Handcrafted Goodness Inside! Exterior Mirrors

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by milehigreg

I am 100% in for a set of these mirrors when they come available. CNC production methods doesn't bother me a bit.

Thanks for the feedback.

Originally Posted by nds1968

Your gonna have to compromise somewhere. If you run them on a CNC isn't changing and improving the product much easier and faster to do?

Absolutely.

Originally Posted by BugzC10

Have you considered making the investment and polishing them yourself instead of farming out the polishing process? How many would you have to sell to pay for the polishing equipment?

If I didn't have a full time job, I would consider doing it myself. I'm all about that. However the word "polish" may sound a little deceiving. A raw cast piece needs to be ground in spots, sanded, and then buffed. It's a time consuming process that is really an art form in itself, which is why even $45 sounds inexpensive.

[jtp67-72]

Here's my take ( and this comes from someone who normally takes the time to do it my way even if there's another one easier).....I go back and look at those initial drawings and say...."Man those are the coolest custom thing for these trucks without compromising the original style to come along in a long while.....just enough for someone to go hhmmm..." AND only u would know they weren't done HOW u wanted BUT they would EXIST!!! And at the end of the day letting us show these to the trucking world would give us and U lots of smiles knowing that they WERE HANDCRAFTED by somebody who dared to step out of the box when others won't or can't!!

Stay with it brother and let's see if we can get these things to life!!!..jim

[Steve Cole]

I'm good with CNC. I just want a better product, doesn't matter how you get there. Regarding the sport mirrors, can you just make a mirror "head" that will snap into existing bases?

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by jtp67-72

Here's my take ( and this comes from someone who normally takes the time to do it my way even if there's another one easier).....I go back and look at those initial drawings and say...."Man those are the coolest custom thing for these trucks without compromising the original style to come along in a long while.....just enough for someone to go hhmmm..." AND only u would know they weren't done HOW u wanted BUT they would EXIST!!! And at the end of the day letting us show these to the trucking world would give us and U lots of smiles knowing that they WERE HANDCRAFTED by somebody who dared to step out of the box when others won't or can't!!

Stay with it brother and let's see if we can get these things to life!!!..jim

Very well said Jim. Thanks for that reply.

Originally Posted by Steve Cole

I'm good with CNC. I just want a better product, doesn't matter how you get there. Regarding the sport mirrors, can you just make a mirror "head" that will snap into existing bases?

Steve, I have not got my hands on a set of sport mirrors yet. It's on my list though.

[jlaird]

I think it's about time to give you guys an update on this thread!

Today was a great day! But more on that in a minute.

Last time I replied on this thread, I shared with you the issue of the polishing cost. Since then, I had been looking for other polishers to quote the job. I found a local shop, dropped the prototype off to get polished, and waited, and waited, and waited…called a couple times and got the familiar runaround. Not a company I want to be involved with, so I went and picked up the part to get the heck out of there. (BTW, it looked the same way as the day I dropped it off, they had done nothing to it)

That was a Friday. Saturday I went to the Syracuse Nationals car show. While walking around there, I saw Brad Fanshaw standing in his booth promoting his Street Rod & Custom Radio Podcast. I'm not usually the type to walk up to somebody like that who's in the limelight, but I said to myself, "this guy is in the parts business. Maybe he can offer me some advice." And sure enough, he did. He turned out to be a REALLY nice guy, took interest in what I am doing, and suggested I look into tumbling as a way to polish the mirrors.

So after several days of searching, I found a company in NH. I sent the prototype to them for them to test the tumbling process. The porosity of the casting in the detail areas, however, made it a no-go. They did say that if the part was machined, they could do it no problem. This brings me back to the whole cast vs machined debate I had going on in my head. I want this to be a reality, so decision made, let's machine it.

Next step is I get some referrals for machine shops. After a couple weeks of sifting the wheat from the chaff, I FINALLY found a good fit! That was today. I had a meeting with a shop. Single owner, younger guy about my age, recently started his business about 2 years ago. Most importantly, he's real talented and energetic about what he does. Just my kind of guy. I'm thinking there might be a good match here.

I would say within a week, I will have pricing to share. Production lead time is 4-6 weeks which isn't too bad considering the journey I've been on thus far. LOL.

Well, that's about it. I'm excited!

-josh

[jtp67-72]

We are too!!!

[Bad Jackson]

Congrats Josh! Keep at it! Once you get these figured out, I think a more functional version of the Sport Mirrors would do well. The factory ones are all for show & don't work worth a darn... apparently.

Very nice motors. Good luck.

[dirtyjim]

I like all three mirror styles but slightly prefer #3.

I would also prefer the parts were cast and hand polished but I've done some time as a machinist and I do not see having them machined instead of cast as being any less hand made or crafted. in fact if you were to go with manual machines instead of cnc the parts would have even more hands on them but would require more time and set ups. a 5-axis cnc can spit some amazing parts out in record time and that would probably end up being the most cost affective route in the end.

the sculptured mirror arm is going to be a tough one because there is a fine line on it where it goes from trim and sleek to bulky and fat. at least to me there is others may disagree and we all have different tastes

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by dirtyjim

the sculptured mirror arm is going to be a tough one because there is a fine line on it where it goes from trim and sleek to bulky and fat. at least to me there is others may disagree and we all have different tastes

The arms are a whole other beast! I actually started the CAD work on them and stopped after I starting having difficulties with getting the mirrors made. Now that the mirrors are under control, I'll get back on the arms.

I formed an LLC today so I wouldn't have to pay tax on the mirror housings from the Machinist. Cut a check for him today too. Very exciting, but a little scary too!

[jlaird]

Ok, time for an update. What a crazy ride this has been! The last update I gave I said I had found a machinist, approved the quote and put a deposit down. Well for reasons I still do not fully understand, the guy pretty much doubled his prices after I awarded him the job. The only logical explanation I can gather is that he did not closely look at the drawings I supplied when he quoted. Then when it was go time, he realized it was not what he had thought and resubmitted a much higher prices.

Regardless, I headed for the hills. If things like that happen even before the job starts, I saw that as foresight as to future potential issues.

As an aside, the deposit I sent him was addressed to his shop address. Come to find out, his shop has no mailbox, so the Post Office returned the check to me. Thought that was quite the coincidence that played in my favor!

So the process for looking for another machinist started. This time I took the approach of posting an RFQ (request for quote) on the practicalmachinist.com forum. I got about 5 interested people, have selected one, and now the project is back on track. This ate up about 3 weeks! I'm getting a pair of prototypes made that I will be mounting on my truck and photographing. He's saying about 3 weeks.

What a roller coaster! LOL

Josh

[Steve Cole]

Way to stay the course Josh! Your persistence will eventually pay off in a quality, American made product that many will cherish and enjoy. Now hurry up so you can get on those sport mirrors! (kidding)
I hope this machinist works out for you.

[Voodoo_Child]

Sorry to hear about your machine shop issues.

PM sent

[Ironangel]

All good Joshua...Still in line for a set when they're ready for sale. ~ Michael~

[davepl]

I'm guessing those are 3D models, why not send the file out and get it CNC'd? Got to be places that will quote that online. And adding glass is easy (framing shop can cut round stuff).

Or you would even print it on a 3D printer and send it off for plastic plating. Not 100% certain of that, but they can "chrome" plate almost anything now.

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by Steve Cole

Way to stay the course Josh! Your persistence will eventually pay off in a quality, American made product that many will cherish and enjoy. Now hurry up so you can get on those sport mirrors! (kidding)
I hope this machinist works out for you.

Thanks Steve!

Originally Posted by Voodoo_Child

Sorry to hear about your machine shop issues.

PM sent

Thanks for the intro!

Originally Posted by Ironangel

All good Joshua...Still in line for a set when they're ready for sale. ~ Michael~

I'll hold you to that. LOL

Originally Posted by davepl

I'm guessing those are 3D models, why not send the file out and get it CNC'd? Got to be places that will quote that online. And adding glass is easy (framing shop can cut round stuff).

Or you would even print it on a 3D printer and send it off for plastic plating. Not 100% certain of that, but they can "chrome" plate almost anything now.

Hey Dave, yeah they are 3D models and yes they are getting machined. I ordered a pair of prototypes. Will be close to 3 weeks now. One of two prototypes will be polished by the machinist, and the other is going to a company so I can compare and evaluate the feasibility of tumbling to polish. If the tumbling works out, costs can be reduced.

So last night I wrote this article to share some experiences from this process and maybe even help others who may want to try their hand at manufacturing a part.

5 tips for making your first Hot Rod part a reality

Let me know what you think.

-josh

[davepl]

It'd be great if you added some info on (a) how to find a CNC shop to cut it for you, and (b) a ballpark of what a one-off prototype costs to mill.

I have no idea if its $20, $50, $500 or what...

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by davepl

It'd be great if you added some info on (a) how to find a CNC shop to cut it for you, and (b) a ballpark of what a one-off prototype costs to mill.

I have no idea if its $20, $50, $500 or what...

Dave,

Great questions. First, if you haven't already done so, read the link directly above on the "5 tips." I talk a whole bunch about selecting shops. Regarding finding them, there are two ways. 1. Referral and 2. Internet searches. Referrals are great but not 100% bulletproof. Internet searches are a crap shoot, so you have to do a lot of "getting to know them" before any money is exchanged.

Regarding costs, wow, they are across the board! From all the quoting i've gone through on these, I think I'm getting a great price of $500 for two housings. Part of that cost is one-time setup charges that had to be paid for the production run.

Then add the prototype hardware at $150 and you can start to get an idea of prototype costs.

-josh

[Voodoo_Child]

I hope all is going well. Any new feedback?

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by Voodoo_Child

I hope all is going well. Any new feedback?

Just waiting on the last piece of tooling. Should have it friday.

[no1udknow]

Can I make a suggestion? From an engineering/mechanic standpoint, could the front lip that holds the mirror be threaded in so that the glass could be replaced and the pivot could be tightened if it loosened over time. I know Headwinds motorcycle headlights use a threaded ring to hold the lenses in their place, but they look clean and seamless with no bolts. The backside and design looks beautiful. I actually really like that gun metal color of the rendering also.

[jlaird]

Originally Posted by no1udknow

Can I make a suggestion? From an engineering/mechanic standpoint, could the front lip that holds the mirror be threaded in so that the glass could be replaced and the pivot could be tightened if it loosened over time. I know Headwinds motorcycle headlights use a threaded ring to hold the lenses in their place, but they look clean and seamless with no bolts. The backside and design looks beautiful. I actually really like that gun metal color of the rendering also.

Good suggestion. I will keep that in mind for future iterations. Always need to improve!

[SierraMtns]

Hey Josh,

Any updates on the mirrors?

Thanks

[hotrod1]

Yep, looking for updates too.

[67-72trucks]

Any updates?

[SierraMtns]

Anyone know Josh? Was hoping for an update.