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Post by Brian of DBK on Aug 19, 2008 4:21:53 GMT
I'm looking into adding options to DBK & AoV. But I'm needing ideas for pricing. Keep in mind, most of this is pretty labor intensive in the 'tedious' end of things. It isn't going to be offered, unless it's fair value. Needless to say, this is TOP NOTCH work. What I'm looking into is: What would you pay for bluing on a pommel (a pommel needs to be buffed, and any laquer removed beforehand, which is labor). It will basically be a three step process, with multiple coats of bluing to assure of even color. What would you pay for bluing on a guard (guard same thing as pommel, it needs buffed and prepped for bluing). I'm also introducing symbols & runes to be placed on the blade, primarily in the fuller area to prevent scratching. Although it is fairly scratch resistant as is. What would you pay for each symbol?
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Post by 293master293 on Aug 19, 2008 4:30:57 GMT
$35-$50 for the bluing on the cross and pommel, $10-$15 for each rune.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2008 5:11:27 GMT
Well I can get hot blue done for 60 dollars at the blacksmith for cross and pommel...that includes repeening and extending the tang if needed. For a screw off design, it's 20 dollars. Then again for a screw off design, I can do it at home . So basically for a peened design, no more then 60. If it's a screwed on pommel...then why in the world aren't you just hot blueing the bloody thing yourself at home with a blow torch . Those runes are interesting. If I was interested in stuff like that, I would say 20 dollars. But really...not my thing.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2008 5:52:06 GMT
just my two cents for those not as familiar. i just did this to a project sword i am currently working on. fortunately i practiced on a throw away wall hanger... because if you do it wrong you can do irreplacable aesthetic damage.
blueing is quite tedious. beyond the prepping which is essential, the work is careful and requires a great deal of buffing to get a quality job. and then expect several repeats of this process.
in short, this is likely quite close to the question... how much would you pay to have your sword sharpened... which i believe now most forumites have learned is a great deal.
its one more reason to buy blades through AOV and DBK!
christian
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2008 16:13:00 GMT
I gotta agree with master as far as pricing. How are you putting the symbols on the blade? are they etched and colored, glued on, or something else? Do they have depth?
Looks very cool.
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Post by Brian of DBK on Aug 19, 2008 20:43:13 GMT
The symbols or runes are done by cutting out the shapes and bluing the blade through the material, forming the shape on the blade. Each symbol takes a 1/2 to 1 hour to do, depending on the complexity of the mark. So unfortunately, $10 to $15 per symbol isn't going to cut it. I'm thinking $20 to $30.
The pommel/guard bluing is a multi-step process, and labor wise isn't a quick job either. Arms & Armor charges $75 for an assembly line heat bluing, and this would be hand done.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Aug 19, 2008 21:22:43 GMT
Possibly you could get more useful feedback by first figuring out what you would need to charge in order to make a decent hourly wage and then see if people would be willing to pay that amount. Those who are aware of what goes into the process are likely to be the same people who would do it themselves anyway. I would think that your market is people who don't know how to do it or don't posses the skills/equipment, and therefore might not have a definite idea how much it should cost.
In short, describe what you have to do to complete the process and what it would cost, and then see if anyone's interested.
Just a thought.
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Post by enkidu on Aug 19, 2008 21:34:16 GMT
30$-35$ and even 40$ for the symbols is still a good price, ( given the amount of time and the quality of your work, which i can testify for by the way since i own two of your customs... that KC teutonic still amaze me ! ) if you expand your library and offer a reduction for a large number of symbols, for example lets say someone would like a text written down the fuller ( an option you have to find a way to offer eventually i think ) of about ten or more characters i would like to see some kind of rebate. You could offer packages of symbols, 1 for x$, 5 for y$ and 10 for z$.
As for bluing, i would start at 50$, even if its honestly a bit under what your work is worth, or offer a different rate like Napalm suggested depending on what type of construction you have to work with.
Glad to see that you are continuously offering new customization options Brian, in only a couple of months you've taken all the good steps toward success ! Way to go Brian ! By the way, i'm beginning to think about another comission ...
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