Why the hell are Model A wood kits so damn expensive anyway.
They are just wood and there are enough Model A's and T's for that matter out there to make it economical enough to produce at a fair price.
I don't think this country is short of lumber...
I hope old car restorers/builders make their own wood parts and let those thieving bastards go broke.
Just take a look at what the cost of a Model A pickup roof kit costs or that of a roadster pickup body kit.
Most pieces are not rockets science and surely these big time reproducers have computer operated equipment that punch this stuff out by the thousands if required.
If they don't have that fancy machinery then our low paid illegals or folks across the border would be willing to make that stuff at low prices.
Don't get me started on where else this stuff could be had cheap...
At least I see one of lower priced manufacturers does sell single components in lieu of a whole kit.
With all due respect, I can tell you really do NOT have a clue as to what is involved. You stated you don't think this country is short of lumber however I can tell you that my experiences of obtaining Ash counters your thoughts. Next, making the purchase and then warehousing it for up to a year as it dries is not just a dollar or two a board foot any longer.
Next, due to several reasons, the hand labor that is still involved in making many specialty pieces is what drives up the costs. Having a CNC router is fine however look at the waste costs, and the fixturing costs involved in holding that wood while it is being cut. While I realize you you don't feel like this is rocket science, I doubt you have studied the different axis' on many pieces. You then commented on machines and companies could spit these kits out by the thousands. Yes that is likely true however, how many "thieving bastards" have the funds and/or space to inventory all of those kits waiting to be sold? Let's use the most popular closed-car wood structured Sedan as an example and guess that they only sell 1-2 kits per month. At that rate, they would sell 25 kits a year ...and producing 1,000 kits would be a 40 year supply. Now let's just suppose that the actual costs (materials & labor) for that kit would come in at $2,000.00. Who has the money to put $ 2,000,000.00 in inventory and wait 40 years for their ROI? Now, factor that towards how many different kits are needed and hopefully you can see how mass-producing is not an option.
Also, I have explored the costs and even a 3-axis router of any quality and size is over $100k, ...and to have one large enough to do a piece in one elite operation was close to $500k.
I will leave you with this, in my shop we are using a 20" planer with a 5hp 3-phase motor, a Delta Unisaw with a 3hp motor, a Powermatic 18" bandsaw with a 2hp motor along with a couple of commercial sanders. We also use a Bridgeport Mill to fabricate sills. My point is to show that I have large enough equipment to be efficient with time when we fabricate body wood. I also have a craftsman who is in his late 50s that until about 4 years ago was a trim carpenter his whole life. With our patterns and many of the original prints to reference off of, it still takes us 250-275 hours to fabricate and install a wood kit in a Fordor body, -and generally 100 hours of that is just fabricating wood.
I tend to believe that my shop produces a better product than what the kit manufacturers do for two main reasons. The kit manufacturers know that there are restorers out there who will not pay the price for top quality, so they tailor their product accordingly. Also, the kit manufacturers must alter the original design of certain pieces so the kit can be shipped affordably. But even with what they produce, they are entitled to make a fair wage for their product. These companies have bills & employees to take care of, but they produce a product for a consumer who does not have the ability and/or resources to manufacture the bodywood themselves. Be grateful you have the option to purchase a kit, and if you feel the costs are too excessive for your budget, then feel free to secure the tooling involved with fabricating your own wood. Who knows, you may do such a good job on yours where others will ask you to make kits for them. If you wind up doing that, I just hope they never call you a "thieving *******" behind your back as you charge them what you feel is fair for your services.
