Midwest Chassis & Performance fab rearends... new pics
05-24-2008, 09:16 AM
#401
it goes like this...
i first started this rearend deal figuring a few would sell, but nothing like it has. i had about 10 housings worth of the first style that could be built into anything i wanted. this design is intended for 4 link applications and required modifications to 7 of the 8 housing components to be used in the f-body cars. this was extremely time consuming.
i built the ones that i had on hand and decided that i needed to re-design the components specifically for the f-body and mustang. this was a huge investment for me to take on. during that time i had no choice but to have a more of the chassis car housings built that were currently being used because it was taking much longer to get the new style housing into production than i was told. i actually had to take the cut material and hand form the components because the press brake area was backed up with work. my laser cutter is a subcontractor for John Deere, Caterpillar, Bomag, and Winnebago to name a few. although i know the owner of the company real well, i am still a small fraction of what goes through that shop.
during the time of the design change and finally into production, i was bombarded with orders for the fabricated 9 inch rearends, as well as the normal increase of cars through the shop that are what we normally do. theres one thing you have to understand here... i am a chassis shop, not a production shop. i own a plasma cutter, bridgeport, lathe, hand operated sheetmetal equipment, etc. i cant just go out and put up a huge building with cnc folding and press brakes, laser cutters, powdercoating line, 30 employees, etc. maybe i need to charge 1000.00 more for these rearends.
long story short, i got way, way overwhelmed with orders on these rearends and wasn't prepared for it. i have gone through 2 employees just for the rearends and now maybe a third due to a motorcycle accident last week. i am extremely picky about the work that leaves the doors here and good help is real hard to find. I am the only qualified TIG welder here, also. like i said... i'm real picky.
the people that ordered rearends in march are shipping now and build times are getting much faster than they were. we will be caught up shortly with the updated production run of the new design housing(yes, we are on the second run now). we should be caught up in the next 4-5 weeks and then have housings in stock and be able to ship within a few days.
in stock and ready to ship within a few days.... what are they gonna be able to say about us then?
i first started this rearend deal figuring a few would sell, but nothing like it has. i had about 10 housings worth of the first style that could be built into anything i wanted. this design is intended for 4 link applications and required modifications to 7 of the 8 housing components to be used in the f-body cars. this was extremely time consuming.
i built the ones that i had on hand and decided that i needed to re-design the components specifically for the f-body and mustang. this was a huge investment for me to take on. during that time i had no choice but to have a more of the chassis car housings built that were currently being used because it was taking much longer to get the new style housing into production than i was told. i actually had to take the cut material and hand form the components because the press brake area was backed up with work. my laser cutter is a subcontractor for John Deere, Caterpillar, Bomag, and Winnebago to name a few. although i know the owner of the company real well, i am still a small fraction of what goes through that shop.
during the time of the design change and finally into production, i was bombarded with orders for the fabricated 9 inch rearends, as well as the normal increase of cars through the shop that are what we normally do. theres one thing you have to understand here... i am a chassis shop, not a production shop. i own a plasma cutter, bridgeport, lathe, hand operated sheetmetal equipment, etc. i cant just go out and put up a huge building with cnc folding and press brakes, laser cutters, powdercoating line, 30 employees, etc. maybe i need to charge 1000.00 more for these rearends.
long story short, i got way, way overwhelmed with orders on these rearends and wasn't prepared for it. i have gone through 2 employees just for the rearends and now maybe a third due to a motorcycle accident last week. i am extremely picky about the work that leaves the doors here and good help is real hard to find. I am the only qualified TIG welder here, also. like i said... i'm real picky.
the people that ordered rearends in march are shipping now and build times are getting much faster than they were. we will be caught up shortly with the updated production run of the new design housing(yes, we are on the second run now). we should be caught up in the next 4-5 weeks and then have housings in stock and be able to ship within a few days.
in stock and ready to ship within a few days.... what are they gonna be able to say about us then?
05-24-2008, 03:18 PM
#402
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myself, i'm very patient and understanding. If you would have told me in the beinning, that it may take 6 months to ship out the rear end, i wouldnt be sending pm's every couple of days asking if it's been shipped yet. I'm sure some of these other guys are the same way.. just be up front in the beginning, let us know we're gonna be waiting awhile for the quality. Dont quote 3-4 weeks, and hope we wont notice the time passing.... that just makes us even more antsy, especially if the 4 weeks pass and we still havent heard a word from you.
This is your business, and you cant please everyone, but if you make a badass rearend that no-one else has on the market, there is gonna be lots of interest in it. Like I said, some of us are understanding that you are swamped, and it may take a little longer. Just let us know whats going on, and the bitching will go down, lol
This is your business, and you cant please everyone, but if you make a badass rearend that no-one else has on the market, there is gonna be lots of interest in it. Like I said, some of us are understanding that you are swamped, and it may take a little longer. Just let us know whats going on, and the bitching will go down, lol
05-24-2008, 10:40 PM
#404
it goes like this...
i first started this rearend deal figuring a few would sell, but nothing like it has. i had about 10 housings worth of the first style that could be built into anything i wanted. this design is intended for 4 link applications and required modifications to 7 of the 8 housing components to be used in the f-body cars. this was extremely time consuming.
i built the ones that i had on hand and decided that i needed to re-design the components specifically for the f-body and mustang. this was a huge investment for me to take on. during that time i had no choice but to have a more of the chassis car housings built that were currently being used because it was taking much longer to get the new style housing into production than i was told. i actually had to take the cut material and hand form the components because the press brake area was backed up with work. my laser cutter is a subcontractor for John Deere, Caterpillar, Bomag, and Winnebago to name a few. although i know the owner of the company real well, i am still a small fraction of what goes through that shop.
during the time of the design change and finally into production, i was bombarded with orders for the fabricated 9 inch rearends, as well as the normal increase of cars through the shop that are what we normally do. theres one thing you have to understand here... i am a chassis shop, not a production shop. i own a plasma cutter, bridgeport, lathe, hand operated sheetmetal equipment, etc. i cant just go out and put up a huge building with cnc folding and press brakes, laser cutters, powdercoating line, 30 employees, etc. maybe i need to charge 1000.00 more for these rearends.
long story short, i got way, way overwhelmed with orders on these rearends and wasn't prepared for it. i have gone through 2 employees just for the rearends and now maybe a third due to a motorcycle accident last week. i am extremely picky about the work that leaves the doors here and good help is real hard to find. I am the only qualified TIG welder here, also. like i said... i'm real picky.
the people that ordered rearends in march are shipping now and build times are getting much faster than they were. we will be caught up shortly with the updated production run of the new design housing(yes, we are on the second run now). we should be caught up in the next 4-5 weeks and then have housings in stock and be able to ship within a few days.
in stock and ready to ship within a few days.... what are they gonna be able to say about us then?
i first started this rearend deal figuring a few would sell, but nothing like it has. i had about 10 housings worth of the first style that could be built into anything i wanted. this design is intended for 4 link applications and required modifications to 7 of the 8 housing components to be used in the f-body cars. this was extremely time consuming.
i built the ones that i had on hand and decided that i needed to re-design the components specifically for the f-body and mustang. this was a huge investment for me to take on. during that time i had no choice but to have a more of the chassis car housings built that were currently being used because it was taking much longer to get the new style housing into production than i was told. i actually had to take the cut material and hand form the components because the press brake area was backed up with work. my laser cutter is a subcontractor for John Deere, Caterpillar, Bomag, and Winnebago to name a few. although i know the owner of the company real well, i am still a small fraction of what goes through that shop.
during the time of the design change and finally into production, i was bombarded with orders for the fabricated 9 inch rearends, as well as the normal increase of cars through the shop that are what we normally do. theres one thing you have to understand here... i am a chassis shop, not a production shop. i own a plasma cutter, bridgeport, lathe, hand operated sheetmetal equipment, etc. i cant just go out and put up a huge building with cnc folding and press brakes, laser cutters, powdercoating line, 30 employees, etc. maybe i need to charge 1000.00 more for these rearends.
long story short, i got way, way overwhelmed with orders on these rearends and wasn't prepared for it. i have gone through 2 employees just for the rearends and now maybe a third due to a motorcycle accident last week. i am extremely picky about the work that leaves the doors here and good help is real hard to find. I am the only qualified TIG welder here, also. like i said... i'm real picky.
the people that ordered rearends in march are shipping now and build times are getting much faster than they were. we will be caught up shortly with the updated production run of the new design housing(yes, we are on the second run now). we should be caught up in the next 4-5 weeks and then have housings in stock and be able to ship within a few days.
in stock and ready to ship within a few days.... what are they gonna be able to say about us then?
I think those of us who have talked to you on the phone (myself included) understand your current position.
But you have to understand that telling someone that your rearend is ~4 week lead time (and asking for a deposit) and delivering the rear 8-16 weeks later is not acceptable.
Like someone else said, be up front. If you can't take a better guess at your lead time, then you need to put a hold on all new orders until you can get a grip on your business.
I'm just glad that I didn't send $500 to you 4 weeks ago when we first talked.... because I seriously doubt I'd be anywhere close to getting my rearend after reading about some of the other guys waiting in this thread...
I liked talking to you Eric and I think (from reading on this website only) that you make a pretty good product. But I'm a little leery at this point to buy since you don't seem to have a grip on the total operation....
Maybe next time you'll put all the processes in place to handle the orders before you open the flood gates.
Good luck.
05-25-2008, 12:25 AM
#405
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I'd hate to think that anyone in business would put all processes in place to handle all possible orders before they started offering a product or service. Few businesses if any would ever offer anything. In the case at hand, let's face it this is a relatively complex widget for a pretty big chunk of change. Eric decided to make a product as a sideliine of his normal business, and found there to be much more demand than originally anticipated. Additionally, if a business finds a way to offer a better product for the same price...well...maybe I am too patient and willing to wait a bit longer for a better product.
Let's all remember that the aftermarket automotive industry deals with extremely small numbers. Even Competition Cams, as many lifters as they sell, is considered a miniscule purchaser of lifters compared to even one of the OEMs. There are always situations where aftermarket companies have parts on order from suppliers...and get put on pause when a giant company like Caterpillar, GM, or General Dynamics calls with a crisis. The allmighty dollar and the value of contracts with OEMs always preempt the aftermarket orders...at least it does with any supplier that values that OEM contract.
I personally am not (and have not been) all that upset with aftermarket companies who don't log on to a website and give me a daily or even weekly update. Instead I see this as the company more focused on getting the product made than giving me a play-by-play.
I have had a brake package delayed by 6 weeks.
I have had a set of control arms delayed by 10 weeks.
I have had a rear axle for another project delayed for 6 weeks...from a supplier that was much smaller then but now offers most applications in a couple of days.
I have had numerous engines delayed by months.
I have had several supercharger systems delayed for anywhere between a week and 2 months.
I dunno, maybe I am too patient but I tend to ask for updates a little less than most. I just figure that the product maker is a little more focused on making the product than telling me about each and every step in the process and every delay.
Let's all remember that the aftermarket automotive industry deals with extremely small numbers. Even Competition Cams, as many lifters as they sell, is considered a miniscule purchaser of lifters compared to even one of the OEMs. There are always situations where aftermarket companies have parts on order from suppliers...and get put on pause when a giant company like Caterpillar, GM, or General Dynamics calls with a crisis. The allmighty dollar and the value of contracts with OEMs always preempt the aftermarket orders...at least it does with any supplier that values that OEM contract.
I personally am not (and have not been) all that upset with aftermarket companies who don't log on to a website and give me a daily or even weekly update. Instead I see this as the company more focused on getting the product made than giving me a play-by-play.
I have had a brake package delayed by 6 weeks.
I have had a set of control arms delayed by 10 weeks.
I have had a rear axle for another project delayed for 6 weeks...from a supplier that was much smaller then but now offers most applications in a couple of days.
I have had numerous engines delayed by months.
I have had several supercharger systems delayed for anywhere between a week and 2 months.
I dunno, maybe I am too patient but I tend to ask for updates a little less than most. I just figure that the product maker is a little more focused on making the product than telling me about each and every step in the process and every delay.
yea... that too! lol
05-25-2008, 01:22 AM
#407
truth of the matter is that i do have a handle on my business, and always have had. what i can't handle is what i am served by my suppliers and their lead times. i am a small shop and simply do not have the working capital to be able to invest in any more inventory than what i can project may sell. the rearends (as a production thing) is relatively new to me, so i have no idea what the market actually is without actually getting my feet wet. so here we are after 6 months of production i can finally see a little of what it is gonna be like.
i will continue to build this rearend and do it as quickly as i can, but there are bumps in the road for this and any business that have to be overcome. i will not sacrifice any quality just to make things happen faster. i will not. we have recently been able to complete 2 housings a day, as long as things go well. at this rate, we will be completely caught up on orders soon and will continue to build housings in the common applications as sales have indicated. this will allow complete setups to be shipped out within a few working days.
i started taking deposits to ensure trust with customers that they were not paying in full for a rearend that was not able to ship in 2 days. the actual lead times have varied through this process, but is getting shorter by the day. we are currently waiting on more housing components that were not delivered in equal quantities from the last production run. there are 12 setups currently done, some are crated and waiting on truck freight to pick up, some are still being crated, some are just finished at powdercoating friday and will be picked up tuesday and started in the shipping process. alot of people will be getting their rearends next week.
i will continue to build this rearend and do it as quickly as i can, but there are bumps in the road for this and any business that have to be overcome. i will not sacrifice any quality just to make things happen faster. i will not. we have recently been able to complete 2 housings a day, as long as things go well. at this rate, we will be completely caught up on orders soon and will continue to build housings in the common applications as sales have indicated. this will allow complete setups to be shipped out within a few working days.
i started taking deposits to ensure trust with customers that they were not paying in full for a rearend that was not able to ship in 2 days. the actual lead times have varied through this process, but is getting shorter by the day. we are currently waiting on more housing components that were not delivered in equal quantities from the last production run. there are 12 setups currently done, some are crated and waiting on truck freight to pick up, some are still being crated, some are just finished at powdercoating friday and will be picked up tuesday and started in the shipping process. alot of people will be getting their rearends next week.
05-25-2008, 08:22 AM
#409
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you cant predict what might happen. im sure he thought that the rearend would be done in 4 weeks, but like he said, he cant control when he gets the stuff to build them. that is the way any small business goes. these have to be precision made, and have alot of parts to weld. that equals wait time on metrials and plus time to weld. its not like a subframe connector that he can make 10 at a time, at low cost to himself, so he can have them on hand.i think i asked him once when the rear was going to be done. bitching at him and telling him he sucks at the business world is not going to help you get the rear any faster. that will only slow him down since he has to talk to you on the phone and on here.
damn high maintenance people.
05-25-2008, 12:16 PM
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as do i, but no reason to jump on his case about it. he is going as fast as one person can. you wanted to save some money just like me. well that is the price difference. i would rather wait a little extra time, then spend the extra 1000+ with the M9.
atleast it wont be made cheap. that is usually what you get when you save money
