How Can They Do This?

[MrWhoopee]

I recently found myself in need of a replacement battery terminal for my VW. I have made some in the past from aluminum, but after shopping on eBay I decided to give these a try:

2 Car Battery Terminal Connector Top Post Positive Negative Heavy Duty Universal | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2 Car Battery Terminal Connector Top Post Positive Negative Heavy Duty Universal at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

For under $12 delivered, I just had to see them.

First impressions are very good. They appear to have been machined all over. All surfaces are square to each other, no draft angles. If they were cast, they were machined afterwards, though the only tool marks are where the large chamfer meets the top surface of the clamp, and those marks appear to be from sanding/polishing.

Now comes the part that is hard to believe. The ad did not state what they were made from. I assumed aluminum and, if I was lucky, they were plated. As soon as I opened the box, it was obvious that they were much too heavy to be aluminum. So I thought plated steel, or possibly zinc. Checking with a magnet, they are slightly magnetic, eliminating both of those possibilities. I hit one with a file to see if it was plated, it wasn't, same color underneath as on the surface, and the file "bit" like steel.
I am left with just one possibility, even though I find it unbelievable. These things must be made from stainless steel!

How can they do that for $5.50 each?

 

[vtcnc]

IF it is stainless then the following process:

1) Casting (investment yields near net shape)
2) Drill, tap
3) Media tumbling
4) Passivation or Electropolish.
5) Packaging

I'll bet the raw materials, hardware and packaging cost more then the labor used where they are made.

Edit: specified casting process

 

[silence dogood]

Does it say on the package where they were made? Just a guess, how about India.

 

[MrWhoopee]

IF it is stainless then the following process:

1) Casting (investment yields near net shape)
2) Drill, tap
3) Media tumbling
4) Passivation or Electropolish.
5) Packaging

I'll bet the raw materials, hardware and packaging cost more then the labor used where they are made.

Edit: specified casting process

Yes, close examination in better light reveals traces of injection gates on the bottom of one of them.
Time and H2SO4 will reveal much about the actual material.

I did not check the packaging for country of origin, doubt it was there.

 

[nnam]

The same seller sells a similar item, that say adopted copper alloy
nickel plating finish

1Pair Battery Terminal Connector Top Post Positive Negative Heavy Duty Universal | eBay

Fits in a 22mm hole. This can only delay our service. You will be pleasantly surprised by our service. - Got a problem?. No Problem.

www.ebay.com

 

[FOMOGO]

I got a pair similar to those that has a cam lock lever for no wrench removal. Same low price, seem to be pretty good quality. If they hold up, may put them on all my vehicles. Mike

 

[Janderso]

With today’s battery terminals and the multi wire configurations, this design is quite smart.
How do they do it?
I have no idea. When I buy raw stock for any project, the price is always more than I figured.

 

[vtcnc]

With today’s battery terminals and the multi wire configurations, this design is quite smart.
How do they do it?
I have no idea. When I buy raw stock for any project, the price is always more than I figured.

I'm stating the obvious, but it does help answer the question on "how they do it"? Which is to say, "how do they make a profit"?

If you are selling on Amazon, you are selling in the thousands or tens of thousands of bits and bobs. Imagine buying raw materials for that quantity and you begin to see how you pay attention to the raw material part cost.

From a hobbyist perspective, we can only imagine the part cost being affordable and profitable (if we were to sell the one-off part) by using a drop or scrap piece of stock. But when you are buying by the ton, it is pretty easy to get there.

Right now, stainless is going for about $1.70/lb and that is for finished, processed sheet to size - in other words, lots of labor has been added. Ingots won't be the same price but for sake of argument, lets say that it is close in cost. I wonder how much those terminals weigh? 1/3 of a lb. each at most?

 

[MrWhoopee]

I wonder how much those terminals weigh? 1/3 of a lb. each at most?

I'm "weigh" ahead of you, 153.5g (5.4 oz) complete with fasteners. Good guess!

If they're made from a copper alloy, it's the same color as the surface. I deburred a couple of sharp edges with a rout-a-burr. It cut freely and did not dig in.

 

[nnam]

The answer to how did they get that low price probably down to economy of scale, automation, very low labor cost and low human right.

"
They live there. They eat there. Their children attend school there. But most of all, they work there. They are the 17,000 employees of EUPA, a "Factory City...
"