FG & CF guys - value of molds?
 

I'm out of the fiberglass/carbon fiber fab biz, and I have a couple of people interested in purchasing my molds. The problem is, I have no idea what they're worth, so we're in a loop of "what do you want for them?/make me an offer"

Any ideas? Here's pix of the finished products:

930 heater duct
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469161.jpg

911 reflector delete panel
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469204.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469215.jpg

911 cab hardtop
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469227.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469246.jpg

RS heater tube
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1232469348.jpg

It's a rough area. Depends alot on the longevity of the molds, and at what point in their lifecycle they are in. If they are stiff, thick, and coated with tooling gelcoat then they should be good for hundreds of parts and therefore might be worth something.

I have tons of molds for older formula cars we have build in my basement collecting dust. The vehicles were all one-off prototypes, and so there was no use for them on any newer vehicles. At least with those 930 parts there is some market.

Agree with Schumi that it's a tough call. What you have there is intellectual property in a sense and a LOT of work. Someone will have to recognize that fact. Otherwise, they are not worth much. Especially w/o a business model in mind.

In order of value I'd put the top first. Not just becasue it's the largest, but it has the most value as a special design. With design rights that mold could go for 5K or higher if someone recognizes what they're getting.

On the other end of the scale it's hard to call, The 930 part can't be a high volume part, so the mold is not worth much no matter how much effort went it to it. The rear panel part has potential and I've seen the interest. But, it's a simple mold for anyone to make that knows how to use it. So again, not much value. I'd say a little over materials or $100+.

A package deal might get you a pretty good value all things considered. If I hadn't been in the FG business years ago and know how much work it is, I'd be game. But, that's why none of my lastest stuff has ever been reproduced.

So, to recap, if the buyer sees the potential and the work involved, he will pay decent money. Otherwise, molds are not worth much on their own.

The 930 part can't be a high volume part

I made and sold almost 100 of the 930 ducts - they're used for heater backdating. The demand rises and falls with backdating threads.

Thom, that might seem high volume to you, but I'd think the rear delete thing, properly marketed, could easily outsell the 930 part. The top is still the gem in the mine although I don't think either one of us would consider that would ever be high volume. To me HV is turning the mold once a day. Even better is having multiples. I used to turn my VW fenders once a day 5 days a week. Other parts I developed in the 60's were dogs. Somethings are hot, hot, hot.

It all boils down to the business plan.

Edit for more:

When I was at the Corvette shop (before my VW enterprise), I used to turn 5 or better large molds a day by myself. 396 hoods were big sellers and that mold was almost constantly on the floor. Fender flares were very popular. Some other molds like rear clips with spoilers (think Stingray) didn't get made but once a month. Those weren't worth the tooling time, but not all of us are that great at business decisions. (I didn't design any of the vette stuff.)

What about selling the molds to a source like Better Bodies, MA Shaw, A.I.R., Getty Design, GT Racing, TRE, Vertex, etc.

EDIT: of course the whole point of your thread was for determining a value...

When I sold my fiberglass Targa top mold to Kaminari the value wasn't so much in the mold but in the fact that the part was already placed with the major distributors so Kaminari automatically had an "In" with them as a fiberglass supplier. I don't know if this has helped them but I got all my R&D and mold costs back in the deal. I have mentioned this before but I didn't want to deal with such a big part. For a home based business the part was too big to store, package and ship for me.

JMPRO

Put them on e-bay - let the potential buyers fight it out. Just a thought...

I had someone offer me $500 for the heater tube mold; I think that's a bit on the low side. Thoughts?

Why are you getting out of the biz, Thom?

I got burned out on it. I have a normal day job now, and I don't have the time to do both, and work on VWs