a strut tower bar
That is correct, if someone wants to buy the Knightsports one, feel free, no one is obligated to buy any of our parts. We simply provide just another option if you are looking for something we make.
Who is selling far more complex parts for this cost? Yes we can conform to the market and sell lower quality parts for a lower price but thats not what our company is about.
While that maybe true, how many options are there for thiss piece? there are dozens of companies making a half dozen styles. looking for a bay cover, you will find used ones, im unfamiliar with any new options (other than this). also keep in mind its a small operation, which will generally create higher demand. it really comes down to supply and demand. If he sells them for that, more power to him.
As someone noted above, the STRUCTURAL CG/honeycomb cover from KS is only a few hundred more, and eliminates the strut brace. Almost all U.S. RX7 parts companies are small garage businesses anymore, and like I say, they are selling far more complex parts for this cost.
Just sayin'.
Just sayin'.
Who is selling far more complex parts for this cost? Yes we can conform to the market and sell lower quality parts for a lower price but thats not what our company is about.
07-20-13, 09:39 PM
#68
^^ Hahah awesome =)! we are running the Greddy Style strut bar. R1' strut bar will not be and issue since it uses the front 2 mounting points. its ther 3rd (further back) one that is having clearance issues allowing the strut bar plate to sit flush. once we finish modifying it, it shouldnt be an issue.
