NEW Prototypes and "Shop Update"
Today's blog post is a bit different...
If you don't want to read it (it's a little longer than usual), then you can just skip to the end where I show you some of the new stuff we've been working on. :-)
If you don't want to read it (it's a little longer than usual), then you can just skip to the end where I show you some of the new stuff we've been working on. :-)
But, if you want to learn a little bit about, "What on earth actually goes on INSIDE Magnus' brain ...and inside his business?", then stick around. :-D
Were YOU Here A Year Ago?
Before we dive into the nitty gritty...
Were you here a year ago? Actually, not even a year ago, just six months ago?
Up until six months we used to run the business mostly on "pre-orders". I would create a new design, I would offer this design, customers would pre-order it, and then we would produce and ship them.
The biggest issue was we would pretty much ALWAYS be late. Why am I telling you this? Well, a couple of reasons...
Firstly, in the past, this blog post I'm writing just now would typically me just explaining -- every single week -- exactly why the sliders everyone pre-ordered were still late. It was bad for the customers and, honestly, it was bad for us too.
We get lots of requests to do pre-orders again - but it just doesn't work for us unfortunately. I mean, I'm not saying I'll never do them ...but it's unlikely.
THREE Things You (Might) Need To Know
If you follow online (i.e. Facebook, etc.) then it probably looks like I don't act on requests from from Customers.
And by requests I mean making certain older sliders models again, going back to older plates, making brass/copper sliders, and so on.
And by requests I mean making certain older sliders models again, going back to older plates, making brass/copper sliders, and so on.
Here's the thing...
I do hear all of these things. But there are generally three reasons I don't do anything about them:
#1 - It's ALWAYS a super-small minority (relative to the number of products we make and sell). For example, someone did a Poll on Facebook the other day for me to make sliders with a more symmetrical layout like I used to. 18 people voted for this -- when I last checked -- which is nowhere near enough. It's an incredibly small minority unfortunately.
#2 - Each person only has their own, single experience with our products. They're not seeing the large number of emails we get when a product has an issue. And these are emails from a range of different people (for some people it's their first slider ...and for others it's their 50th from us).
As an example, we get lots of requests for the older "V2" version of our dimple plates. The BIG problem is that -- even though most people found them great -- it was a customer service nightmare for us. A number of people would find they scratch badly ...and there was enough of those that it didn't become viable to make them at all. Now, I get it, many people say they were the best plates ever ...but, from our experience, they were not good.
As an example, we get lots of requests for the older "V2" version of our dimple plates. The BIG problem is that -- even though most people found them great -- it was a customer service nightmare for us. A number of people would find they scratch badly ...and there was enough of those that it didn't become viable to make them at all. Now, I get it, many people say they were the best plates ever ...but, from our experience, they were not good.
It is near impossible for me to get across to each individual person that, just because their experience with a particular set of plates (as an example) has always been amazing ...there are lots of people who encounter endless problems with the exact same plates. Like I said, trying getting people to understand this -- to understand the "big picture" of working with hundreds of customers who don't have the same positive experience of plates as they do -- is something I have had to give up on really.
#3 - You may have noticed this already ...but I tend not to stick with the same thing (most other makers tend to do a lot of the same thing over and over compared to us). I'm always pushing for new things. New plates, new designs, improving, tweaking, and so on. I've not psycho-analyzed myself too much about this ...but I'm sure there is some sort of psychological issue going on here.
Which brings me to...
Here's the #1 Thing You Need To Know
For all the NEW designs, products, plate changes, and so on we do here at Magnus...
The #1 thing we are ALWAYS aiming for is:
Constantly improving OUR products ...so it improves YOUR experience!
This truly is what we are doing here at Magnus. The thing is... the better your experience... the more we as a team enjoy what we do (yeah, selfish, I know).
Some "NEW Stuff"...
Here's are some things we are working on...
Some may never be made -- and some will definitely be made. It's a sort of "show and tell" of what is currently going on in the workshop right now. :-)
This slider does not have a name -- and I'm not sure we will make it -- but it has a "spider web" feel to it:
We will likely make this one ...it's definitely a bit "different":
This one is definitely a bit "out there" - I've called it the Glob for now:
These round things are actually spherical magnets - lots of issues with this (we've been working on it for a while):
These should hopefully be available next week. This is not a slider of course ...it's our famous "SlideClick" utility blade knife:
I have sold a couple of these already - but more are coming:
Lastly (Some Absolutely BLATANT Product Promotion)
I've had a bit of a dig around in the workshop and assembly/shipping area ...and found a bunch of products that are good to go (but they just kind of slipped through the net of getting as far as on the website).
If they're something here you like, then now is your chance:
Gday Magnus,
I’ve searched the ’net for over 100hrs for a match to my pork sausage fingers.
Still cant find anything close to your perfect " Bolty" , please bring it back in a 140mm or longer (5.6"), pretty please with sugar on top :D
Cheers n beers
Howdy Sir!
I’ll preface this by saying I love your work and have loved the two sliders I bought from you (a maglab and a toad x on muffin tins). They have worked great and are in my daily rotation. However, I am in that small minority who would love for you to do another run of some of the old plates. My muffin tins are so worn in that the original diagonal milling pattern is entirely gone!! They have essentially become flat plates with 4 dimples. I love the new stuff, but maybe 1 last run of the old plates would be awesome 😝. I’d probably buy a couple of them, so that way I could use it forever. Thanks for reading this, and keep up the good work!
- Dylan
Your rainbow with no red is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. Thanks Magnus :)
Magnus,
been here since some earlier days, dunno exactly. 8, maybe 10 years, maybe more. Cogent days.
Watched the transition to the fidget side, which as others pointed out as well I do understand from a business perspective, but is totally uninteresting for me. Furthermore I can’t stand the fidget stuff anyways, since the purpose, especially when out of titanium, is the absolute expression of abundance and excess. In 4000 years, when humankind rotted itselves successfully to extinction, aliens will find your titanium fidget toys and laugh at us. “This is why they went extinct!” Sigh, if they would serve any purpose….! Anyways, I said, I don’t get it. Especially not owning 50 or so. Maybe 1 or 2 I would guess. But I digress.
The return of pens, even when I can’t make any purchase atm, was a much appreciated move and I am looking forward to the Magnus that offers useful stuff for folks like me (to others fidget toys seem to be useful).
Good luck in any case and oh yes, definitely to impossibly high standards!
Hi Magnus.
I’m totally onboard with what Spencer wrote in his rather long comment. I also came to your site just as you started making sliders only. I have been longing for you to do a new run of the knife too. Just bought a couple of Pen’s, when finally some of the models I really wanted came for sale. Have bought a couple of the licensed Clickshift at Tactile and they were rather fine, but not in comparison to the real deal. Therefore I’m so happy to hear you will be running some of the knives and hopefully also other of the EDC stuff.
Been a follower of your site since around 2020, and it was just lately I’ve finally had the opportunity to buy a couple of your fantastic pen’s.
Greetings from Denmark and to impossible high standards..