[PensWA]

I am making a small order of pens, then planning on a much larger order.

I am curious how much it would cost to produce 10 pens of the same design out of 6061 aluminum. After receiving the 10 pens, I am then going to run a product campaign for 30 days online, and assuming it is successful, I will be re-ordering 200 or more of these same pens.

I am in Seattle, Washington but am open to working with a shop in another state. I have CAD drawings and CAD models with accurate dimensions ready to go.

Each pen is approximately 142 mm long and 10 mm tall. Each pen is made of three parts that must fit together perfectly. There is a cap, a housing unit for the ink cartridge, and a screw-on lid. I think a CNC machine being used for this product makes sense. Also, each pen will receive a simple engraving on the cap, and pens probably need to be smoothed out to remove rough parts. The pens hold specific ink cartridges and springs, which I have. I was going to use grade 5 or grade 2 titanium but it seems too expensive. I will also be getting these pens anodized after manufacturing.

I am most likely going to sell these pens for approximately $35, so am looking for a price for a shop that allows me to make a substantial profit on that but also gives the shop itself a good profit.

Is this doable? If so, about how much would it cost?

Thanks! I appreciate the help and advice.

[rlockwood]

Expect to pay through the nose for the first ten, and your design has some small flaws (detail at the tip inside of the cap is unnecessarily difficult, same with the inside of the pen tip, etc..) Titanium isn't as expensive as you think.. Might not have much margin at $35, though.

You'll want to look for a machine shop with a Swiss style CNC turning center, it will be the most productive for your parts, and as such offer both you and the machine shop the best profit margin. Seattle is ripe with machine shops; don't be afraid to shop it to them directly, they'll likely be more reasonable than you think. At the same time, don't expect a discount on the first ten on the basis that you'll be back for more.. They've heard it before

Good luck with the campaign; pens seem to do rather well. Don't underestimate how much work is involved; A lot of answering questions, explaining to people why you can't make theirs different.. making the mistake of agreeing to make theirs different, forgetting that you agreed to make theirs different.. etc. My general advice is to keep it simple, limit the amount of variations you offer, etc. Just making sure the right widget gets put in 200+ boxes is difficult enough.

[Jack Tool guy]

Hello Sir,

I have reviewed your drawings and we can machine these parts for you and how about we make these for you and probably you will get much margin.

Looking forward to your reply,

Thanks
Jack

[ATWdwilliams]

Please email me the cad at [email protected]. I will reply with a quote on the first ten and the production rate. Thanks!