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OWJones

The mental phases of a larger order

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Time of order - Holy cow! Score!  Gonna be rich!

 

Sitting down to start order - This is great! So easy! Big bucks!

 

One hour into order  - Man, what was that quantity again?  That suddenly seems like a really big number...

 

Half way through order - Whew, that wasn't so bad... just gotta do that all over again and I'm done!

 

Three-Quarter way through order - Was that really only 25% more?  Why did it take as long as the first 50%

 

Ninety Percent through order - I am not charging enough for this order.

 

Ninety Five Percent through order - Seriously, I am not charging enough for this order.

 

Ninety Nine Percent through order - What the hell was I thinking when I took this order?

 

Completion - Never. Never again.  I'll never take a big order like that again.

 

 

Am I the only one who goes through these through processes?

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You forgot the last step. Repeat as often as possible.

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Inquiring minds and all . . . . . What was the product and how many?

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Went through it this week prepping for racecar graphics i'm installing this weekend   :mellow:

 

Gonna be a nice payout but wow was I busy for the last 2 days...66 total decals and EVERY SINGLE one is layered metallic blue and silver. 

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That's hilarious! The truth makes the best humor. I was up until 1:30 last night/this morning finishing one of those very jobs. I like to think of it as making use of alternative hours that would otherwise go to waste on something like SLEEPING. LOL

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Inquiring minds and all . . . . . What was the product and how many?

 

1100 of the same button for the Home Expo this weekend.   The same button I've already made close to 1000 of in the past few months, but always in 100 quantities at a time.

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Here's the button artwork cut out - nearly 1200 pieces (expecting to lose a few in the process - I ended up with 6 that I had to toss)  

 

post-24492-0-53628600-1425671801_thumb.j

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You start thinking I can go faster then start mixing up the order the parts go in. Especially as it gets later and you want to keep up the pace.

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OMG..... that is a lot of buttons.  I have never had to do an order over 100.  I could not imagine 1200 at once.  How to you cut those out so neat and fast?  Do you use some kind of die punch or something?

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Last year I won the Hot Button of the Month contest with a $100 prize. I spent it on the fancy manual cutter from Badge-A-Minit and it's awesome. I have their electric circle cutter, but the manual one is faster and easier to line up for a perfect cut each time.

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And here's what was left at the end of Day 1 of the Home & Garden Expo...

 

post-24492-0-15063500-1425694963_thumb.j

 

Each zip-top bag contains 100 buttons.  They were very popular, but attendance was extremely low tonight... There was also a big rock fest going on in the same building, so several hundred people were at that instead.... Should be more tomorrow and Sunday!

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I want to add buttons to my products but I'm not sure where to start!

I really don't want to go cheap and then wait i want that it does more..

and faster!..

 

If you could add some links of what you use would be great!

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I want to add buttons to my products but I'm not sure where to start!

I really don't want to go cheap and then wait i want that it does more..

and faster!..

 

If you could add some links of what you use would be great!

 

I simply went to the big auction site and searched "badge a minute" and started looking for kits.  I researched the different ones (hand press vs bench press) and looked at pricing to decide what I wanted and what I wanted to pay.  I went with the hand one as I am pretty sure I won't do many buttons as I don't have time to push that type of product but I wanted the ability to offer it if needed.

 

I then watched several auctions and bid on ones I wanted that I thought would be in the range I wanted to pay until I finally won an auction.  There is also a person that sells the "badges" on ebay as well.  I think it is safari something or another?  I got that info from right here on this forum.

 

I didn't spend any money on a circle cutter as I had an old one laying around from when I used to make custom labels for my custom cd's.....

 

That is why I asked the question of cutter.... the one I have sucks and is really only good for onsie twosie...... I am now off to search out this manual cutter mentioned above.

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If you could add some links of what you use would be great!

 

What I have is http://www.badge-a-minit.com/badgeamatici.html for my button pressing machine and this http://www.badge-a-minit.com/4in1cutacircle.html and this http://www.badgeaminit.com/cutacircleii1.html for cutting the artwork.

 

If I had it all to do over again*, I would NOT go with a Badge-A-Minit machine because they don't use "standard" size button parts, they have their own slightly different sizes.  You can still find generic buttons parts that fit (and that is what I use) but you won't be able to find the unusual button part kits, like the one that lets you make bottle openers.   Their equipment is well made, and they have a good support system, but their B-A-M brand button parts are some of the most expensive ones on the market.  A set of parts to make 1,000 2 3/8" buttons from B-A-M will cost you $199.95 (on sale!) plus shipping.  A set of parts to make 1,000 2 3/8" buttons from USA Buttons will cost $64 plus shipping.

 

The button pressing machines from USA Buttons are also significantly cheaper ($229 vs. $399) - https://www.usabuttons.com/products/button-machines-for-button-making/the-machine-250/

I would strongly avoid the Hand Press or Bench Press models from B-A-M (I have one of those, too) as they take entirely too long to use.  It takes several minutes to make each button with either of those devices and I can easily stamp out 100 buttons with the semi-automatic machine in 45-50 minutes while I'm watching TV.

*The reason I ended up with all the B-A-M equipment is that I got lucky at a live auction and bought close to $1000 worth of their gear for less than $50 because it didn't sell until the end of the night when most of the crowd had already left and the few people left didn't seem to know what it was.   Even if I had paid full price, it's paid for itself multiple times.

There are lots of people locally with Cricuts and cheap "I got my tax check, now I'm a vinyl cutter!" competition in my area, but I'm still the only person in town that makes custom buttons to order. 

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There is also a person that sells the "badges" on ebay as well.  I think it is safari something or another?  I got that info from right here on this forum.

 

Button Safari is the parts vendor I used to deal with on ebay - he always seemed to go on vacation and close his store when I needed parts so I eventually found a different vendor - then someone on these forums pointed me to USA Buttons for even lower prices than what I could find on ebay.

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In fact, a quick search turned up this.... It looks complete (as far as the press and dyes go)

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Badge-A-Minit-Button-Badge-Maker-/391073002482?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5b0dc473f2#

 

Pretty good price too I beleive

 

 

Watch this video for all the steps involved in using one of their hand press devices - 

 

and compare against this for the semi-automatic machine - 

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So much easier.... I am starting to not feel so sorry for you now with that large order   :P

 

Seems like I was hunting for one of those on the auction site and just couldn't find one at a price I wanted to pay.  Remember I don't do hardly any buttons so my price point was lower.  I might have to push some now to get me to buy that style.

 

*side note*  I bet that lady in the second video cramps up quick doing all her buttons on the ground on her front porch.  Plus, can you imagine how dirty the inside of the house must be if she opted for the front porch.... :lol:

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SeeJay pick up a Tecre Button Machine if you can.  Made in the USA and They are built like tanks.  I picked mine up at http://www.americanbuttonmachines.com/  they have free UPS shipping for just there button machines. And if you are gong to do it get the graphic punch it makes life so much easier when doing larger quantities. 

 

It is funny one of OWJones post from last year inspired me to pick up a button machine. I liked the idea of setting up at craft shows and having people/kids drawing there own buttons.  I have to admit I actually sold way more buttons then decals last month but that is more due to how I have been marketing myself but still they have been moving pretty good.

 

Thanks OWjones :rolleyes:

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There are many button sizes available...

What seems to be the most popular button sizes?

 

I can't imagine much demand for the small ones....

cost wise, they are the same amount of labor as the larger sizes.

 

Sue2

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SeeJay pick up a Tecre Button Machine if you can.  Made in the USA and They are built like tanks.  I picked mine up at http://www.americanbuttonmachines.com/  they have free UPS shipping for just there button machines. And if you are gong to do it get the graphic punch it makes life so much easier when doing larger quantities. 

 

It is funny one of OWJones post from last year inspired me to pick up a button machine. I liked the idea of setting up at craft shows and having people/kids drawing there own buttons.  I have to admit I actually sold way more buttons then decals last month but that is more due to how I have been marketing myself but still they have been moving pretty good.

 

Thanks OWjones :rolleyes:

 

 

They've got a decent priced entry point (especially compared to something like a vinyl cutter) and there is always a market for buttons.

Prior to the 1100 for the Home Expo, earlier this month I made two dozen photo buttons for a couple of young wrestlers going to the state tournment, and I've been averaging 100 of the I <3 Ottumwa buttons every 2 weeks for the last few months.   I like the fact that I can make them while watching TV, they don't require the focus and concentration that layering vinyl does.

 

post-24492-0-30304600-1425742646_thumb.j

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There are many button sizes available...

What seems to be the most popular button sizes?

 

I can't imagine much demand for the small ones....

cost wise, they are the same amount of labor as the larger sizes.

 

Sue2

 

The default button size from Badge-A-Minit is the 2-3/8" size, which is what I have.   They are a good overall size for most purposes, but I do get requests for smaller size buttons and plan to add the 1-1/2" size some time soon.   If the people that ordered the 1100 had got me the money far enough in advance, I was going to use it to buy the 1-1/2" machine and do their order in that size, but they waited until the last minute to pay and so I didn't invest it - yet.

The smaller size parts are cheaper (about 2/3 the cost of the 2-3/8" buttons) and you can fit more artwork on each printed page, which keeps your manufacturing costs even lower.   Even with the 2-3/8" buttons, my total cost to manufacture each button is <$0.10, so they are already cheap. 

Younger people like the smaller size buttons for music groups, etc. - older people tend to like the larger size buttons (3") for displaying photos of their grandkids, etc.   There is a target audience for each size.

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