Questions: Custom CNC Orders

by Dana Bourgeois

Originally published in American Lutherie #74, 2003 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015

 

Greg Pacetti of Fairbanks, Alaska asks:

Do you know of a CNC machining company that could take a custom neck order of as little as thirty in quantity?

Dana Bourgeois of Brunswick, Maine answers:

Small runs are nice in theory, but one-time engineering, programming, and setup costs can kill you. For example, I just had a run of twenty-five pyramid bridges made by Maverick Precision Wood Products (207-225-5043; maverick@exploremaine.com). The one-time costs came to about $500, after which bridges cost $12 each. If I never make any more than twenty-five, the overall cost of each bridge (including setup, and so on) is $32. If I had wanted only one, Maverick would have made just one, but it would have cost $512. In reality, I will probably use five hundred of them over the next ten years and my cost will eventually come down to $13 each.

Also remember that I supplied the CAD drawing, which meant that I got exactly the bridge I asked for. The engineering cost would have been much higher if I had given Maverick a bridge from which to generate their own drawing.

The bottom line is to try not to make runs that are either too small or too large. A small builder might use up to twenty-five pyramid bridges over a three-to-five year period. At that rate, a cost of $32/bridge is realistic. ◆