Well i thought about starting a custom ion body business....

Ionpimp3 · 11-23-2006, 08:07 PM

well i thought about taking stock bodies and sanding them and bondoing them to make them super smooth then paint them and im wonder do you think i will make profit, lose profit, or stay about even?

(seabiscuit) · 11-23-2006, 08:15 PM

You will probably make a small profit, but the time and effort to make the bodies won't be worth it.

Disarmer · 11-23-2006, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by (seabiscuit)

You will probably make a small profit, but the time and effort to make the bodies won't be worth it.

I concur, UNLESS You offer dremeling services to put custom pictures/symbols on the bodies.
Then I think it will be worth it and you will make a bit of money...

rat_imp_playin · 11-23-2006, 08:23 PM

You will break even cause if you charge to much for something someone could do themselves then you will only get a little bit of business maybe keeping you a head... and if you charge to little you will get a lot of business but will the time and cost of doing it be less than the cost of tools needed.... so good luck finding a happy medium!

Ionpimp3 · 11-23-2006, 08:25 PM

i would also like to say i will be putting custom symbols or picture on they just have to send me a pic of it online and they will be the color they want i can do fades or three colors to

sikk50 · 11-23-2006, 08:34 PM

It would be easier to tell if you had pics of yourwork.

Ilovemyaneta (Banned) · 11-23-2006, 09:11 PM

In the end, the time/effort you put into it wouldn't be useful... people will all be going for the lucky body, and whatnot. It's something popular, but too many big companies do it. So you'd either lose money or stay the same, but you've wasted time. and time=money.

Jarod Assford · 11-23-2006, 09:46 PM

i did the same thing with lexan triggers and they were a ***** to hand make with a dremel and a hacksaw...spent about 3 hours on one trigger for 20 dollars

buddhamonk · 11-23-2006, 09:53 PM

Only way you would really make money is to have a surplus of old bodies and then selling your own brand. Then if someone really wants to get a completely custom body they send in the request.

Of course if you do make money I'm sure SP will have their Lawyer send you a nice Christmas card asking you to stop or meet them for eggnog in court.

Jarod Assford · 11-23-2006, 09:57 PM

yeah i agree with monk BUT you can over-ride the copyright laws by MODIFYING the body with a original design then making it a different color. I took every type of trigger and made them. CP, FBM, and many others. never went TOO big with it though.

Monster_Mayhem · 11-23-2006, 10:01 PM

I made my own custom body, not hard dosnt take much time, just needed to sand and paint. I think you will lose profit for spending it on the paint and the body kites them self, plue is you buy a whole body kit you will have tons on extra stck grips and reg covers. IMO I would not do this.

Ionpimp3 · 11-23-2006, 10:01 PM

yeah im making them look completely different from the sp bodies

buddhamonk · 11-23-2006, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jarod Assford

yeah i agree with monk BUT you can over-ride the copyright laws by MODIFYING the body with a original design then making it a different color. I took every type of trigger and made them. CP, FBM, and many others. never went TOO big with it though.

Do you have the excess money to go to court, over that, is the question.? DO they have the patent on the materials the stock body is made out of?

Ionpimp3 · 11-23-2006, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Monster_Mayhem

I made my own custom body, not hard dosnt take much time, just needed to sand and paint. I think you will lose profit for spending it on the paint and the body kites them self, plue is you buy a whole body kit you will have tons on extra stck grips and reg covers. IMO I would not do this.

i know how to avoid having getting the kits and having grips and reg covers laying around

coldblood92 · 11-23-2006, 10:04 PM

IT all depends how good he does it...plus u will have to make each one 100% custom for each person....that will be the only way to have people purchase something from you instead of a normal body....show some of ur work in this thread....if its hot...and we can come up with something maybe we will talk prices....

and forget wat everyone is saying aobut how much u can make....if u like doing it and you can make a little money when u do it ....heck y not

Ionpimp3 · 11-23-2006, 10:12 PM

i currently dont have any done but im going to buy bodies to practice on and sell as prototypes

Jarod Assford · 11-23-2006, 10:13 PM

yeah monk i forgot about the whole material thing yeah i think you will lose money but if you start how much will they be

coldblood92 · 11-23-2006, 10:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buddhamonk

Do you have the excess money to go to court, over that, is the question.? DO they have the patent on the materials the stock body is made out of?

y would he have to go to court? he is not losing any money for smart parts?

x360todamaxyo · 11-23-2006, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jarod Assford

i did the same thing with lexan triggers and they were a ***** to hand make with a dremel and a hacksaw...spent about 3 hours on one trigger for 20 dollars

hey, thats $6.66 dollars an hour! WOOT!

TimberGhost0417 · 11-24-2006, 12:06 AM

Like any business, it depends on demand, supply, does you're product fill a need in the market, and what price the market is willing to pay.

Basic economics will let you know that with a product that people want, the lower you're price is, the higher the demand for you're product will be and the more units you will end up selling as long as you get the word out and people know it's available.

You need to identify you're customers. Who will you be selling to? What will you're customers be looking for? What kinds of set-ups/color schemes will you're body match?

***An example would be:
#1 People seeking a good looking aftermarket body.
#2 People who don't have too much money to spend on an aftermarket body.
#3 People who have "enter set-up colors"

Aftermarket bodies are being sold by many mainstream companies and you're going to be competing with all the big names. However, with a good looking design, you can effectively compete by having a low price.

What will be you're competitive advantage?
You're competitive advantage should be price. Assuming you have a good product that people want, a low price advantage will get people to think " Hey that's a nice product, and it only costs _____." demand will be higher compared to a higher price, and you're sales should go up as long as you're getting the word out effectively.

How much will it cost to produce each body and ship it to the buyer?
Time & Effort
Materials Costs (body, tools, paint, etc...)
Shipping, packing materials, etc... (bodies are light, use first class mail)

That's just the basics.

Good luck

cmc_4747 · 11-24-2006, 12:09 AM

Trying to sell custom bodies is just not worth it simply because the company who has $500,000 milling equipment will just sell more. If I were deciding from 2 bodies, one made by a company and one made by a guy in his house and they looked the exact same I would buy the body from the company...