Key points
- The part does not change. Below 500 pieces the casting, the tool and the tolerances stay identical. What changes is marking, packaging and paperwork.
- 300 pcs. Laser marking only — logo etched on the finished part, standard carton.
- 500 pcs. Custom colour and printed packaging enter the run; colour is a batch decision, not a per-piece one.
- 1,000–3,000 pcs. New tooling becomes viable, and the per-piece tooling amortisation drops below the cost of marking someone else's casting.
The first question a distributor asks about private label is always the same: "What is the minimum?" The second is: "What actually changes?" The answer to the second one is more useful than the first, because most of what changes is paperwork, not product.
What stays exactly the same
The casting, the machining, the finish and the inspection. A private-label clamp comes off the same tool, through the same gate, checked by the same inspector as the catalogue version. If a supplier offers you a cheaper private-label price on a "similar" part, they are quoting you a different part.
What changes at 300 pieces
- Logo application. Laser etch or pad print on the finished body. Setup is a one-time fixture alignment — usually $40–80, sometimes waived.
- Barcode. Your EAN or UPC printed on the carton. No cost, but you must supply the number and the correct check digit.
- Country of origin. Printed or labelled. Required in the EU and the US, and it must match the customs declaration.
- Master carton label. Your DC routing format. Free, but send the spec sheet — every DC has a different one.
What changes at 500 pieces
- Colour. Custom anodising or powder coat. The minimum exists because a colour change means draining and refilling the line, so the batch has to be big enough to justify the setup.
- Retail packaging. A printed colour box with a hang tag and a spec panel. Tooling for the die-cut is a one-time $150–400.
What changes at 1,000+ pieces
- Embossed logo in the tool. The mark becomes part of the casting instead of applied to it. This is the only version that cannot be removed, and it is the one that reads as a real brand on a shop shelf.
- Modified geometry. A different bore, an extra mounting hole, a different spring rate. Usually an insert change rather than a new tool.
The arithmetic nobody does
At 300 pieces, a $60 marking setup and $0.06 per part adds $78 to the order — about 26 cents a unit. At 3,000 pieces the same setup adds 2 cents a unit. Private label is not expensive. Small orders are.
Which is why the honest advice for a first order is: take the catalogue part, get your logo lasered on, and spend the tooling money on the second order once you know the product sells.
