FBM Intake Manifold Release

[marcoaferrer]

Too busy working on s2k turbo kits to finish this manifold


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[FullBlown]

Originally Posted by marcoaferrer

Too busy working on s2k turbo kits to finish this manifold


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Haha, not true. The casting process is out of our hands once we have done the prototyping. The tooling for casting is very expensive, everything has to be checked a gazillion time before it goes into production.

It's just the nature of casting products. It takes time.

[cdrazic93]

Originally Posted by himbo

What are the possibilities of 3D printing this manifold? Not sure what the price points are, but I'm wondering if this is a possibility over doing cast aluminum pieces.

Strides in 3D printing speed need to be vastly improved to meet any sort of demand.

[marcoaferrer]

Originally Posted by FullBlown

Haha, not true. The casting process is out of our hands once we have done the prototyping. The tooling for casting is very expensive, everything has to be checked a gazillion time before it goes into production.

It's just the nature of casting products. It takes time.

IM JUST BEING A DOUCHE!!!! lol I just want so bahhhddd.

At this point I dont even care about gains. I just want more FBM shit in my engine bay.

[350matt]

Originally Posted by himbo

What are the possibilities of 3D printing this manifold? Not sure what the price points are, but I'm wondering if this is a possibility over doing cast aluminum pieces.

for something this big

3D printing in ally will be thousands



you could get it done in plastic , make it extra thick and it would be Ok for NA but it'd still be a couple of thousand

for volume a casting is still the best option

[Dipstik-sportech]

I don't think a printed plastic one would hold up well to boost and the gasket surfaces would need extensive work to seal.

[himbo]

Hmmmmm, I figured we're at the point where we could get some decent prices on production because there are already quite a few companies around. This piece isn't going to be mass produced in very high volumes so that's where I'm coming from. I think with the right composite, you could conceivably manufacture them via 3d printing.

[Luckrider]

Originally Posted by himbo

Hmmmmm, I figured we're at the point where we could get some decent prices on production because there are already quite a few companies around. This piece isn't going to be mass produced in very high volumes so that's where I'm coming from. I think with the right composite, you could conceivably manufacture them via 3d printing.

Actually, even at relatively low volume, thermoplastic molding is a much better option. The cost a mold ($4,000-$15,000) is easily negated with fairly little volume. Even after only 100 pieces, you get down to a reasonable cost of less than $200/unit shipped to FBM and each part will run in the pennies to ~$2/piece for something molded here in the US. Make 1,000 in your first run and you are looking at a seriously cheap part cost and with something like the intake, part cost and mold cost will be lower than quoted. This is why the OEM ones are now molded thermoplastics. Very resilient, very light, very cheap.

[350matt]

thing is if the 1st run of a 100 parts is $200 each then thats still $20,000 + the cost of the mould at $15,000 so $35,000 is a pretty hefty investment for a small company and a metal part will always be more robust so you've a better chance of it being right 1st time

[Frogamazog]

And it just looks cooler

[Dipstik-sportech]

Yeah you can't polish plastic lol.

[Luckrider]

Originally Posted by 350matt

thing is if the 1st run of a 100 parts is $200 each then thats still $20,000 + the cost of the mould at $15,000 so $35,000 is a pretty hefty investment for a small company and a metal part will always be more robust so you've a better chance of it being right 1st time

My quote of $200/unit included the cost of the mold at $15k. The reality is, a mold for something like this would probably run about $7k-$10k based on my chat with an industry contact one of my coworkers set me up with. I am talking an initial run of 100 costing $20K with any parts after that being literally pennies to produce. A truckload would cost about $2k to ship halfway across the country. The real breakdown would look something like this.

Cost per 100 (initial run): $12,000 + $5/piece for a total of $12,500
Shipping: $500
Labor to package: $400
Packaging Materials: $600 (This is based on low volume purchasing of said packaging materials. This is the business I work and I know it well and this is a fair estimate without know the exact packaging requirements).
Marketing/Testing: $1,000

Total Cost for 1st 100 ~ $15,000 making for total cost/unit $150.

Sale Price is $250+ Shipping leaving a difference of $100 which would be needed to cover operating cash flow, utilities, general asset usage.... Slim profits.

Now Let's look at the next 100 piece batch.

Cost per 100: $5/piece for a total of $500
Shipping: $500
Labor to package: $400
Packaging Materials: $600
Marketing/Customer Service from previous orders: $1,000

Total Cost for subsequent 100 ~ $3,000 = $30

Non-Introductory Price of $300 now set. This is a 10x markup which is what is needed to keep the doors to the place open.

Mind you, these numbers are totally fake and do not include the labor expended to design and test the part. I'm pulling numbers out of my ass because business is now nearly where people think it is when it comes to production cost versus what the end user pays because so much money is spent on labor and transportation. Did you know that as the manufacturer, a box company will sell a brake pad box for ~$1-$2 to a broker. This is pricing by the trailer load. Then they have to warehouse it and ship to their customers. Even more ridiculous, a drop ship (manufacturer shipping to their customer's customer) order will usually be charged a 100% markup by the broker.

And... real world business with made up numbers 101 is over.

[himbo]

I know for very high volumes, 3d printing is not really a viable solution. 3D printing is also not good for very small batches. But I feel like a run of 250-500 units might be a pretty economical solution... happy to be corrected if I'm wrong...

[Chrisposey]

Wouldn't the cast aluminum heat soak and raise the intake temperatures?