Re: More Options for Rub Rail Inserts
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Patrick McAneny
Karen, I certainly want to replace my rub rail , having it produced and available in the US. without shipping from France ,would make it much cheaper and more available for boats located on this side of the pond , keep me posted .
Thanks,
Pat
SM Shenanigans -----Original Message-----
From: Karen Smith via Groups.Io <karenharmonie@...> To: main <main@AmelYachtOwners.groups.io> Sent: Tue, Mar 3, 2020 4:24 pm Subject: [AmelYachtOwners] More Options for Rub Rail Inserts Hey group,
We have done a little digging into the possibility of US based production options for the rub rail inserts. Seems a good option instead of shipping relatively inexpensive, yet bulky and heavy material across the ocean.
Companies doing custom, short-run rubber extrusions are pretty common in the industry. We contacted a local manufacturer who specializes in things like rub rails for inflatable boats to see if they could produce the Amel rub rail insert in low quantity and at reasonable cost. The basic answer is, yes they can. They have seen a dimensioned drawing of the insert, and confirmed that they can make it without technical difficulty. It would be made of EDPM, the premier rubber formulation for UV exposure. Not sure about color yet.
There isn’t enough information yet to set a hard price, but it looks like the MAXIMUM cost would be $800 per boat, and it could be as little as half that, plus UPS domestic ground shipping.
The process would look like this: If we get enough interest, I’ll trim a bit off my insert and give to the engineers so they can finalize the design of an extrusion die. They then run off a prototype piece and I would test it for fit on my boat. If all is good, a 50% deposit would hold a place in the production run.
If there is sufficient interest, we could have material in hand in 3 weeks.
At this point we have gone as far as we can go without having a read if there is enough interest in going further, so if this is something you’d want to participate in, or if you just have questions, drop an e-mail to greatketch@...
Karen Smith, Bill Kinney SM Harmonie #160 Fort Lauderdale, FL |
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