Castle 1/8 motors Double the price,Tekin next???
06-30-2011, 06:28 AM
#1
Castle 1/8 motors Double the price,Tekin next???
The 2650 and 2200 motors are twice as high as they use to be, do you think Tekin is going to raise prices? If so how much? The price of the magnets have went up or something.
06-30-2011, 07:41 AM
#3
You must be looking at tower 
06-30-2011, 07:57 AM
#6
06-30-2011, 08:19 AM
#7
The price of the rare earth material, Neodymium, has sky-rocketed in the past few months. The Chinese government now controls all neo mining and also the price charged to all vendors using this substance in manufactured items.
ROAR specifies neo in the magnets for ROAR-approved motors and sets a 540 motor list price cap of $149.00, that mfgs of these motors must meet. So brushless motor manufacturers have difficult choices ahead: maintain the same quantity of neo in their magnet "recipes" and raise prices accordingly, use less of the metal and change the characteristics of the magnet, or switch to a different material completely. Neo prices increase each week.
All of the rotors that we are currently using have the same magnet recipes we have always offered; we have not changed our rotors due to this crisis.
Our rotor prices have quintupled in the past few months making the current motor prices unsustainable. We will be announcing price increases for both our 540 motors and the 540 systems in the next few days. We are also considering setting up a Rotor Return Program for our customers to send back old, weak (but not damaged) rotors for credit on store purchases. We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new.
ROAR specifies neo in the magnets for ROAR-approved motors and sets a 540 motor list price cap of $149.00, that mfgs of these motors must meet. So brushless motor manufacturers have difficult choices ahead: maintain the same quantity of neo in their magnet "recipes" and raise prices accordingly, use less of the metal and change the characteristics of the magnet, or switch to a different material completely. Neo prices increase each week.
All of the rotors that we are currently using have the same magnet recipes we have always offered; we have not changed our rotors due to this crisis.
Our rotor prices have quintupled in the past few months making the current motor prices unsustainable. We will be announcing price increases for both our 540 motors and the 540 systems in the next few days. We are also considering setting up a Rotor Return Program for our customers to send back old, weak (but not damaged) rotors for credit on store purchases. We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new.
06-30-2011, 08:28 AM
#8
Thanks for the insight Rick and Novak Two.
I am particularly interested in this sentence: "We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new. "
Is this a service that Novak might offer to consumers or is the trade-in the best/only route? I see it as a great way to prolong motor life, especially for spec or stock class racers.
I am particularly interested in this sentence: "We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new. "
Is this a service that Novak might offer to consumers or is the trade-in the best/only route? I see it as a great way to prolong motor life, especially for spec or stock class racers.
06-30-2011, 08:51 AM
#9
this is goining to make 1/8 super expensive.
06-30-2011, 08:54 AM
#10
Here is an article I read that was wrote I think in January. Not sure how this affects motors that are made in China? Hopefully other suppliers outside China get up and running ASAP!
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...s-1855387.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...s-1855387.html
06-30-2011, 09:01 AM
#11
06-30-2011, 09:06 AM
#12
Thanks for the insight Rick and Novak Two.
I am particularly interested in this sentence: "We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new. "
Is this a service that Novak might offer to consumers or is the trade-in the best/only route? I see it as a great way to prolong motor life, especially for spec or stock class racers.
I am particularly interested in this sentence: "We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new. "
Is this a service that Novak might offer to consumers or is the trade-in the best/only route? I see it as a great way to prolong motor life, especially for spec or stock class racers.
A store credit is the possibility we have been considering because it may be the most effective way of handling these transactions; customers could use the credit for purchasing a new Novak rotor from our store---or anything else.
Start collecting all of your old, but un-damaged (no cracks or broken) Novak rotors----they are more valuable than ever...
06-30-2011, 09:21 AM
#13
Here is a link to an article that Adnan forwarded to me:
What are rare earth metals?
These are competitors for the limited supplies of neo. Reasons why California closed its neo mines:
What are rare earth metals?
Neodymium: Mainly used to make powerful neodymium magnets for computer hard disks, wind turbines, hybrid cars, earbud headphones and microphones. Also used to color glass and to make lighter flints and welder's goggles.
As the AFP reports, farmers near China's Baotou mine complain of dying crops, lost teeth and lost hair, while soil and water tests show high levels of carcinogens in the area. China has only recently begun cracking down on such pollution, perhaps learning a lesson from Mountain Pass, Calif., which supplied most of the world's rare earths until economic and environmental pressures forced it to close in 2002. The mine's profits had declined for years as China slashed rare earth prices with its own mining frenzy, while a series of wastewater leaks from 1984 to 1998 spilled thousands of gallons of toxic sludge into the California desert, sullying the mine's public image.
06-30-2011, 09:26 AM
#14
I am new to 1/8E but I think this is very optimistic. 1/8E motors are run fairly hot which accelerates de-magnetization (correct me if I'm wrong) so even running conservatively the rotor is going to be the waste part in the motor.
06-30-2011, 09:34 AM
#15
Weak rotors can pull excessive current thru the escs and burn them up; weak (de-magged) rotors are one of the major causes of controller melt-down.
