4 ms·

For perspective, a single nut or bolt often costs hundreds to thousands of dollars by the time you are done with the Mil Spec qualification. You are off by a fa

For perspective, a single nut or bolt often costs hundreds to thousands of dollars by the time you are done with the Mil Spec qualification. You are off by a factor of at least 3, likely 4 or 5.

DanBC 14y ago
People tend not to understand the tracability requirements either. Every single part - each nut, bolt, and washer, has a batch number and can be traced from the rover back through assembly, through stores, through goods in, through the suppliers, through to the manufacturers. This paperwork alone adds significant;y to the cost.
smackfu 14y ago
Of course, once you stop seeing this is as crazy, you are doomed to mediocre results.
- kbolino 14y ago
  No, it would be crazy if the rover failed due to a bad bolt, and no one could explain why the bolt was bad or even where it came from. Also, no one is stopping you from building, launching, landing, and operating a multi-purpose roving vehicle on the surface of a foreign planet, 50 to 400 million kilometers away, that's designed to last for several years and withstand extremes of temperature, pressure, and radiation. If you can do better...
  - smackfu 14y ago
    I still think there is a middle ground. I guess I will just have to make my own mars rover in my spare time though, that seems viable.
    - kbolino 14y ago
      If your point is that there is a lot of bureaucracy, then I wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately, in any government project, that is going to be the case. You cannot on the one hand expect great things, and on the other hand chastise every failure. I'm not saying you specifically would do this, but any failure would result in a storm of controversy about how billions of dollars were wasted to land a pile of scrap metal on Mars while X, Y, and Z pressing political crises are a better use of our time and money. A private company, on the other hand, can afford to take greater risks. If you're actually able to do it on your own, more power to you, but I would recommend some help.

For perspective, a single nut or bolt often costs hundreds to thousands of dollars by the time you are done with the Mil Spec qualification. You are off by a factor of at least 3, likely 4 or 5.

DanBC 14y ago

People tend not to understand the tracability requirements either. Every single part - each nut, bolt, and washer, has a batch number and can be traced from the rover back through assembly, through stores, through goods in, through the suppliers, through to the manufacturers. This paperwork alone adds significant;y to the cost.

smackfu 14y ago

Of course, once you stop seeing this is as crazy, you are doomed to mediocre results.

kbolino 14y ago
No, it would be crazy if the rover failed due to a bad bolt, and no one could explain why the bolt was bad or even where it came from. Also, no one is stopping you from building, launching, landing, and operating a multi-purpose roving vehicle on the surface of a foreign planet, 50 to 400 million kilometers away, that's designed to last for several years and withstand extremes of temperature, pressure, and radiation. If you can do better...
- smackfu 14y ago
  I still think there is a middle ground. I guess I will just have to make my own mars rover in my spare time though, that seems viable.
  - kbolino 14y ago
    If your point is that there is a lot of bureaucracy, then I wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately, in any government project, that is going to be the case. You cannot on the one hand expect great things, and on the other hand chastise every failure. I'm not saying you specifically would do this, but any failure would result in a storm of controversy about how billions of dollars were wasted to land a pile of scrap metal on Mars while X, Y, and Z pressing political crises are a better use of our time and money. A private company, on the other hand, can afford to take greater risks. If you're actually able to do it on your own, more power to you, but I would recommend some help.