R1Thor
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Joe
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2023
- Threads
- 8
- Messages
- 1,534
- Reaction score
- 2,418
- Location
- Lancaster, PA
- Vehicles
- 23QM R1T, Limestone + Ocean Coast, 21" & UBS
- Occupation
- Mechanical Engineering Lead
TWRAPS: it's cool that you're active on here and are advocating for your brand and listening to your customers. That's somewhat rare these days.Apologies for the late response, I wanted to give more info about how we make them but I am on vacation (yayyy!) and barely online.
So... you are correct that ABS generally isn't UV resistant. We use ABS that's coated with a UV resistant layer but never done my own tests to be fair. We've been doing this for more than half year and so far so good. With that said though, I wanted to point out that currently we use ABS sheets that are glossy on one side and textured on the other and I personally don't like them too much. The good news is that this will soon change. For some reason it took me many months to find proper material for this (I've tried at least two dozens of materials for this particular purpose) but I am happy to say that just prior to leaving for my vacation I found THE ONE
* Satin finish on both sides (super smooth and premium looking)
* Elements resistance
The ABS I will be using down the road is actually marine rated, so I am very optimistic that it will hold up great. I expect to get my first shipment of the new ABS sheets in early September. Also I will (relatively soon) start offering carbon fiber version, and I will likely make a version with and without the aero hole cutout.
To clarify additionally - historically we've been laser cutting these, but that was a super expensive process for us because laser cutting ABS destroys the laser filters very quickly and those things are expensive. As of about a month ago, I got us our first CNC router so for the past few weeks we've been CNC cutting these. The CNC adds the bonus of being able to cut carbon fiber, so I am going to make some tests when I am back and if all goes well I will release that too as soon as I get a bigger shipment of the carbon fiber sheets.
Last but not least - I've tested various samples of PE and it felt rather cheap. You are correct that it's indestructible so I am open to the idea of switching to PE if ABS causes us issues in the long term, just saying I prefer to avoid it for now. If premium look/feel PE exists, I haven't found it yet...but again - if ABS causes us issues in the long term, I will invest more time into sampling more PE in the hopes of finding something that works.
I do appreciate you looking at continuous improvement; that's also fantastic from many perspectives.
I will say, though, I have to disagree that rigid plastic is going to be a good long-term solution for these trucks (if used ruggedly; which is why I would want a mudflap). I think they're likely to be damaged upon impact (at least any impact that induces significant flexion). That's one of the biggest benefits of poly*urethane* (You kept saying PE--which is polyethylene, and ...I hope you weren't actually trying polyethylene--that's more like packing material). UNLESS you meant HDPE (high density polyethylene), then I dig it. That stuff is solid. Almost as good as delrin (POM-Acetyl).
User preferences will win out, for sure. I had 'hard' mudguards on my Volvo V60, but that wasn't seeing any impact or offroading. That was strictly being used as a splash guard. I believe those were HDPE, but don't quote me on that.
But then it definitely comes down to preference--if someone wants a rigid mud/splash guard, this absolutely makes sense.
I would also suggest researching Nylon (there are various flavors), especially carbon infused nylons (assuming you're injection molding). They have the best of all worlds--rigid with some compliancy, fantastic elongation at break (elasticity), impact resistant, strong and resilient, chemically non-reactive, and they don't give a damn about the elements.
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