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Tuesday, January 22, 2019

About Our Pricing in 2019, and our Vise Knobs


Pricing for 2019

If you've followed our work for any amount of time you've known that we don't like to sit still. Although there's something to be said for keeping things static, the "traditional workholding" philosophy, we are also of the mindset that improvements should always be sought after, unless they veer too far from the path of tradition.

Or, and let's be honest here, get too expensive.

From the very outset we designed our vises not to a price point, but to a standard of design and function first, then we looked hard at how to make these things relatively affordable. There was a whiff of this in the air when we debuted our M series handwheels, and when we went to double lead screws and added two knobs to the Glide Leg Vise. We kept things under control by offering our C series vises, with simpler materials and finish, but equal function. Due to a number of circumstances beyond our control, we've come to another crossroads and decisions must be made.

Metal prices have gone up. Labor prices have gone up. And being Iowa boys, down to earth midwest types, we've held off on raising our prices for (yes, we had to look it up) 7 years. Every few months our costs go up. The price of materials changes. Labor prices increase. What do we do? We eat it, and have been for 7 years. We try to make small, innocent changes that don't affect our product in order to keep from jacking the price up.

In hindsight, what was done with a pure intent turns out to be a pretty bad way of doing business. Hopefully we can learn our lesson and gradually increase prices, when necessary, instead of making big increases less frequently. Over the course of 2019, you will see some of our prices go up. Some might not. We don't sit at desks like bean counters and carry our costs to the third decimal point. Believe it or not, we start with "what's a fair price" before we even look at our costs. It's how we'd treat a family friend, and it's how we view every customer.

Vise Knobs

Somewhat related to the topic of pricing is the material we make our vise knobs from. That's about to change. In fact, if you've placed an order recently, you will likely be getting vises with our new knobs. Because we can't just make changes without a rational explanation (more "Iowa boys" coming through) here goes.

In the beginning we turned our own knobs in house (the person writing this is the "we") from cocobolo. I could only keep up for so long, and the cocobolo started irritating my body. We hired a professional turner to take over the work. Then cocobolo got really expensive and the government started controlling it, which made it even more expensive. So we moved to Dymondwood. Good stuff, looks like rosewood. Then the Dymondwood factory burned to the ground and they never rebuilt. We've been using NOS Dymondwood ever since. We've now run out, and for a brief period we used some knock-off Dymondwood from China. It was decent, but we had no idea what it was made from, and what kind of dust we were breathing when making them. Then we added infused beech. Also, good stuff, but sourcing wood, drying it, milling it, infusing it, then turning it ended up being another inventory headache. Then some uncontrollable parameters changed and the price of the knobs doubled. We had absorbed the increases for years, but this was one we couldn't. The cost on a Glide, with three knobs, would have increased more than anyone, especially us, would stomach.

So here's where we're going. From here on out all our Glide M and Glide C knobs will be made from aluminum. Yeah, sounds pretty awful right? We thought so too. Until we started really thinking about it. Aluminum is the most abundant metal in the world. We have no problem sourcing it. It's ready to use. Those are all compelling manufacturing reasons. But how will it feel in the hand? That's what really matters, right? Anodizing? Makes for pretty colors, and is durable, but its fairly cold and harsh. Powdercoat? Perhaps too plastic-y to the touch. On the only contact point between the vise and the human body, we wanted better.

Then it hit us as we were handling our cameras. Satin black wrinkle coating. Bingo. For decades this finish has been used on everything from the cameras that went to the moon, classic sports car interiors, tool handles, stereos and electronics. It has a tactile feel, its warm, and it looks great with our handwheels. Plus, its an economical choice that will allow us to keep our prices from getting out of hand. If you're into classic industrial design as we are, we think you'll love our new knobs. Are they a departure from the classic wood we've always used? Obviously, but we don't think they are any less, just different. And lets' face it, there's a lot of opportunity for exhibiting some exotic wood on a bench build. This way our vises will match any choice of wood you like for the rest of your bench.

Watch for our new knobs in the next few weeks.








27 comments:

  1. Would there be an option to turn and install our own wood knobs?

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    Replies
    1. No, we'll always provide knobs with our vises that accommodate them.

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  2. I like the reasoning here and the tie-ins to vintage cameras doesn't hurt either. I wonder if another option for cost containment might be to break the knobs out as a separate line item, so the default vises don't come with knobs and the user can chose no knobs (but maybe hardware for installing their own to your specs) aluminum, or maybe a small selection of other wooden knobs, all at a cost up as appropriate.
    You guys do great work, and keeping prices consistent for so long is certainly to be lauded.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Jeremy. Of course anyone is free to turn some custom knobs for their handwheels, but sending out incomplete products is not something we'd ever do.

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  3. Thanks for the open and transparency of info. I appreciate it. Would you consider providing an option (for an increase in price of course) to have wood as an option? That way you can provide options to both those that are more price sensitive (which many of us are) and those that would prefer wood (even if it costs more). It may make things too complicated on your end and I could understand that as well.

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    Replies
    1. We won't be offering different knobs as an option. We may do limited runs of knobs in different materials as an accessory item though, including wood. But yes, our new knobs will make it so we can deliver the goods more consistently and timely. Thanks for the feedback Joe.

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  4. Not many outfits would bother with the explanations, so thank you. It's also a reminder for us to "get while the gettin's good". I don't mean to suggest that the new knob direction isn't good. In fact I can't wait to try it out. If it's good enough for Benchcrafted I'm sure it's good enough for me. But if it's a deal breaker for some folks well, what can I say? You should've bought sooner. As an early adopter I have Dymondwood and could always upgrade (potentially) to the new knobs, meanwhile the Dymondwood is gone forever. Heck, we're woodworkers so if you want wooden knobs, turn them yourself! As always your business practices are much appreciated. We live in a Golden Age of boutique woodworking tools at reasonable prices. This will not continue forever, people. Get while the gettin's good! (I'm also a midwesterner.)

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  5. Thanks for the great products and the updates. Are you able to share how much prices are going to go up? (Selfishly for the C solo benchmakers package). I have a bench build coming sometime in the next year and would love to make as informed of a decision as possible about purchasing now or waiting. I already love my moxon vice and am very excited to get more of your hardware installed when this build comes up.

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  6. We're not sure how much they are going up yet. There's no upside to waiting if you want to avoid the price increase.

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  7. I guess I'd be another vote for buying with out knobs. I don't want to pay for something I'm going to remove and throw away. Seems awfully wasteful. Also if my cameras tell me anything that black crinkle coat isn't going to last long an is going to get ugly fast. I think a steel handle like those on our table saws but maybe smaller would be better.

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  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  9. As someone who is currently finishing a design and planning out vise options for his first workbench, this does hit me right between the eyes (another Midwesterner). I did see some backorder messages on your site recently for the leg vises. What does the current inventory of Glide vises with your wood knobs consist of? Being that my bench will be made of European Beech, I would opt for the infused Beech knobs so the hardware will be prominently displayed and stand out. But who's saying that your hardware doesn't stand out on its own? Would you be able to post messages like you have for the Anniversary edition vises stating how many units remain with either of the wood knobs? This may help me decide to strike now if there are still wood options available. Thanks for the simple clarity of your memo. For people (and future customers like me) who truly appreciate the design, functionality and longevity of your products, I believe you will continue to have support for decades to come.

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    Replies
    1. I think you'll like the new knobs. The black finish will tie in nicely with the other black components on the vises and bench. We have no beech knobs remaining in stock.

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  10. Are there any wood knobs of any species still available?

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  11. So if I place my order today for the Glide I will get aluminum knobs. Are they the same shape and is there a color option (assuming they are annodized)? Thank you, Gerry

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  12. I’m going to order soon. So, I have no choice but to accept these new aluminum knobs, and that’s fine. I’m open minded to something new. But, did I read an earlier post correctly, that theses could not be removed and replaced with our own turned handles? It looks like it would disassemble easy enough, unless it’s staked on during the manufacturing process. Could you please answer this for me? Thank you !

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    Replies
    1. They are identical to our original knobs in every way, except for the material they are made from. They mount the same way as our previous wood knobs.

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  13. Hello. I've just received my new C Glide vise. I love Benchcrafted products, having purchased a M Glide last year. The new C Glide came with the aluminium knob. In my opinion, this is a backward step for Benchcrafted. To me, the knob looks very ordinary, has a "plastic" look/feel to it... reminds me of something I could find at Wallmart or HomeDepot. It does not differentiate nor distinguish Benchrafted as the high quality craftsmen that they are. To me, the new knobs do not ennoble the beautifully made product. Anyway, will ask my local wood-turner to make me one that looks like the 2018 style....

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    Replies
    1. The new knobs are truly "ordinary". I've shown woodworking colleagues the new knobs vs the previous knobs and they cannot believe the backward step.

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  18. Is it possible to get the dimensions [or specs] if you wish to make your own wood Glide M knobs? Please reply to: j.kemper@yahoo.com Thanks.

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