I have a concern - sever overcharge from PT

[woodlandfarms]

So I thought I would look into how much a new Solenoid would cost from the street.

Here is what I have (and I can provide a picture if needed). It is a Hydroforce - The valve is marked 6352012 with a second line reading 1600

I have found a bunch of 6352012 for like $25 (not $250 that PT is charging, although I do not know what that actually means).

But the second number has not matched up (mostly the second number has not appeared in the item descriptions).

Thoughts?

 

[Marks481]

I would just buy the $25 solenoid coil. I doubt the 1600 means any additional options (looking at the hydroforce catalog, 6352012 is spec'd as a standard 12V solenoid with dual 18" leads).

Here it is only $16:

http://www.hydraulicstore.com/index...tory]=&data[catalog]=1&data[itemcode]=7014959

Have you disconnected the coil and measured the resistance of the leads? Should give you 7.2 ohms. That will help you figure if it is a bad coil or connecting wiring.

I wonder if Powertrac is selling you the solenoid coil and the internal porting spool for $250? $16 above just buys you the electrical coil.

 

[ponytug]

The second number is some sort of production number; I don't know how to translate it. I think it may apply to the terminals/wiring arrangement.

See a cross post (#9) over in the electrical short issue.
Surplus center is selling the exact coil, with a valve body for $55 at the moment. B&B has just the coil for $20-23, depending on the terminal arrangement. I doubt that you need or want the valve body.

As far as pricing goes, there is a real cost to keeping items in stock, paying for staff, and customer service agents (e.g. Terry). I have been on both sides of this, and for arcane items that can sit on the shelf for years, you do end up having to charge well above the cost of the goods by the time all the real costs get loaded on to the price of the part. That said, there are limits.

Sometimes, when you are a small buyer you basically have to buy the part at 100X COGS from the manufacturer, and when you can buy 10,000, it drops to 111% of COGS.

Personally, I have had some pretty screwy inventories: once we needed 50 units of a semi-custom part, but since there was almost no cost difference between 50 and 1,000, ended up buying a couple thousand and then handed them out to anyone who could put the parts to good use. (It ended up becoming the de facto standard for the industry, and lots of business for the original manufacturer. Twenty years later, it is still in volume production.)
Another time, we bought what we thought would be just enough to make a production run, with a couple of spares, and ended up having to junk the entire series of machines because a single part went out of production between the prototype and the production phase and we could not find a replacement (and we looked globally, really hard). So, the lack of $0.29 part ended up costing us into the millions... As I said, getting inventories right can lead you down some odd paths sometimes...

All the best,

Peter

 

[BobRip]

I guess you should buy the cheaper part and send Terry money for the time he spent helping you. How many hours was that?

 

[woodlandfarms]

No, I get it. 1000% markup seems a bit severe even for PT. As for money to Terry, absolutely, then again, it is his job. If it wasn't me he would be on the phone with, it would be someone else.

Lets wait and see what we get and what the credit card bill is. It wasn't Terry selling me the part so it could very well be a mistake and I am getting something else.

Oh, Just an FYI. the Quick Attach plates (I think T-12 Series) are 200 + Shipping. Going to see what making my own costs.

I will test the load. I took the whole thing apart today, found a lot of rust between the coil and the valve which i think is bad. Steel Wooled it out and then found the connectors corroded as well. Cleaned and we will see....

 

[BobRip]

Many companies do not have a Terry. That is what we are paying for. His quality of service is getting very hard to find. Can you take pictures of the coil?

 

[Marks481]

As for money to Terry, absolutely, then again, it is his job.

By my calculations, woodland farms has already paid Terry's salary several times over the years.

 

[woodlandfarms]

So an update.. Not the best kinda update but an update.

the box of toys arrived. I got an entirely new coil and valve. Spoke to Terry, updated design so use this over the old. And it was 170 USD. Fair enough. not going to fight it. Probably worth 120 max but I am not going to fight it. I think in the end the $50 coil would have worked but....

Got the temp sensor. It set me back $50 for a used piece. Was told new is $250. Got on the interweb, sluethed a bit. I think jegs has it new for $39. Probably going to order a new one and put it in and hold this used one in reserve.

 

[Marks481]

I got an entirely new coil and valve.

Well at least it wasn't an outrageous over-charge. That much just for the coil would've been highway robbery!

The temp sensor is a pretty common device, IIRC, and available everywhere. Not really the type of sensor I would have chosen for the job, either. Of course, turning a fan on and off isn't exactly something that needs to be super accurate. I bet the sensor would last longer if it triggered a relay instead of being in series with the fan.

I have always intended to build a "real" electric system on my PT, but that has always been on the back burner as it continues to chug along. At least installing a decent fuse box, and fixing the rat's nest that is the instrument panel.

 

[woodlandfarms]

Well, the Coil and valve are still overpriced. I kinda checked into it... not enough to make a stink but enough for me to rethink purchasing from PT which is a hard statement to make.

The sensor is the engine oil temp sensor. Made by VDO and not commonly stocked by NAPA or such. It is a european version. This said, looks like I can get my hands o a new one for the price of the used so I will probably do it if it all works out.