Core77

A Nice Use of Electrical Discharge Machining: Mas Design's Suh-weet Bauhaus Carabiner Keychains

By Rain Noe - March 26, 2013

in Kickstarter

Mas Design's simple, elegantly-designed Bauhaus Series of carabiner keychains, all created from a single piece of titanium, are pretty darned sweet. They're also a Kickstarter hit: With over a month left in the pledging process, the carabiners have gathered 1,400 backers, whose combined 58 large well exceeded the original $10,000 goal.

The man behind Los Angeles-based Mas Design is Sunny Inkavesvaanit, who unsurprisingly reveals that something so simple-looking took a long time to perfect: "This collection precipitated from the revision of over 500 designs that were drawn, tested and minimized. The design is deceptively simple, but quite difficult to conceive," writes Inkavesvaanit. "I had nightmares about carabiners for two weeks."

The pitch video is hype-free, simply showing you the object in the context you would actually be using it:

I really appreciate the amount of thought that went into these. Note the clever way Inkavesvaanit has unobtrusively integrated a bottle opener into the design of the K Type variant:

He's also opted to simplify his supply chain by offering just a single material (titanium) with an option for one of two finishes, stone-tumbled or hand-brushed. "I chose these finishes with longevity in mind," Inkavesvaanit explains. "Over time, these accessories will accumulate scratches from being in your pocket, rubbing against your keys, etc. Anodized finishes, polished surface, PVD coating, and color coating will all wear out, leaving the piece less than desirable. The natural color and the basic finish can be renewed as needed. The Stone-Tumbled finish is scratch resistant by nature, and scratches will add character to the piece over time. The hand-brushed finish can be renewed by hand sanding with 400–600 grit sandpaper and green Scotch-Brite pads."

Now, for those of you wondering how the heck he got such fine cuts in a chunk of titanium, the answer is: EDM. That's a pricey process, and Inkavesvaanit is offering standalone bottle openers for $17 and carabiners starting at $28—which seem expensive until you consider the production method, at which point you might wonder why the price isn't higher. Well, this is where it pays to have ID and manufacturing experience. "This type of production, relying on specialized EDM technology for this type of product, is rare and expensive," writes Inkavesvaanit. "But due to the relationship I have established over the years, and with careful collaboration (and with sheer curiosity on the manufacturer's part), we were able to create a design that would allow the manufacturer to produce these designs with [a] lower manufacturing cost."

o

Favorite This
Q
8

Comment

Comments

Sunny

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Does anyone know if laser can provides a better cut than EDM technology when dealing with thick materials (2-10MM) rather than a thin walled tubes?

I always had the notion that EDM gives a finer, more precise edge during cutting than typical lasers you find in most shop out there. Some of the test results I have seen cut with laser is quite crude.

!Report as spam
KGB

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Wow! I love these designs. Integrating a natural hinge, bottle opener, and the manufacturing method shows that he took some time to design these. Well, at least for me as I am not as familiar with industrial design as most of the people here.

These remind me of a Xikar knife I had, which used living hinge(?) for an integrated carabiner and a blade detent. Those movable areas felt reallly(organic?) while being moved. Maybe it has something to do with the resistance increasing as you are moving the living hinges as they approach their extremes.

http://images.knifecenter.com/knifecenter/xikar/images/730K.jpg
!Report as spam
Ken J

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

@Travis

A simple sand blast or tumble process could eliminate those concerns pretty cheaply as it looks he has elected to use. As for EDM, I'd agree that a water or laser operation could perform the same with much greater economy. That said, the hinge design is interesting, but I'd like to see if the "ball" floats out of its pivot. I'm also curious how the spring feels since he can't design any pre-stress into it (perhaps that's where the strength of Ti comes into to play). For the price he's asking, I'll surely look into getting one.
!Report as spam
Earthman

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I agree with hokka. I really like the concept of a better looking carabiner, and the EDM'd spring is interesting. However, I don't like how sharp the edges are I think the transitions could have been smoother.
!Report as spam
Travis Andren

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Why EDM? Why not an industrial fiber laser? Emerging laser technology enables fine resolution similar to that shown on this product for a much lower cost.
!Report as spam
hokka

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

There's another issue with this design: edges are too sharp, I have been using a stainless steel carabiners for years, even they are totally round it still wears out the belt loop very fast, I can only imagine this will wear out your jeans' belt loop even faster!
!Report as spam
SFPaul

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I have carried my keys...on rings...on carabiners for years and unless there is a way to positively keep the rings on the carabiners you will lose them at some point.

I ended up partitioning off the key rings from the opening with a thin strip of gaffer tape.
!Report as spam
dongzo

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

it'd be interesting to see the math on the embedded energy of that carabiner vs. a more traditional that is stamped of some alloy other than titanium. There may be additional performance benefits due to work hardening with a stamped process that are not present here.
!Report as spam