Funny Old World...
I just waded through this after having posed a question (in all innocence, honest) about fork stanchions!
I'm now approaching an age where I can legitimately lay claim to having 'been there, seen it', but modesty forbids... well, mostly.
I served an engineering apprenticeship in a large automotive manufacturer who made pretty much all the components in-house.
The machines I operated were the finest quality available when they were bought...to make tanks in order to defeat Hitler. One machine dated from the nineteenth centrury - no kidding.
From a batch of 120 it could take up to 60 attempts before one was passable through Inspection. These were Genuine, Original parts, and now probably also 'incredibly rare'.
I recall a story about a boring machine in the Norton factory requiring a plank to be held against the carriage to maintain size. It must have been one of our cast-offs :roll:
Having progressed through Engineering in many forms, I've seen the transition to CNC manufacture, and the onward progress into bought-out, where we did nothing more than manage external suppliers for things which go faster than Commandos before the wheels leave the floor
.
Even with the standard aerospace requirement for 100% inspection we had plenty to keep us occupied dealing with issues, and it explains why a truck oil filter costs a fiver and an aerospace equivalent costs $200.
The manpower and infrastructure required to guarantee 'absolute' quality just doesn't bear thinking about.
Fullauto is a prime example of non-genuine being the benchmark, and people like Andy Molnar in the UK being another case in point - although he trades under the Manx banner, I know his guys don't need a plank to make a decent barrel.
Do I get a discount on the new cylinder head now? :wink: