What are chances Oakley re-releases X-Metal?

[ShortChangeHero]

look the issue is not the alloy, the team at Oakley, sales logistics, internal politics, the fact that the 'new' version of Oakley isn't, or any of that crap.

Millennials do NOT have brand recognition for Oakley, and even if they did what Millennial is going to drop 500$ on a pair of sunglasses? Dont forget your Jnco elephant bells and make sure the timer on the VCR is set. Harley Davidson is having the exact same issue but doing even worse than Oakley did. Oakley did manage to come out with some things that the new generation will buy. Harley is working dang hard on getting their own grave dug.

I see them drop $600 on a pair of XX that was originally $275 all the time.

 

[zedicus]

i only ever see them drop 7$ for a 'coffee' then gripe because their 4$ thrift store shoes don't have a hole in them yet.

 

["TRUMP"]

i only ever see them drop 7$ for a 'coffee' then gripe because their 4$ thrift store shoes don't have a hole in them yet.

Wut

 

[Wicked]

Unfortunately the chance of a re-release is really close to zero

So you're saying there's a chance?

 

[Ti man]

Yes.

 

[TechArtisan]

I think many here would not agree on your statement about xmetals being more of an "art piece than a functional pair of glasses".

Then take it from those more knowing than you....
"A lot of the growth we've promised can result from just letting people know what we already make," says Baden. What Oakley creates, he insists, is not sunglasses, but sculpture. "We're inventors using technology to make artistic creations with mechanical souls," he says.

To address the matter at hand, Xmetal, you must understand the history. Xmetal are cast titanium.

This is one of the most difficult metals to investment cast. It is extremely reactive and requires casting in a hard vacuum, 4600 degree temps, and if you dont take great care you end up with garbage parts, or worse an explosion. Oakley purchased a former golf club manufacturing facility in Nevada to cast the X metal line.

The Dayton plant was shuttered and liquidated in 2012. Oakley/luxotticca no longer owns the equipment necessary to produce them. They would have to drop $50m+ to get a new facility up and running. Outsourcing the process isnt really practical as few foundries are capable of producing these sorts of parts and the premium they charge is more in line with aerospace and medical than sunglasses.
This is why you WILL NEVER SEE an Oakley/Luxoticca Xmetal happen.

 

[raskymar]

had fun reading this but wasted 10 min... They'll have to step it up a notch and make/CNC them out of a MokuTi billet, then charge $3,499.75 for a limited release of 100 of them. Oh and they'll be made in China.

 

[TechArtisan]

had fun reading this but wasted 10 min... They'll have to step it up a notch and make/CNC them out of a MokuTi billet, then charge $3,499.75 for a limited release of 100 of them. Oh and they'll be made in China.

CNC titanium is a step DOWN from investment cast. If they were to attempt to do it again they would most likely attempt MIM Ti.

 

[Oakley G]

This is why you WILL NEVER SEE an Oakley/Luxoticca Xmetal happen.

That’s just one part of the equation. If there was a business or a financial reason to do it, they’d do it. The reality is that X-metals didn’t sell that well at the end. At least not enough to run a factory around it. By the time the X-squared rolled around, the remaining X-metal frames like the Juliet were on the chopping block at least 2 times since 2006 and were on death’s door. The XS sold ok but it was clear the time of X-metal and its styling was over.

Despite collectors loving them and wanting them back now, very few actually purchased them at retail when they were around near the end. So yeah, the return will never happen at least not on a full scale basis. And convincing Oakley that will sell these days is a steep uphill battle at any level of production,

 

[TexxxZ 2.0]

There’s always Ray-Ban