How many people are in the market for reproduction grilles?

[kpkube]

Ebay may not be the best price to go by,  People are going to price these high because they think they have a piece of gold in their hands.
Did anyone see any at Carlisle or The Mopar nats, what were the prices for used ones there.  
Anyone have a parts book with prices.  What did Charger grilles cost back in the day?  New reproduction grilles not made in china aren't going to be cheap.  If a great quality grille can be made and matched the originals,  I would expect it to be close to $2000.
1. only a few hundred may be made
2. The molds for these are going to be expensive.
3. You would need to reproduce several thousand to get a decent price.
4. What does a mold cost?
5. How many molds would you need, how many can be reproduced from 1 mold.
6. Just a few dozen isn't going to be cost effective

Here is a grille for a 2010 challenger: (probably made in china)  total list price 836.50  discount price 602.28
Upper grille, Upper grille  
GRILLE RADIATOR
1. GRILLE »Grille & components
   Dodge › Challenger › 2008-2010
   List Price : $755.00
   Your Price : $543.60

4. Lower grille  
  GRILLE LOWER
  GRILLE »Grille & components
  Dodge › Challenger › 2008-2010
  List Price : $81.50
  Your Price : $58.68

[bull]

It will come eventually. When you think about all the things that have become available just in the past 5-7 years it really is remarkable. And much of the stuff that has been reproduced was made using moulds and dies. You can get any number of tail light lenses, more than a dozen die cast tail light housings, upper door pads, plastic center consoles, almost every piece of sheetmetal, A-pillar covers, kick panels, grill support frames, even several different reproduction grills. It's a matter of time before we'll start seeing individual grill componants and eventually full reproduction plastic grills. The used market is drying up. There has to be a tipping point.

[tan top]

It will come eventually. When you think about all the things that have become available just in the past 5-7 years it really is remarkable. And much of the stuff that has been reproduced was made using moulds and dies. You can get any number of tail light lenses, more than a dozen die cast tail light housings, upper door pads, plastic center consoles, almost every piece of sheetmetal, A-pillar covers, kick panels, grill support frames, even several different reproduction grills. It's a matter of time before we'll start seeing individual grill componants and eventually full reproduction plastic grills. The used market is drying up. There has to be a tipping point.

yes think you right 

[myk]

Ebay may not be the best price to go by,  People are going to price these high because they think they have a piece of gold in their hands.
Did anyone see any at Carlisle or The Mopar nats, what were the prices for used ones there.  
Anyone have a parts book with prices.  What did Charger grilles cost back in the day?  New reproduction grilles not made in china aren't going to be cheap.  If a great quality grille can be made and matched the originals,  I would expect it to be close to $2000.
1. only a few hundred may be made
2. The molds for these are going to be expensive.
3. You would need to reproduce several thousand to get a decent price.
4. What does a mold cost?
5. How many molds would you need, how many can be reproduced from 1 mold.
6. Just a few dozen isn't going to be cost effective

Exactly.  Take a look at Hasbro and their GI Joe line.  They know that bringing back many of the vehicles and other toy pieces from the 80's would be a very popular move, but unfortunately many of those molds and toolings have been destroyed or are too degraded to be used today.  Now, if it was that easy to produce new molds and just as easy to reproduce the tooling and factory setups to make those classic GI Joe toys they might've done it, and cash wouldn't be an issue because, quite frankly, Hasbro has deep pockets, certainly deeper than any of the people talking about making reproduction Charger grills or other random pieces.  

HOWEVER, even though a company like Hasbro has deep pockets, has the 'tech and resources to make molds and tooling all day long, and could probably sell THOUSANDS of re-issue 'Joe toys, they know that trying to make money off of that type of a business venture is a gamble, at best.  Of the few classic toys they have re-issued, they weren't cheap either, and I can only imagine how much a niche product like Charger grills would end up costing.  

I think Bull's right though, at some point we WILL see some sort of 'repro, whether it's sold through Year One or at your local Wal*Mart by the Chinese, but........either way it won't be cheap.  I'll wager in the $2K to $3K range...

[Tilar]

 If a great quality grille can be made and matched the originals,  I would expect it to be close to $2000.
1. only a few hundred may be made

You won't need anymore than a few hundred because at $2000 a pop you wouldn't sell any more than that.  IMO the average Joe isn't going to spend 2 grand on one because it's just too expensive.

[bull]

Tilar is right. However, there are a couple of instances where someone would buy new. Insurance claims for front end collisions is one instance. It doesn't happen often but I'm pretty sure 2-3 of our 2nd gen members here have had their grills destroyed in the past couple of years in traffic accidents. If a good repro grill was available, and insurance was footing the bill, people would order them. The second of course is just plain the lack of usable/rebuildable parts that continues to get worse. The best bet is to do them piecemeal starting with the headlight surrounds. Those are almost always busted up and they work on both 68-69. There is still a lot of hope for a 3D printer version. All we need is a rich guy to step up and fund it. Kenny Wayne Shepherd, are you listening?! Just kidding...

It's a catch 22 anyway you look at it. A guy could build them and sell them cheap if he knew he'd sell 2,000 of them but what usually happens is he sells them for 3 times what most people will pay because he can't wait 10 years to make his money back.

Sadly I think we came closest to getting them about the time Premier Plastics showed up and screwed it. That was during the high point of collectability and value on these cars and had they not started selling their junk and scamming people someone would probably have stepped up to the plate with the real deal. But then of course that mythical person probably would have gone bankrupt when the economy tanked and his lendor would have siezed his assets and the moulds would have been hauled off to the same warehouse where the Ark of the Covenant now resides.

[Mike DC]

             
Maybe that's where the old factory grille tooling has been all these years.
         


       

[Fred]

I'd hate to have to be the one to go through all those boxes to find it!   

[JB400]

What's the problem?  It would be just like Christmas.

On the other hand, taping and restacking all the boxes

[bull]

I'd hate to have to be the one to go through all those boxes to find it!   

It's in Section 4403, subsection D7, row 245K, adjunct 14, blue level s/sw, third crate down from the top.

[Fred]

I'd hate to have to be the one to go through all those boxes to find it!   

It's in Section 4403, subsection D7, row 245K, adjunct 14, blue level s/sw, third crate down from the top.

Are you saying you beat me to it?   

[Fred]

What's the problem?  It would be just like Christmas.

On the other hand, taping and restacking all the boxes

Besides, there's no Christmas paper to shred to pieces. 

[Tilar]

On the other hand, taping and restacking all the boxes

We can leave that for 2nd or 3rd shift. 

[Cooter]

I see 2 pages rehashing what has been said already. The demand is there, as long as the grilles are cheap. (Well go figure)
Real world is the grilles won't be cheap. No rich guys willing to take one in the dookie shute because a few want all the tooling costs to evaporate.

18 to 3 claim they want a new grille.  Catch is only if it's cheap enough.  Haven't we learned our lesson about cheap parts yet?

[70 sublime]

I think what everybody is saying is if it is not cheap enough we are happy to just fix what we can find and live with it is really what it all boils down to

[Tilar]

I see 2 pages rehashing what has been said already. The demand is there, as long as the grilles are cheap. (Well go figure)
Real world is the grilles won't be cheap. No rich guys willing to take one in the dookie shute because a few want all the tooling costs to evaporate.

18 to 3 claim they want a new grille.  Catch is only if it's cheap enough.  Haven't we learned our lesson about cheap parts yet?

There's a hell of a lot of difference between cheap parts and reasonably priced parts. If you want to put a premium price on the parts because you're the only one that has them and make all your money back fast, you are in for one hell of a heartbreak. The only ones that will spend big money on something like that are those that are doing something similar to what Gene did with his Daytona. So to break it down, You can price that part high and you will sell to maybe 1% of the market, Or you can bring the price down, take a little longer to make your money and sell to 70% of the market. It's that simple.

[1974dodgecharger]

  Haven't we learned our lesson about cheap parts yet?

We like to forget...look at all of us complaining about the bumpers on the 2nd gens, look at all complainers about the chrome trim grill on the 68, or how about the whole rear tail light setup that costs 950 bucks we complain about that, but before that came we said 'hey someone should produce those rear tail lights on the 68' and then when they came out we complained how expensive it was.

[bull]

Cooter, I thought your new goal was be a force for positive thinking and optimism on this site? You don't sound much different than the DOH haters you bark at when it comes to the topic of reproduction grills. Mopar grills are being made and sold. It's not as if we're hoping someone will make pickle grabbers out of moon rocks.

http://www.classicindustries.com/mopar/parts/exterior-trim/grill-components/?q=grill

[Fred]

Like I've said before and will say again............I'm just happy I can get the parts. And the better the quality, the happier I am. Even if I have to pay through the nose. I'd be very unhappy if the part I needed wasn't available. Not only would I be unhappy but I'd be up shit creek as well.

[Cooter]

Cooter, I thought your new goal was be a force for positive thinking and optimism on this site? You don't sound much different than the DOH haters you bark at when it comes to the topic of reproduction grills. Mopar grills are being made and sold. It's not as if we're hoping someone will make pickle grabbers out of moon rocks.

http://www.classicindustries.com/mopar/parts/exterior-trim/grill-components/?q=grill

I'm all for positive thinking...I'm also realistic. Bobfist did what you wish and hope for, but there's that money thing.
Although I certainly cannot afford a $1500-2000.00 grille, I'm certainly not gonna wish and hope That someone takes all the risk and cash out lay so I can buy a brand new grille for cheap. It's THAT simple....bidniss is bidness, and $500.00 68-69 Charger grilles just ain't good bidness. Would I like to see them that cheap? Sure....will it happen? Don't think so..One could buy an NOS fender for say $1000.00...AMD is only what? Like $300.00 behind it? For a repro...by the thinking here, they should be around $350-400.00, but they aren't that cheap even when a big company steps up.
But alas, I really hope cheap grilles are in your future bull, as for me? I think I'll wait for cheaper moon rocks...

[myk]

I say $2K MINIMUM for a quality piece...

[JB400]

For that price, it had better be painted and ready to bolt in.

[Cooter]

I look for them to be produced, I just don't expect them to be cheap. I have been down that road with trying to get something repro'd cheap enough to sell A LOT of. By the time all is said and done, the price just jumps astronomically.
To sell at $1000.00 COMPLETE, there'd have to be minimum order placed for at least a run of like 1500 grilles guaranteed money.

[MaximRecoil]

One could buy an NOS fender for say $1000.00...AMD is only what? Like $300.00 behind it? For a repro...by the thinking here, they should be around $350-400.00, but they aren't that cheap even when a big company steps up.

It should be a lot less than that, judging by what the actual cost of manufacture is or could be. You have a not very big piece of sheet metal stamped into shape and crudely painted black. A big company could sell a fender for under $100 and still make a profit. See this 55 gallon steel drum for $78? Those are also stamped sheet metal, plus the sheet metal is heavier gauge, and there's more of it than in a Charger fender. Also, they have to do some welding and rolling, and add a lid.

$700 for a fender? That's in the price range of major household appliances, which not only have more stamped sheet metal in them than a fender, but they have a better finish on them as well, not to mention all the complex mechanisms inside that make them work.

[JB400]

The market for someone selling a refrigerator is a heck of a lot broader than it is for someone selling fenders for one model of car.  Pricing on the fender has to be higher to offset the cost of the tooling whereas the tooling for the fridge has probably already been paid off from previous models and the money could then be used in product development and additional features in the fridge.