Help! Blow and Injection molder stole my deposit and now I am in a serious bind

[wonderdog5]

To make a long story short, I gave a mold maker a deposit to build me a blow mold and injection mold for a ~250cc HDPE bottle and polypro cap. After months of delays and dwindling communication, I am starting to come to terms with the fact that I will never see these products made and most likely, will not get my 50% deposit back.

Is there anyone on here that could recommend a small production shop that could build a blow mold and an injection mold in short time frame? I am in Michigan, so anyone nearby would be extra helpful.

Needless to say, I will continue to pursue getting my money back from the first guys but in the meantime, I need to get these bottles made so that I can launch my products.
Sorry if this is the wrong forum but I am desperate.

 

[MikeHalloran]

It would be cheaper and faster to salvage the relationship between you and the mold maker. For that purpose, it would be helpful to know what sort of excuses were offered to justify the delays.

Was there anything particularly challenging about the shape of the bottle, or the tolerances demanded?

What did you change after he started to sink the mold?

Did you specify unusual materials?

Have you ever bought a mold before?


Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[mcgyvr]

define short time frame? 6 weeks?

 

[wonderdog5]

You are right, I am doing everything I can to salvage the relationship. It is not like we are fighting or having disagreements, he is just being very unresponsive and I think he is dealing with personal issues that are pulling him away from the job. I am still hopeful that the original project will work out but I need to have a plan B ready to go if plan A falls through.

The mold design is fairly straightforward. It uses typical materials and is producing parts out of the usual plastics. Nothing complicated. This is the first mold I have purchased but I did make a couple as a mechanical engineering student.

Less than a month from deposit to production would be ideal!