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Old 07-05-2019, 08:45 PM   #63
extrashaky
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Join Date: Mar 2014
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Quote:
Originally Posted by churchx View Post
Other vendors had 5 years for that.
You never know.

Starting in 1997 the Jeep Cherokee had a center console that was held down with a plastic bracket that liked to break, leaving the center console wobbly. For years people talked about it on the forums, and there were numerous discussions on the best way to repair it.

Finally in 2012 someone made a replacement for his own Jeep out of steel. When people expressed interest, he started having them CNC cut in batches, then he'd bend and weld them in his garage and sell them to other owners.

One of the Jeep vendors saw it, thought it was a good idea and stole the design. Once they stole it, three other vendors stole it from them. Now there are four vendors selling something that took 15 years to hit the market. The original guy wasn't doing it for the money, so he just stopped making them.

Now, I'm not a fan of outright stealing other people's work. But if someone sees a problem with the existing design and comes up with a competing product that solves those issues, I don't see a problem with that. I think there's enough demand here for someone to compete on size, appearance and price. A shorter extension with a plastic housing to make it blend visually with the steering column a little better could potentially compete.

Or maybe 949 will make those improvements themselves. Based on their response to my interest in it on their other thread, I get the sense this product was not something that really interested them beyond just an opportunity to make a little money to fund the more exciting tech they really want to be working on.

Quote:
Originally Posted by churchx View Post
If you want 20mm extension, get J-Luth steering wheel. It costs 3x this spacer costs though.
I have one. It's not enough of an extension, and the diameter of the wheel is smaller so that part of what you gain toward you is lost toward the center, away from where your elbow might be resting on the center console or door in casual driving.
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