At least I dont charge $250 for two pieces of steel with 4 holes drilled in it. You call THAT fair? That's a blatent ripoff. I had two of mine, one-offs made for $80. The machinist said he would reproduce them in quantity for $50. (minimum of 20 orders).
You complain about people doing all the labor, but in fact, you do a little bit of the labor and rape people on the price. Take a good long stare into that mirror of knowledge my friend... Its probably been a while for you.