The Machine Still Runs — But You Can't Buy the Part
A part fails on a machine that's been working for fifteen years. You look it up, and the trail is cold: the model is discontinued, the spare is "no longer available," the supplier was bought out, or the maker has simply gone. One small component is now holding an entire working machine hostage — and a full replacement machine costs a fortune.
You don't need the original manufacturer to make that part again. If the geometry still exists somewhere — in the old component, a drawing, a manual, or the parts around it — EKINSUN can reproduce it. We rebuild the CAD ourselves, for free, and machine, mold or cast a working replacement, even if all you have is the broken original.
Your Three Real Options
When a part goes obsolete, there are only three honest ways forward. We'll tell you which one fits before you spend anything:
1 · Find old stock
Sometimes surplus dealers or brokers still hold the original. Worth a look first — but stock runs out, and the next failure leaves you here again.
2 · Remake it
Reproduce the part new from the old one, a drawing or photos. No dependence on stock that will eventually vanish. This is what we do.
How we reverse engineer →3 · Redesign around it
If the original is genuinely unobtainable and unmeasurable, adapt the mounting to accept a modern equivalent. A last resort — usually remaking is simpler.
Most jobs land on option 2. It's the only one that puts you back in control: once we've reconstructed the CAD, the part can be made again any time, in any quantity.
Repair or Remake? How We Decide
Remaking isn't always the answer — sometimes the old part can be saved more cheaply. We look at the failure honestly:
| If the part is… | Usually better to… |
|---|---|
| Worn on one surface (scored shaft, worn bore) | Repair — sleeve, build up and re-machine to size |
| Cracked or broken | Remake new — a repaired crack rarely lasts |
| Badly worn everywhere | Remake new — measuring the wear away is cheaper than chasing it |
| Safety- or precision-critical | Remake new to the original spec, with inspection |
On a single machined part there's no tooling cost, so a brand-new part is often close in price to a repair — and lasts far longer. We give you the straight comparison, not a default upsell.
How We Remake an Obsolete Part
Send whatever you have
The old or broken part, an old drawing, a manual page, photos, or the parts it connects to. We confirm what's usable before you ship anything.
Measure or reconstruct
Calipers, micrometers, thread gauges and — for complex shapes — 3D scanning capture the geometry. Missing features are recovered from the mating parts and symmetry.
Rebuild the CAD — you confirm
We model it to original design intent (not its worn state) and send you the drawing with critical dimensions marked. Nothing is cut until you approve. Free with your quote.
Match — or upgrade — the material
We match the original, or suggest a stronger material or heat treatment if that's why it failed. Reproducing from a sample →
Manufacture & inspect
CNC machining for metals and one-offs, molding or casting for batches and plastics. Checked against the model and your original, then shipped worldwide. CNC turning · casting.
What If You Don't Have the Old Part At All?
This is the situation most shops won't touch — and it's often solvable. If the part is gone entirely, the design usually still lives in the things around it. We reconstruct from:
- The mating parts — the housing it sits in, the shaft it rides on, the cover it bolts to all dictate its dimensions
- An assembly photo or manual diagram with one known reference dimension for scale
- A catalogue or nameplate image plus the envelope it has to fit
- Your description of what it did and how it failed
Send what you've got — we'll tell you quickly whether there's enough to rebuild a reliable replacement.
Materials — and the Chance to Upgrade
Remaking from scratch is a quiet opportunity: you can fix the weakness that killed the original.
Metal
Aluminium, stainless (304/316), brass, bronze, mild and tool steel, titanium — often a stronger grade or harder wear surface than the original.
6061 →Bushings →Plastic
Delrin/POM, nylon, PC, PTFE, PEEK — machined for one-offs, or cast for batches. A modern engineering plastic often outlasts a brittle original.
Vacuum casting →Gears, shafts & drives
Worn or stripped drive parts remade to the original tooth form and fit — a common obsolete-machine failure.
Spur gears →Shafts →A note on branded parts. We make a compatible replacement to the original's form, fit and function from what you supply. We don't sell branded original products and don't imply affiliation with the original manufacturer.
What to Send Us
- The old or broken part, or photos from several angles (a ruler or caliper in shot helps)
- Any old drawing, manual page, part number or nameplate — even a blurry one
- One known reference dimension if you have no part to measure
- What the part does, where it fits, and how it failed
- Quantity — one to get running, or a few spares
- Delivery country
No CAD, no drawing, no problem. Reconstructing the geometry is our job, done free and confirmed with you before anything is made. See a worked example: replacing a discontinued machine part with no drawing.
A Real Example
From a discontinued plastic trim that no dealer could supply to obsolete brass fittings with a thread no current supplier matched, the approach is the same — recover the geometry, rebuild it, remake it. See how we copy an obsolete part from a sample, remake a discontinued plastic trim, or browse the full custom parts catalogue.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. When the original maker no longer sells the part — or no longer exists — we reproduce it from the old component, a drawing, or photos. We measure or reconstruct the geometry, build the CAD for free, confirm it, then make the replacement. No CAD file or part number needed.
We can often still reconstruct it from the mating parts, an assembly photo or manual diagram with a known dimension, or a catalogue image plus the space it fits. The more you send, the tighter the result.
It depends. Simple single-surface wear is sometimes restored by sleeving and re-machining. Cracked, badly worn or safety-critical parts are usually better remade new — and with no tooling cost on a single machined part, a fresh part is often close in price. We tell you honestly which makes sense.
Yes — one piece, no setup fee on machined parts. Most obsolete-part jobs are a single replacement to get a machine running. We also make small batches of spares from the same reconstructed CAD.
Often yes — a stronger material, better heat treatment, or a larger fillet where the old one cracked. We keep form, fit and function identical and upgrade only what helps it last.
We make a compatible replacement from the sample, drawing or photos you supply. We don't sell branded originals or imply affiliation with the original manufacturer — it's made to match the original's form, fit and function.
A quote within 24 hours of us seeing the part, drawing or photos. After approval a single machined replacement is usually days, not weeks. CAD reconstruction is free with your quote.
Get an Obsolete Part Quoted
Old part, drawing or photo — all accepted. Engineers reply in 24h.