Most PVs come in what are, to some extent, standard sizes. The problem, as I see it, is that people don't have standard-sized hands.
Do you think anyone would go for something like this:
You send the company a deposit, and they send you a lump and a tube. The lump is a gel in a thick plastic sack. You heat it in the microwave for a minute or so, just until it's warm, and grasp it in the way you'd like your PV to fit your hand. You can play around with it as much as you like, reheating if necessary to keep it semi-fluid, until you get it perfect. Then, while still holding it, you break a seal on the bottom to release a catalyst into the bag that makes the material inside set up solid.
You then open the tube, attach the lump to the top, add a catalyst to the liquid in the tube, and put the lid on so the lump is hanging inside. Over the course of about three minutes the liquid inside the tube expands and sets up, making a mold of the lump.
You send the tube, with the lump still inside, back to the company.
The company uses that mold to make your PV. It wouldn't be just a handgrip on a stock item -- the tech would decide the best placement for the battery, button (if any), electronics, etc. to get the most out of the available space -- sometimes a large diameter battery would fit well, other times two or three smaller ones in parallel is the best configuration. Does the user want a lot of battery power for standard cartos, or less oomph and a juice tank? Or, instead of a tank, a compartment to hold four or five cartos with different flavors? Manual or automatic? Removable batteries or a plug in the side so you recharge the unit overnight? The possible options are endless.
Once the internal configuration is complete, the tech would coat the form with refractory material, use appropriately sized/shaped ceramic plugs to mimic the innards, insert them in the form, and use that to injection mold an aluminum case.
After installing the works, testing, and polishing, you'd be sent a PV with all the features you want in a model that perfectly fits your hand.
Do you think there'd be a market for that? (Please understand that I'm not soliciting for future business -- I'm not about to get back into manufacturing no matter what, and I have no interest or suitable contacts for this sort of thing. I'm just interested in whether people would go for it.)
The greatest problem I see is one of cost. The initial lump and tube alone would cost at least $184 (currently available at that price in units of 1000). When all the other costs (and a modicum of profit) are included, such a personalized PV would retail for at least $1,000 and perhaps as much as $1500.
Do you still think there's a market?
Do you think anyone would go for something like this:
You send the company a deposit, and they send you a lump and a tube. The lump is a gel in a thick plastic sack. You heat it in the microwave for a minute or so, just until it's warm, and grasp it in the way you'd like your PV to fit your hand. You can play around with it as much as you like, reheating if necessary to keep it semi-fluid, until you get it perfect. Then, while still holding it, you break a seal on the bottom to release a catalyst into the bag that makes the material inside set up solid.
You then open the tube, attach the lump to the top, add a catalyst to the liquid in the tube, and put the lid on so the lump is hanging inside. Over the course of about three minutes the liquid inside the tube expands and sets up, making a mold of the lump.
You send the tube, with the lump still inside, back to the company.
The company uses that mold to make your PV. It wouldn't be just a handgrip on a stock item -- the tech would decide the best placement for the battery, button (if any), electronics, etc. to get the most out of the available space -- sometimes a large diameter battery would fit well, other times two or three smaller ones in parallel is the best configuration. Does the user want a lot of battery power for standard cartos, or less oomph and a juice tank? Or, instead of a tank, a compartment to hold four or five cartos with different flavors? Manual or automatic? Removable batteries or a plug in the side so you recharge the unit overnight? The possible options are endless.
Once the internal configuration is complete, the tech would coat the form with refractory material, use appropriately sized/shaped ceramic plugs to mimic the innards, insert them in the form, and use that to injection mold an aluminum case.
After installing the works, testing, and polishing, you'd be sent a PV with all the features you want in a model that perfectly fits your hand.
Do you think there'd be a market for that? (Please understand that I'm not soliciting for future business -- I'm not about to get back into manufacturing no matter what, and I have no interest or suitable contacts for this sort of thing. I'm just interested in whether people would go for it.)
The greatest problem I see is one of cost. The initial lump and tube alone would cost at least $184 (currently available at that price in units of 1000). When all the other costs (and a modicum of profit) are included, such a personalized PV would retail for at least $1,000 and perhaps as much as $1500.
Do you still think there's a market?
