Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 12:22 am

I made a set of these for myself and am considering making more and selling them. Would anyone be interested and what do you think would be a fair price.

http://flic.kr/p/dyDCEX

They are forged not cast, hardened 1080 high carbon steel that is mig welded on a 1" x 12" solid steel post. The photo shows a rough finish but they will be shipped with a smooth finish. Polished may be extra. They range in weight from 6lbs for the small 2.5" one to 10lbs for the 3.5". On mine I will be rounding the corners near the ball to use as extra heavy dishing hammers and will be offering this as well.

Let me know what you think.
Collyn.

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 12:24 am

As these are forged they may not be perfectly round but I will get as close as I can.

Pitbull Armory · Post by **Pitbull Armory** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 11:26 am

Your not keeping any of your stakes Collyn? A guy needs at least one stake near this size. Perfectly round is not an issue with these either and will make no difference in their performance, Id sell these stakes at 60 to 75 apiece.

Ty

Pb

wcallen · Post by **wcallen** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 2:10 pm

Collyn McKellan wrote:As these are forged they may not be perfectly round but I will get as close as I can.

None of mine are perfectly round. I actually prefer it that way. Most of mine have a slight flattening on the top. This lets me work straight on the top or on the top of the side and get a slightly different curve.

Armour is almost never really a section of a sphere, so some variation in the curve is natural and desired.

I don't know what these should cost these days... I bought mine a long time ago.

Wade

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 2:42 pm

PB. I'm keeping mine but was wondering if anyone would be interested in buying some if I made more.

Thanks Wade. I'll keep that in mind and not worry as much.

Thanks,
Collyn.

Caius705 · Post by **Caius705** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 2:53 pm

I'd certainly be interested, assuming the price was right. I'm trying to turn our low output, low equipment shop into a real honest workshop, and things like ball stakes are great (because they require zero upkeep cost)

Pitbull Armory · Post by **Pitbull Armory** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 4:15 pm

Collyn do you forge the balls yourself? If so Id charge alot more than what I said above.

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 6:16 pm

No. I order the rough balls and they are shipped to me. I get the 1" post from my local steel supplier. I'm trying to figure out pricing and the quantity I should order. I'm also looking into half sizes down to 1" but I would have to order anything 2" and smaller in bulk to keep the price reasonable. I don't want to rip people off and also avoid loosing money. So far it looks like it would be $60, $70, and $75 for the 2.5", 3", and 3.5" respectively. I would be willing to offer the larger sizes as a set for $175. The smaller sizes would be $30, $40, and $50 for 1", 1.5", and 2" but several orders would have to be made to make ordering the balls reasonable. I could also offer the smaller sizes later on after some larger ones are sold.

My aim in the long run is to set up an actual business and do blacksmithing/armouring full time. To do that I first need to raise startup capital. I've also been working on some other stake and tool designs to put up for sale. I should be posting them in the coming months.

I will stop by the post office to see if a set of these will fit in a flat rate box.

Scott Martin · Post by **Scott Martin** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 6:43 pm

I'd be interested in stakes around that price point if only as christmas presents

IIRC my (2 1/2"? 3"?) stake from Grimr was around $80 and bidding on that was very slow.

Shipping costs to canuckistan tend to be usurious... We do have a PO box in the US, but the border wait times make that a time investment...

Scott Martin

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 7:19 pm

Send me a PM with what you would like, your shipping address and email address and I'll send you a paypal invoice as soon as I get back from the post office on Monday. The first set of orders will be a bit delayed due to ordering the rough balls but I'll get them cleaned up and welded asap once they arrive.

Thanks,
Collyn.

Halberds · Post by **Halberds** » Sat Dec 08, 2012 10:26 am

$65 is a good price, I have beern making these for years:

Hal

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Sat Dec 08, 2012 1:59 pm

Thanks Hal. What size ball is that?

Halberds · Post by **Halberds** » Sat Dec 08, 2012 3:05 pm

That is a 4 incher.

The Iron Dwarf · Post by **The Iron Dwarf** » Sat Dec 08, 2012 3:41 pm

http://uk.ebid.net/for-sale/steel-ball- ... 595132.htm
these are what I make mine from
100mm is about 4"

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 11:33 pm

Finished cleaning up the stakes and ordered supplies to make some more.

http://flic.kr/p/dzQX6x

NateS · Post by **NateS** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 3:35 pm

Update. I can fit a set of 3 in a medium flat rate box for about $12.

Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"

Re: Ball stakes. 2.5" 3" and 3.5"