Five Dollar Fidget Spinner

Bearing Cap Prototypes - 2 days left!
almost 8 years ago – Tue, Feb 21, 2017 at 10:24:33 PM

Just a little less than 48 hours left! 

Here are some images of the finalized design of the bearing caps. They are absolutely perfect and I love them. Snug removable fit that won't fall out, and they feel amazing. Only Blue, Red, and Black are shown but of course all cap colours will be available in the available fidget colours.

Enjoy.

 These a prototypes so they have very fine print lines showing that will not be in the injection mold version. 

Don't forget to add $1 to your pledge to get the bearing cap Add-on!

Upon the completion of the Kickstarter I am allowing an extra different or same colour bearing cap set for $1.50-2.00 which will be done using BackerKit. So if you have 8 Fidgets on order you will be able to get 8 extra bearing cap sets on top of the 8 $1 sets that come with the fidget.

Home stretch part 2!

Happy Spinning.

1000%
almost 8 years ago – Sun, Feb 19, 2017 at 09:22:47 PM

Wow. 

Over 2500 Backers.

1000% of the Goal.

Over 5000 Fidgets.

Impressive numbers.

Thanks Backers and Sharers! We are on the home stretch.

See you at the finish line. 

-Sean Hodgins

Colour Stats and Triplex Info/Survey
almost 8 years ago – Wed, Feb 15, 2017 at 10:57:44 PM

Hey Backers and Not-yet Backers!

Here is a long detailed update. But required. Another survey as well. I like to keep the backers in control.

Colour Stats.

With over 1000 people who filled out the Colour Survey we now have a pretty clear choice of what the top 5 colours will be. 

Here is the percentage breakdown:

 The top 5 are:

• Black
• Blue
• Red
• Green
• Orange

Can't say I'm really surprised since orange was one of the colours I had for my prototype and it looked really cool. So these are likely to be the colours available when you take the survey after the Kickstarter ends. I'm happy with the results, and I hope the rest of you are too. 

Next, The Triplex:

We're approaching the final stretch goal, and as you know the stretch goals we're afterthoughts for the campaign, which in the past have caused a lot of other campaigns some grief(as I have read in doing research), so I've been really racking my brain about this to make sure everything will play out properly. I've come across a couple of issues with having the extra model The Triplex available and I will lay them, and the possible solutions or changes, out for all of you:

Problems: 

1) Small Quantities. Since I am offering this as an upgrade, I can only assume that a very small percentage will want the Triplex. When it comes to manufacturing, small quantities do not work. Basically for each colour I need to order quantities in the thousands to make these able to be so inexpensive - so you can imagine 5 colours, 15000+Fidgets minimum. Right now for all of the backers, the Trama fidget I'm looking at quantities around 5000 in all 5 colours. If only 10% of those are upgraded to Triplex(being generous) that is only 500 Triplex fidgets. This will be an issue. 

2)The triplex weighs 20g more due to the extra bearings. 

This may not seem like a lot, but when I have so meticulously accounted for basically each gram for shipping, if a backer were to upgrade all of the Trama fidgets to Triplex fidgets, all of a sudden all of my shipping options don't work anymore - the costs go up a lot when you compare to how inexpensive the fidgets are. It works if you were to only upgrade one fidget to the Triplex, but as you add more, problems arise. These kind of logistics can cause a lot of problems and confusion for you, the backers, which I really want to avoid(hidden costs).  

Solutions:

1) To account for the low quantity, I will get the Triplex in only 1(maybe 2) colours. It would likely be black since that is the most popular. I could add a higher stretch goal where I think it would be viable to purchase a large number in more colours, but I feel it is a little late at this point. Plus the steady increase in pledges doesn't really seem to be related to the final stretch goal.

2) 

Option 1 - To account for the extra weight in shipping I could technically increase the add-on price of the Triplex to $3(from $2). It would ensure that the shipping would be covered regardless of how many Triplex you want to change.

Option 2 - Make only the Trama for now, keep the Kickstarter simple and make the Triplex later as a pre-order outside of the Kickstarter. I could make the Triplex a pre-order option through my website, and all of the backers of this Kickstarter would have the option to purchase before everyone else(I would notify the backers) and you would all have a discount for when they will be available(Kickstarter Backer Discount). I prefer this option as it keeps the complexity down and allows for one product to be released at a time. Plus I could then offer all of the colours. 

Here is another google form to see interest on this matter:

https://goo.gl/forms/XFNEOQx7XeSkBkqf2

 I want to keep all of you, the backers, in the loop the best I can. 

TL;DR

• Colours picked were, Black, Blue, Red, Green, Orange

• Triplex is heavy, changes shipping too much. Low quantity doesn't allow for all colours.
• Two options: No Triplex now, pre-order later with Backer Discount and all of the colours(Best option) or increase Triplex Addon upgrade from $2 to $3 to account for low quantity/shipping and only one colour(not as good option).
• Fill out another google form to answer these questions: https://goo.gl/forms/XFNEOQx7XeSkBkqf2

I know these changes can be frustrating, but everything must be accounted for, and the information open to you, the backers, to ensure everyone is on the same page and everything goes smoothly! 

Thanks for backing!

Sean Hodgins

A Fidget Colour Survey.
almost 8 years ago – Thu, Feb 09, 2017 at 08:06:32 PM

Hello Backers and Everyone Else!

Quick update.

I have put together a quick survey to get an estimate of what colours are most desired. I can only choose so many colours since every time you add a colour for production it increases costs by a lot. So please fill out this form to choose which colours will be chosen for the final production. 

Survey here: https://goo.gl/forms/joHN3VPSgnDokPfM2

Anyone can fill it out, even non-backers. So share if you like.

**This survey will have no impact on your final colour choices for your ordered fidgets if you change your mind later on. Just gauging interest in certain colours. 

Thanks!

Bring It On!
almost 8 years ago – Tue, Feb 07, 2017 at 07:28:59 PM

As we near the halfway point of the Kickstarter I just want to send out a much deserved Thanks!

Thanks to everyone who has backed, shared, or just enjoyed watching my video! 

As the campaign continues to grow, there will be those who will try to take advantage of the popularity. Those who just want to make a bunch of quick fidget sales, 3D print them, and then disappear forever, and that is fine.

I just wanted to remind everyone that this is not the case for me.

The point of this Kickstarter is to do what Kickstarter is intended to do, Kickstart my small business and develop an affordable product that can reach everyone who needs a Fidget tool. The money being generated is not only going to pay for the manufacturing and distribution of the Five Dollar Fidget you're buying, but it is also going to be used to bring my business, Idle Hands Development, to the next level. The hope is that this Five Dollar Fidget becomes a real product that isn't solely online; bringing them to store shelves. To reach everyone at an affordable price.

Idle Hands Development is not just a fidget spinner company. I design electronics, robotics, and prototypes for pretty much anyone who has an idea. We existed before the popularity of Fidget Spinners and we will continue to exist long after! A lot of my designs are meant for educational purposes(in the classroom or home), some are for bettering lives, and some have no use other than to be fun. You're going to see a lot more growth and cool projects out of Idle Hands Dev. in the future and you can thank the backers of the Five Dollar Fidget Spinner for that. 

This is just a reminder that by backing this project, you're backing a real North American company with big aspirations to prosper for years to come!

Happy Spinning!

Sean Hodgins - http://idlehandsdev.com 

P.S. The Ceramic bearing option is still available! Just add $2 to your reward per bearing you require. The Reward Tier has been removed so that people would stop selecting it as their reward and accidentally cancelling their Fidget reward.