Myxylplyk wrote...
If the demand is that great, why not do it full time?
No or low profit?

Well, profit is controllable, and it could be used to moderate demand,
too, but income isn't the real issue for me. It's time.

In order to keep pace with demand and maintain control of the time spent
on tool making, I would have to change my methods a bit. I would need to
hire employees, subcontract parts, deal with vendors, purchase and use
more modern equipment and production methods, manage retail channels, and
so on. In short, I'd need to start running a company again.

Now, there's nothing wrong with running a company, if that's what you
want to spend your time doing, or if you are trying to earn an income.
It's a great way to make a living, especially if you are a hard-working
and diligent person. But it's not how I want to spend my days at this
point in my life. There are too many other things I'd rather do with the
time. One of them is making tools. (G)

One potential solution that I've been considering is to handle things
more like an art studio than a manufacturer. Instead of taking and
fulfilling orders for copies of tools that I've made in the past, I could
get back to making interesting and new (to me) things, perhaps filling
the occasional commission. I would like to keep the prices low enough
that my tools can be purchased by folks who will actually put them to
good use. Unfortunately, it's hard to do that in a cottage
industry, without giving things away.

Cheers!

Jim