Got some interesting information today from calling casters during my lunch break at work.

One idea was to machine the buttons from "bar stock" or "rod stock". I doubt it would be possible, considering the fragility of the button shafts, but it's still one to keep tucked in the back of your minds. Might be cost effective for small runs.

Also, I confirmed that injection molding is totally out of the question (well, based on the casters I spoke to). One said it would be between $3,000 and $8,000 for the mold itself. The mold would be made of aluminum or steel, created by robotic machines based on the specs in the CAD, and then would be altered to allow plastic to flow in and for the buttons to be ejected out. Then, it would cost between $200 and $500 to even put the mold into the machine. At which point, they'd push the GO button for like 5 seconds before hitting STOP, because that's all the time it needs to make 300 sets. So, it'd do a quality job, but only if we needed 300,000 sets.

Some more terms, one guy mentioned creating a silicone mold to cast the buttons from. I hadn't heard that before, so it's a good one to ask casters.

For terminology, I was even told to speak to "prototypers" along with casters. Because if our run size is as "small" as 300 sets, that might qualify as prototyping to some people.

I just hope the CAD will help a casting shop create a precise mold, since they don't have the machines that the big injection molders have. We'll see.