New chassis have arrived and counters are in stock!
To say I'm pleased with the quality of these units is an understatement. It's a leap forward. The changes incorporate all the knowledge I've gained through the years of assembling these parts individually. The pieces fit together best one way, and they got it right. I can't take any credit for the consistency and accuracy. These pieces could not have been produced by anyone other than a highly skilled tooling engineer. Nick, and a great little workshop in North Dakota produced these using much better equipment than I have at my disposal. Everyone I've been in contact with there was helpful, and a pleasure to deal with.
The boxes I received were full of great chassis. I took each one out, gave it a test spin. Not too much wobble, not too tight. The tolerances involved are a small fraction of a millimeter. They spin freely, and smoothly.
The new gear is beefy. Don't try to bend the tang with your finger. I don't think you can without injury. It's not sharper than the old ones but far, far stiffer. These got a little abrasive tumble to knock the edges down, another reason to use stainless . Galvanized can't be tumbled. Stainless doesn't extrude cold easily, so it would be difficult to use on the cup / chassis.
Although I've only put a couple miles on it, it works just like the other one. Maybe it's a little quieter. Time will tell if the new ones endure the miles like the previous ones. I'd bet a counter there's more than a milion miles on the JRs we've sold so far. Not bad performance overall.
About 50 5-digit and 90 of the 6-digit models will be ready for sale December 20th. I've got a few Right-hand units, and 20 more will be available in a month or so.
Pete has reworked a few units that have been sold this week to fill the current orders, and I hope the response is positive, if a bit unexpected.
Also, the installation instructions have been revised to clarify the clearances required for proper installation. There's black and white pictures, with arrows, and a paragraph underneath each one telling what each one is to emphasize / depict the clearances. I hope it prevents some of the installation related issues.
Minor changes will be made to the website in the near future. We'll add a couple new pictures, delete some old ones, provide the new instructions, and an announcement of the "new and improved" version. Not much needs to be changed from that standpoint, the look and feel of the website will be the same. The product I believe, has improved.
Pete's exceptional customer service will continue. He's been shipping these things all over the world in various quantities, on demand. I don't think anyone's ever waited more than half a day for a response. Ever. Supplying the world with these gizmos is a big responsibility, and he's done well to say the least.
