Re: Cost of fluorite versus ED glass

From: Szaki (szaki10_at_comcast.net)
Date: 12/17/04 

Date: Fri, 17 Dec 2004 01:31:45 GMT

"Chris1011" <chris1011@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20041216183222.11514.00002303@mb-m29.aol.com...
> >I heard the mfg. process is expensive. Fluorite is a very brittle
> >crystal,
>>they loose about 40% of the lenses during polishing due to break and
>>crack.
>>Julius
>
> It's brittle, but we made a large number of lenses with fluorite and lost
> not a
> one in the process.
>
> Roland Christen

I think, because every thing is hand made at your company Chris.
Japs, like Takahasi probably sells a lot more telescopes, even binoculars
world wide with fluorite lenses than you, so the process is more production
oriented using mostly machinery.
I read that on one of the web-site dealing with fluorite lenses.
I work as a machinist and I know difference, between the scrap rate of a
manual machinist or CNC machinist.
One wrong setting or a broken tool on the CNC can scrap out a hole line of
parts. That's why pre-inspection is a absolutely must, even intermittent
inspection by a second person, depends on quantity.
I'm pretty shore making optics now days, 80% of the process evolved some
kind of machining, dimond rough turning, polishing, inspecting etc..... You
don't hire an army of Mexicans to rub the glass all they in the shop.
Also, there has to be a large gap of profit margin, 5:1 or 10:1, if the
retail price of a telescope is $1000, mfg. cost is about $100-200 per unit.
JS

Relevant Pages

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