AirFrame Side Panels with a twist for the Pro! **NEW**
- Thread starter Sled Solutions
- Start date
I have a few more pictures but need to get permission to release before I post them.
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RidnHigh
Well-known member
Just wondering why the tooling would be so expensive. Even if you couldnt get a set of used sidepanels to pull molds from, you spend 500 for a new set, Make a female, adn then the good male from the brand new set of panels using fiberglass, a little bit of body work and prep to smooth out the glass, then thermoform the pieces. Polaris has been making them this way. And the two main aftermarket hood companies are doing the same thing. The trimming of the final product and the assembly of the vent seems pretty doable to me as well as far as costs go. I would sure hope that they ddint spend thousands to build the tooling. I agree with you though, i like the idea and that fact that soembody tried it. I guess everyones point is whats the difference between spending the 500 bucks on a brand new set and another 100 for vents, you'd still be a buck fifty cheaper. Once again though i agree, kudos to somebody for trying, but woooo.
It's good to see new products and I'm always excited when I see a new thread like this with something new. I get your point on the tooling dilemma, but a product has to be thought out all the way to the sale. You cannot expect to dump all the tooling costs on the customer so quickly. If this product was around $350, I think people would bite. Maybe it would take longer to pay for that tooling process, but at least you would move the product. $750 is steep and I won't touch that myself. Also, if this were a performance product, it would have more interest at that pricing level. We really are talking about a cool vent here, not a head mod or suspension mod.
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sledfreak89
Well-known member
I doubt they are vacuum formed. Really, the only thing that can be vacuum formed are hoods or side panels with no tabs.
Tooling can be VERY expensive depending on the process and whos doing it. For example, i just saw a tooling quote the other day for a set of rubber handlebar grips with a honeycomb pattern that cost $20,000 JUST FOR THE DYE!!!
Rubber molds are very expensive due to the fact that the machines that make them use 400 tons of pressure to shoot the raw rubber in them, but as stated before tooling is all different with the process.
BUT that needs to be thought of before the decision to make them is done too. With a company like SPG with dealers there is no need for a price like that when they can move volume..
I guess time will tell but i think we can see how the consumers general idea of the price is...
Depends how you want to look at it...
Straight up cost to replace perfectly fine panels for aesthetic looks only - pricey.
Replacing damaged panel(s) plus cost of equivalent venting, depending how much vent is under the mesh. Or having perfectly fine stockers as backups or selling them to recover costs. For me, Airframe panels also add an attractive factor of uniqueness.
If I keep stock panels I'll end up doing a wrap. If I had those I wouldn't wrap - there's another few hundo.
My '12 is staying stock this year, but I wouldn't rule it out for next summer mods...
I'm interested in more pics as well.
Straight up cost to replace perfectly fine panels for aesthetic looks only - pricey.
Replacing damaged panel(s) plus cost of equivalent venting, depending how much vent is under the mesh. Or having perfectly fine stockers as backups or selling them to recover costs. For me, Airframe panels also add an attractive factor of uniqueness.
If I keep stock panels I'll end up doing a wrap. If I had those I wouldn't wrap - there's another few hundo.
My '12 is staying stock this year, but I wouldn't rule it out for next summer mods...
I'm interested in more pics as well.
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RidnHigh
Well-known member
I get your thought process, but in all reality your entirely incorrect. I have seen TPO panels be thermoformed. One of the two leading hood manufactureres in the industry make both hoods, panels, headlight deletes, air shelfs, among other things using a thermoformer. The stock side panels and hoods are injection molded. With word, and not saying that this is 100% correct but, being that the stock side panel dies for Polaris were in excess of 300k per side. You can 100% tell that they are thermoformed if you look closely, especially after you point out the part about the tabs. On the very front and in the rear you can see where they riveted on the interior tabs with black rivets. Three in the rear, two up front. This is also weird considering you can glue to TPO and make it just as strong as a rivet without impairing the integrity of the panel. The cool little brackets that are used in the bottom of the panel and where the rubber strap are connected are pretty bit*hen looking, but those 100% could have been formed into the mold. But i will say I like the custom little tabs, they look great! Either way the point stilll comes back to the tooling isn't ridiculous to make this product. Im sure knowone that actually knows will come on here and back up or prove my theory wrong but I bet both sides were not in excess of 10k to build. I would assume that the cost for Skinz is so high to make these because somebody else makes them for them, somebody paints them, and then the actual material cost. This is why there are so many people on here gawking at the price of a product that only adds venting, doesnt lose any weight and seems to be a couple hundred dollars more than an equal alternative. Maybe the product wasnt thought all the way through?? IDK, guess we will see when they actually start being sold and see what the price does.
Still interested in getting my questions answered though from above, as I believe there is some integrity to them. The warranty deal will be huge for people. Will the louvers just plug up with snow like all the rest of the vents on the chassis? Do the louvers just pop in, or are they part of or fastened to the panel? What kind of paint is being used on these panels? stockers are colored TPO, not painted, will this be an issue?
Thanks in advance to who may be able to answer these questions for all of us. Once again I reitterate the fact that I really like the idea and the fact that somebody tried it and invested there time.
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sledfreak89
Well-known member
Yes, you are right about the thermoformed with the riveted tabs. I totally forgot they did that with the Polaris's. I had to walk over to the IQr we have in the shop here and they are clearly thermoformed.
I was talking more about if any structural tabs would have to be included in which thermoforming would not allow. (I have not seen the Pro panels off the machine, so i am talking pure basic theories of plastic forming.)
I have to imagine that with that price they are colored plastic, not painted. But i wouldn't know either.
Sled Solutions, are you going to have these at Hay Days?
-Matt
I was talking more about if any structural tabs would have to be included in which thermoforming would not allow. (I have not seen the Pro panels off the machine, so i am talking pure basic theories of plastic forming.)
I have to imagine that with that price they are colored plastic, not painted. But i wouldn't know either.
Sled Solutions, are you going to have these at Hay Days?
-Matt
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RidnHigh
Well-known member
Matt, I was just goin off of what the original post said. It states that they are a base coat clear coat finish, which would lead me to believe painted. I could be 100% wrong but i dont know what the point of doing a base and clear would be if they were colored already. I hope to see these things too at haydays!!
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sledfreak89
Well-known member
Oh jeez, i didnt see that!
That is odd that they arent pure colored plastic..... Unless mabe some sort of clear to protect it?
I think were all running in circles untill they show some more info! lol
I actually like them a lot the more i look at them and i dont even have a PRO!
-Matt
That is odd that they arent pure colored plastic..... Unless mabe some sort of clear to protect it?
I think were all running in circles untill they show some more info! lol
I actually like them a lot the more i look at them and i dont even have a PRO!
-Matt
A
Arcteryx
Well-known member
I can guarantee that no one in my group will be riding with a $800 set of side panels, including myself!! There are too many other "status declaring options" that we want for our sleds. Turbo's, suspensions, airframes, seats, etc. For most people prices this high (when compared to other available options) have to be about performance, or possibly about killer looks. The panels do look very nice and I am sure that the vents perform well. I don't think they look any better than say stockers with 2cools on them or a good wrap. And its hard to imagine that they vent that much better than other vents either.
I have airframes and with those I can justify the price but this much for a set of side panels I can definitely say that no one in our group will have these.
Sled Solutions and Skinz, mark me down as another data point. I like the idea and look of the panels but will never be buying them at that price. If there is any way to get cost down (a couple hundred bucks), that is when I would start considering them.
I'll clear up some of the questions here.
1. Vacuum Formed TPO
2. Painted using proper prep, paint, flex agents and clear coated. (Stock panels are painted too).
3. Cost is a direct result of being an American Made product in a non-union shop. Laser cut brackets, tooling for forming, high end paint, powder coating, assembly, CNC cut louver molds, trim fixtures and the list can keep going.
4. Exhaust clearance is not a problem and Skinz would never come to market with something that didn't work properly.
5. Retail is $749.95 and we are selling them for $712.45.
Inside pictures are being worked on and will be posted as soon as I have them.
1. Vacuum Formed TPO
2. Painted using proper prep, paint, flex agents and clear coated. (Stock panels are painted too).
3. Cost is a direct result of being an American Made product in a non-union shop. Laser cut brackets, tooling for forming, high end paint, powder coating, assembly, CNC cut louver molds, trim fixtures and the list can keep going.
4. Exhaust clearance is not a problem and Skinz would never come to market with something that didn't work properly.
5. Retail is $749.95 and we are selling them for $712.45.
Inside pictures are being worked on and will be posted as soon as I have them.
Good point, so many of us really complain when this isn't the case.
Black
Could be....
Always good to hear of a quality American Made product. If we don't support ourselves when we can, we'll soon all be in the poor house.
Very nice Product and should do the job well.
Always good to hear of a quality American Made product. If we don't support ourselves when we can, we'll soon all be in the poor house.
Very nice Product and should do the job well.
I don't get it, if it's made in a non-union shop then wouldn't it be cheaper? After all you aren't paying for layer upon layer of useless bureaucracy and higher than market value wages.
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