So I'm at work but still taking suggestions (1 or 2).
But I want to jump in with a couple points.
*I'm a security guard who makes security guard pay. So option 2 is viable for not much longer.
BUT I respect the people who chose this, and if this is the way the community wants me to go, I'll try to keep my head above water so I don't disappear for good.
*Polycarbonate is NOT acrylic, so there's no way I'll be able to match Lubrigante pricing. But it'll be cheaper than what I projected for CNC'd UHMW.
*UHMW is pretty much synonymous with me in the community by this time, and I've invested too much to not make it work. I still believe that it offers what I want in a keyboard, more so than any other plastic. ABS, PBT, acrylic, polycarbonate, POM--there are options for keyboards in each of those materials. I think UHMW needs to exist as a case, in at least one form, for people to really be able to judge if it's worth it or not.
*I think injection molding is really the best future for ALL plastic boards. It's going to yield cheaper boards with less QC issues and failures, with all the benefits of high-end plastic, in better/more elegant designs.
*The plan for polycarb Alice is really to get out something that people want (polycarb Alice), but it's also to get out something that people didn't know they wanted (injection molded UHMW keyboard cases).
Talking with manufacturers, the high cost they're quoting me is because of machine time shared with other projects and risk of experimentation. Screw that. If it's me, I'll eat those costs because my business is ONLY keyboards.
I've got more to say, but I'll stop here so I don't get myself into more trouble.