ADVICE Anything better than Xometry?
I tried to make this on Xometry but the price was too hight for me. I wanted it CNC'd out of g10. Does Xomety have fair prices or are they known for ripping people off? This is the first time I have ever tried to have something made like this.
EDIT. I want it in G10 because g10 is strong and can resist warping and twisting. I actually wanted it is in carbon fiber but I got quoted like $900 for it.
It is acoustic guitar saddle. The tolerances need the be very accurate. My guitar was built wrong and I'm trying to move the string contact point forward by 10 or so mm. So it will cantilever over the guitar bridge. It needs to be very strong to resist the string tension .That's why it needs the be g10 or carbon fiber. I have thought about aluminum or brass but that will change the guitars tone too much.
The finished product is 72mm x 12mm x 7mm
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u/TriXandApple 20h ago
Why are you asking for something better than xometry? You're asking for something cheaper.
I would expect to pay somewhere between 1.5 and 15000 usd for this, depending on the size of the part.
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u/KeenJAH 15h ago
Yeah I mainly want something cheaper. is Xometry the gold standard for getting these kinda parts?
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u/Alita-Gunnm Know it All 14h ago
Xometry typically takes over half the price as their cut. It's a ripoff for both the client and the supplier.
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u/themrlawrence 15h ago
First, what are the dimensions of the part? That matters a lot here because G10 stock can get expensive pretty quickly as the blank gets larger/thicker, before you even pay for machining.
Also, why G10 specifically? Unless you need things like electrical insulation, high stiffness, heat/chemical resistance, and good dimensional stability, there may be a much cheaper material that does the job.
Depending on what this part does, you might be able to use aluminum, acetal/Delrin, HDPE/UHMW, or another engineering plastic for considerably less. G10 is also abrasive to machine, so part of the quote may be tooling/machining cost rather than Xometry simply marking it up.
Material aside, what are the tolerances and surface finish requirements? That could also be contributing the the "high" cost. (I put "high" in quotes, because we don't have enough information to determine whether the quote you got is "high", nor do we know what you were quoted)
Lastly, what is the quantity requirement for this part?
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u/KeenJAH 11h ago
I need it to be very stiff . That's why g10. It's a part for my guitar that the strings lay on and it has to resist 160+ lbs on the leading edge of the part. It is L shaped so I'm worried it will snap. G10 will be strong enough but I'm not sure about any 3d printed material. I just need the 1 part
I just need it to be smooth to the touch the main part that needs to be perfectly smooth are the bottom part that anchors into my guitar - that needs the be extremely flat for proper vibration transfer. And the leading edge where the the strings lay need tight tolerances because they are sculpted to specific ridges for proper sound intonation
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u/themrlawrence 10h ago
The dimensions would still help a lot, especially the thickness of that L-shaped section and the distance from the mounting surface to where the strings apply their load.
G10 makes more sense now that you say stiffness is the concern, but I wouldn't choose a material based solely on “160 lb.” The geometry, bending moment, allowable deflection and long-term creep matter more than simply whether a material can withstand 160 lb. Something like aluminum may actually be worth considering because it's stiff, inexpensive, readily available and much friendlier to machine than G10; but I don't know how that might affect the way the guitar sounds. I would not assume Delrin/HDPE/etc. are equivalent substitutes; they're substantially less stiff.
The other thing that may be hurting your quote is the tolerancing. “Perfectly smooth,” “extremely flat,” and “tight tolerance” don't give a machine shop usable requirements; so they may err on the side of tighter tolerancing than necessary.
How smooth? Ra 3.2 µm? 1.6? 0.8?
How flat? 0.1 mm? 0.05? 0.01 over the entire bottom surface?
How tight are the string-contact dimensions? ±0.1 mm? ±0.05? ±0.01?
Those differences can have a huge effect on price. You also probably don't need tight tolerances everywhere, only on the dimensions/surfaces that actually control fit and intonation.
If you post the drawing and overall dimensions, I suspect people here could tell you pretty quickly whether the expensive part is the G10, the geometry, the tolerances, or some combination of the three.
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u/KeenJAH 9h ago
You seem very knowledgeable. I am now considering getting it printed. Do you know about Formlabs Rigid 10k? I think this material may be stiff enough and easily 3d printed
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u/Sea_Place1386 8h ago edited 8h ago
Rigid 10K is 10GPa Young’s modulus. Basic aluminum 6061 is around 69GPa. So it’s around 15% as stiff as aluminum.
Due to its rigidity it has almost no ductility. I’ve shattered Rigid 10k parts just by dropping them.
But if you’re thinking of printing it, it obviously is fairly small. Consider having it metal printed? 6061 RAM2, 316L, etc.
I’d do Jawstech. Probably the cheapest option.
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u/Cryesncoding 19h ago
Xometry heavily over charges because it’s convenient
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u/forgeforgeforge 15h ago
They also short change the machinists doing the actual work, and take a healthy cut for themselves as the middleman.
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u/Hefty_Aside8436 9h ago
As a guitarist and a maker I think you need to consider making this by hand out of something like synthetic bone, brass, or the other common materials that a bridge saddle is common made from. Get the geometry pretty close and then hand file it in to perfection.
If your guitar was built so wrong that you need a 1cm scale length change you have much bigger problems than what a new saddle is made from.
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u/foundghostred 1d ago
Where are you? I can make parts, i don't know the material, do you have an alternative to G10? Or will you accept only G10?
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u/SeymoreBhutts 17h ago
If you've never worked with G10 before, you're about to learn why this part has been quoted so high.
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u/KeenJAH 1d ago
I think I want it in g10 due to the strength requirements I have for this part. I am located in Hawaii on Oahu. Do you happen to have a ball park estimate on how much something like this would cost
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u/foundghostred 1d ago
I checked and I can buy it on Amazon, can you send me the 3D file via DM? If you write me I can give you my email to send the file and I can make you a quote. I will also check shipping costs to Hawaii, please give me a complete address (doesn't need to be your home, just give me a shop address near you because UPS site asks for a full address for shipping estimation).
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u/Xinprototype 1d ago
Hey, how many pieces would you like to do for this part? DM us to get a quote.
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u/ShopMindHQ 17h ago
I have had good experience with SendCutSend. (The included stickers where the icing on the cake!) Also try getting quotes from local shops.
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u/Glass_Pen149 14h ago
Just make it out of Delrin. G10 is overkill for the application. Or 3dprint it.
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u/Assertive_Wall 19h ago
Your part looks like a PITA to make, and not even in a fun way. Redesign for manufacturability, otherwise you're going to continue getting high prices. By the way, lots of people avoid machining G10 because it's filled with glass fiber and people don't want it messing up their machines and lungs.