Cost to have part cnc cut?

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The machine shop we usually use recommended a place to have this cut. I dropped the print off and was told they would work up a price and let me know how much it would be. Today I get a call, they say it is done, it will cost $250??? Is this cost reasonable?Had I known the cost up front, before they cut it, I would have cut it myself. I am assuming they had alot of setup time in this...here is the part I wanted cut, 3/4 plate
Reply:Setup time would depend on what they had on the table at the time. I typically try to work in short run items when I have other parts of the same material so I dont have to swap material, tips, change setting etc. To pull a sheet and changeover, clean the rails and prep everything in a usual scenario is maybe 15-20 minutes. Drawing time and setup for lead ins lead outs would be maybe 10 minutes so worst case about a half hour total of setup time.  About 30-40 bucks worth of plate and then cut time. Im thinking I would have been about 125.00 out the door or so. The fact that they just went and ran it without an ok from you would have ticked me right off. "Anybody can talk $h!t behind a monitor, I let the quality of my work speak for itself"Lincoln Square Wave 255 and 355 Tig Lincoln 255 Power-Mig w/ spool gun Koike 5 x 10 CNC plasma Hyd-Mech DM-10 bandsaw Ineco QB-76 NC tube bender
Reply:I assume the material is part of the cost since you only mentioned dropping of drawings. If so, then it sounds pretty decent to me. If they cut that out of a 12" wide  x 30"  ( using 30" since I rounded up to the next full 6" length) long chunk of 3/4",  as shown, I'd make the material blank to be about 77 lbs. That would be roughly $3 / pound just for material. If they had to get a larger piece to cut down for your work, then the number starts to sound even better.I'd have a few issues with someone who just went ahead and cut parts and expected me to pay if I was just looking for an estimate and was up front about what I wanted done. If on the other hand you dropped off materials as well as prints, there might have been a miscommunication about whether this was to be quoted or done. I know quite a few places if you dropped off materials and prints, they' figure the job was to be done rather than quoted. Most deal with guys who need stuff ASAP, and playing phone tag usually ends up holding the job up and costing the customer more money in down time and bad relations when the  customer can't get a rush job out the door. Not the best business attitude, but these guys usually have a reputation of being "miracle workers" and being able to  crank out rush parts that save the day rather than simply doing production work. The general principle is that if you didn't want it done, you wouldn't have come to them. They usually have too much work to play with people who aren't serious and just want to kick tires..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Maybe this would be worth working into its own thread but I have used a service called Emachine shop that lets you download their proprietary software for drawing, you then draw your part or import a .dxf file that you have and it guides you on a series of questions that ask about tolerances, material, what process to make each "feature" with (i.e laser for cutting profile, mill to round the corners, punch press to make multiple small holes) etc etc. It is very user friendly and while I have never used it to order parts yet it gives an estimate on the spot. Very handy for getting a second opinion. The prices do seem a little bit higher than searching local shops but to have the ability to get a one off done or quote a job that needs outside vendors asap makes it an excellent tool. "Anybody can talk $h!t behind a monitor, I let the quality of my work speak for itself"Lincoln Square Wave 255 and 355 Tig Lincoln 255 Power-Mig w/ spool gun Koike 5 x 10 CNC plasma Hyd-Mech DM-10 bandsaw Ineco QB-76 NC tube bender
Reply:Appreciate the input everyone. I dropped off the print only, they had some small pieces of 3/4 plate on hand to use. I am going to pick up the parts, I have no choice but to pay I guess, i need the parts today. I am ok (but not happy) with the price, but I do not like knowing the cost after the fact...
Reply:one thing you will notice with emachineshop, or almost any kind of stuff like this really, is that just making one piece will cost a small fortune... the costs come way way down on each part when you start making a lot of them. for example I built something on emachine shop that if I just wanted on piece it would have cost me like $55, making 100 of them they winded up costing me only like $7 each...your paying a lot for the setup and intial work, if you only create one then yes it's going to be very expensive. when you consider the amount of equiptment and resources that go into something like this and consider that he place is in business to actually make money then you may realize that it's normal for a one off something like this to cost so muchmiller 330a bp TIGmiller dynasty 200DX TIGmillermatic 185 MIGthermal dynamics cutmaster 101 plasma cuttersnap-on YA5550 plasma cutterhypertherm powermax 30 plasma cutterbaileigh CS225 cold sawetc....
Reply:When people send me drawings, prints, measurements, etc. and ask for a quote, i usually try to find some leftover material (as to the customers spec) and cut the part. It helps get them in the door.... If not it was going to scrap anyway....
Reply:As stated eMachine Shop is a tool to be used to compare pricing and (at some point) I will give it a whirl. I just priced this part with the "economical 2d" settings and it comes out to about 271.00 for two parts. As with any job the qty and setup (not to mention geographical  location) has a huge factor in the pricing. 20 parts of the same on EMS would be about 202.00 per pair.  I usually do not charge for  material other than what we cut unless its so small as to be unusable. Overall I would say you were paying on the high end of fair pricing. "Anybody can talk $h!t behind a monitor, I let the quality of my work speak for itself"Lincoln Square Wave 255 and 355 Tig Lincoln 255 Power-Mig w/ spool gun Koike 5 x 10 CNC plasma Hyd-Mech DM-10 bandsaw Ineco QB-76 NC tube bender
Reply:Give this guy a shot, I had him machine a groove in a 8rib crank pulley, cost me $50 shipped everyone else wanted $125 plus.  He has his own business,[email protected], mfgquote.com used to be the go to place when it was free, the 8rib crank pulley I had made, started quoted at $800, got it down to $185, it wasn't easy to make.  Too bad it costs now, went through two local machinists, always late, no accurate, these are people with 20 plus years experience....its hard to find a good machinist, I have all the capability in my garage but no time so you must have a good alternate source for quick turn arounds.
Reply:Sumbitch!When I get there the guy tells me his plasma would not cut the plate, so he had someone hand cut it with a torch out of used material (had been painted black)... I am a dumbass for paying anyway, i needed to finish this thing up no later than tomorrow. I would loose more money than what I would have saved at a lower cost, since the guys I hired to do some work on my property will be starting Monday, and I have to pull up about 300 saplings before then.I get home and I have a message that because of the rain the work on my property will be delayed a few days, if I had only known before i picked this up! I would have been ok with the price if it had been machine cut, but the more I think about the way they did everything and the fact it was hand cut... I think i will call the guy and try to work out something, maybe a partial refund.
Reply:wow, that doesn't look like what I would consider a cnc machined part  big difference between setting up to and then cnc machining something VS just a torch cut plate man... that's not right...miller 330a bp TIGmiller dynasty 200DX TIGmillermatic 185 MIGthermal dynamics cutmaster 101 plasma cuttersnap-on YA5550 plasma cutterhypertherm powermax 30 plasma cutterbaileigh CS225 cold sawetc....
Reply:Definitely not a 250 dollar job. Used plate, torch cut , never bothered to quote. I would say 125.00 would be more than fair price, the weight per piece is about 12 1/2 pounds so as scrap it was probably only a 10 dollar bill. Unless it was an emergency job I would be ashamed to let something like that out of my shop. Definitely try to get a partial refund. "Anybody can talk $h!t behind a monitor, I let the quality of my work speak for itself"Lincoln Square Wave 255 and 355 Tig Lincoln 255 Power-Mig w/ spool gun Koike 5 x 10 CNC plasma Hyd-Mech DM-10 bandsaw Ineco QB-76 NC tube bender
Reply:WOW! MAN, if you already paid and walked out of there with it you might be SOL unless you paid with a check then go talk to the guy and  tell him how unhappy you are and give him the parts back and  you want a refund or the parts ran on a cnc plasma like you asked for in the quote and threaten to stop payment on the check if he gives you any flack! i would be pissed too ! . if it were me i wouldn't use them because every time i looked at them i would get pissed off all over again, forever ! and that's a long time. the way i look at having things done if i am going to pay someone to do something i have no problem paying but i want a top notch job done ... let us know what you do .. good luck chris
Reply:Finally got someone on the phone this morning (been calling since yesterday afternoon, no answer). I told the guy I wasnt happy and he needed to discount it or redo it on a machine, he said he would have the owner contact me because he did not have the authority to make that decision. Not suprisingly I have not heard from anyone and I cannot get anyone to answer the phone... I stopped the check.I talked to another shop I am more familiar with, and the owner quoted me $175 to cut it on their torch pattern machine out of new plate with a guarentee on the tolerances. I know it but always seem to forget... that getting in hurry leeds to screw ups, I can only blame myself.
Reply:Originally Posted by BACFinally got someone on the phone this morning (been calling since yesterday afternoon, no answer). I told the guy I wasnt happy and he needed to discount it or redo it on a machine, he said he would have the owner contact me because he did not have the authority to make that decision. Not suprisingly I have not heard from anyone and I cannot get anyone to answer the phone... I stopped the check.I talked to another shop I am more familiar with, and the owner quoted me $175 to cut it on their torch pattern machine out of new plate with a guarentee on the tolerances. I know it but always seem to forget... that getting in hurry leeds to screw ups, I can only blame myself.
Reply:Mick,If that other shop had had your PM85, he could have cut it.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:man i would be ashamed to let that walk out of my shop and there is NO way i would charge so much for it. i bet the owner will call you asap now that the check is stopped haha. i understand that a lot of shops do the job then just bill you but 250 for that crap is unacceptable.
Reply:That part on our waterjet wouldn't have been more than 150
Reply:66 lbs @ .55 =$36.30  2 Hrs @ $75.00 =$150.00 10%  OH 15% profit = $235.67  Seems ok to me .
Reply:Originally Posted by Pavinsteelman66 lbs @ .55 =$36.30  2 Hrs @ $75.00 =$150.00 10%  OH 15% profit = $235.67  Seems ok to me .
Reply:Originally Posted by BACSumbitch!... I think i will call the guy and try to work out something, maybe a partial refund.
Reply:Originally Posted by BCRDI know this is after the fact but...Whining about money and a refund (or partial refund) on $250 seems piddling. Having an unhappy customer however, is not piddling.Personally, I would have bit the bullet (yes, $100 or $200 hurts me too, but I think its unprofessional to whine about money, or to stop a check), and let the shop (including the owner) know exactly what I thought about their quality. Whether they got another chance would depend on their response. Maybe they'd offer you a refund, or the next one free or discounted or something.When costs rise to thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, then money becomes a big deal to be renegotiated or brought to claims court. Anybody agree or disagree?Jason
Reply:I'd say keep it and call it a learning experience.You saw it. You knew how it was cut and what it was cut from.  You still paid for it.That's your fault.  Sure, you could have sent someone to get it that didn't know any better, but you didn't.  You picked it up and paid for it yourself.You should have turned it down on the spot if you weren't happy.  At that point what could they do?  Nothing.   Now they've got your money.  At the very least, they've got a check that shows you were willing to pay for it.  Now that you stopped payment, I'd call it theft.I'm all for being fair and keeping the customer happy.  I make it a point to ask if (insert job here) is what they wanted, or makes them happy before I ask for money.  Once they hand over the money, the deal is done.  No take backs.Last edited by Boostinjdm; 05-08-2012 at 12:57 AM.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Originally Posted by BoostinjdmI'd say keep it and call it a learning experience.You saw it. You knew how it was cut and what it was cut from.  You still paid for it.That's your fault.  Sure, you could have sent someone to get it that didn't know any better, but you didn't.  You picked it up and paid for it yourself.You should have turned it down on the spot if you weren't happy.  At that point what could they do?  Nothing.   Now they've got your money.  At the very least, they've got a check that shows you were willing to pay for it.  Now that you stopped payment, I'd call it theft.I'm all for being fair and keeping the customer happy.  I make it a point to ask if (insert job here) is what they wanted, or makes them happy before I ask for money.  Once they hand over the money, the deal is done.  No take backs.
Reply:Originally Posted by BoostinjdmI'd say keep it and call it a learning experience.You saw it. You knew how it was cut and what it was cut from.  You still paid for it.That's your fault.  Sure, you could have sent someone to get it that didn't know any better, but you didn't.  You picked it up and paid for it yourself.You should have turned it down on the spot if you weren't happy.  At that point what could they do?  Nothing.   Now they've got your money.  At the very least, they've got a check that shows you were willing to pay for it.  Now that you stopped payment, I'd call it theft.I'm all for being fair and keeping the customer happy.  I make it a point to ask if (insert job here) is what they wanted, or makes them happy before I ask for money.  Once they hand over the money, the deal is done.  No take backs.exactly right, but he paid and took the part which means he accepted it even if the contract was changed. now if he took it home and was told afterward that it was torch cut then theres a problem. but by him paying and accepting it knowing what was done, thats his bad. now i honestly think this is a learning experience. of course the shop is a pos for doing that to a customer but theres not law against being a hack. also, if you stopped payment on the check, i highly doubt they will be willing to work out a refund now but wonlt hurt to try.
Reply:It took them twice as long to lay it out and torch cut it than it would to cnc plasma cut it, or manual plasma cut it..  I think they bent you over..tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:Sounds like the shop blew it, but the time for you to decide whether to pay is when you pick up the material.  I know it sucks, but it isn't right to stop payment at this point.I have made similar mistakes from time to time - use it to remind you to do your part of the job by checking the goods before accepting them.As a small business man, if this were my screw up, I would like the opportunity to make this right - but I really need to hear about it while you are there so we can talk it through and reach an agreement.Hobart LX235Victor 250 Oxy-Acetylene Rig (welding and cutting)Bobcat 773F-350, 1999, 4x4, 16' 10K# trailerOutdoor Wood Burner - 10 cords/year
Reply:Sounds like you know now not to be in a rush. It's always causes problems. If you did pay by check have it cancelled. If they call to complain, treat them to a nice glass full of phuk-off.200amp Air Liquide MIG, Hypertherm Plasma, Harris torches, Optrel helmet, Makita angle grinders, Pre-China Delta chop saw and belt sander, Miller leathers, shop made jigs etc, North- welders backpack.
Reply:For those that are interested, I still have not been able to get the owner to call me back. Only person I have talked to does not have the authority to do anything. I will drop by there this afternoon and see if the owner is around. I am still willing to pay if I have to, but not the full price after getting home and finding out the part is out of spec by 3/8" in several places, not straight and square. Oh, and I stopped the check because the owner would not talk to me, not because I didnt want to pay. We are both wrong, the shop and I, maybe we can both meet in the middle to resolve this. Either way it goes I will have my checkbook with me.
Reply:I can understand the OP - I have done this too.  You're in a pinch, get something done, pick it up, and then realize wtf.Once I had a cast aluminum oil pan dropped off to a performance shop to get an AN fitting welded on in a very clearly marked spot.  I went to pick the pan up to find a 1/2 NPT fitting screwed in.  Sigh.  I could have tapped it!  Dude quoted $50 to weld.  I picked it up with a $50 invoice.  Was it worth it to argue that I wanted it welded because its thin and could leak?  In my case, no.In the OP's case, he picked it up figuring hey maybe this will work out.  Got home, realized just how short the shop cut him, and now he's reconsidering.  I find that perfectly acceptable.  Happens all the time to me - go pick up powder coated parts or something only to find that upon closer inspection or realization after dwelling on it that I don't think it's what I agreed to.Good luck working something out!Miller Diversion 180Hobart Handler 140 (Soon to be replaced with Miller 211?)Miller Spectrum 625 Extreme
Reply:Not returning your phone call is bad bussiness.I would suggest your next move is to write a letter, make a copy, send it certified mail. Start a paper trail just in case you go to court. And also you look like you mean bussiness.Looks like you wrote him a bad check. You better CYA.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:Originally Posted by superwelderexactly right, but he paid and took the part which means he accepted it even if the contract was changed. now if he took it home and was told afterward that it was torch cut then theres a problem. but by him paying and accepting it knowing what was done, thats his bad. now i honestly think this is a learning experience. of course the shop is a pos for doing that to a customer but theres not law against being a hack. also, if you stopped payment on the check, i highly doubt they will be willing to work out a refund now but wonlt hurt to try.
Reply:Originally Posted by Oldiron2His having taken and paid doesn't change anything. If he'd had a long conversation and discussed all the differences from the original order, then still accepted the product, it might be arguable; even then, since the dimensions were incorrect, that fact wasn't obvious, and the incorrect size hadn't been agreed to when he paid, that fact alone would be legal grounds for his not paying.One more point is worth mentioning. Because the OP had his own time limit, he was under duress when he suddenly found the "CNC-cut part, which he hadn't even authorized yet, to be both overcharged and poorly made. He didn't accept it willingly, but did so only because he thought he needed it immediately and had no other choice. A court would take that into serious consideration.As for the shop refusing to compromise if the check is stopped, that is grounds for the shop loosing it all (and being sued for the lost time and the inconvenience it caused the OP). By trying to work out a reasonable refund, the OP has shown good faith, while the shop hasn't and thus deserves nothing.
Reply:well its a little hard to say that its ok to stop payment on the check only because you still have the parts. basically you had the parts made and didn't pay for them. i wonder if the owner could do anything legally. anyway, he def. should have called you by now and like bert said, if he couldn't do it the right way, the best thing would have been to give the parts back or refer you to someone else.
Reply:Looks to me like the shop and you handled all of this poorly. They shouldn't have made it with out you go ahead. You shouldn't picked it up and paid for it if it is not correct, but you did I think you shouldn't stop the check. I don't see any tolerances on your drawing.
Reply:I do not know if it is over yet, but I dropped off the jaws to the guy running the shop. He asked me first thing if I had heard from the owner, I told him no... but here are your parts back, if the owner wants to call me fine but if he does not thats fine too. He aslo told me the owner had received both messages from him to call me, the first last Friday morning.I was given the choice to have the parts recut, but was told it would be by hand again and that it would "probably be identical to the part already cut". On further discussion I was told the price I was charged did not include materials, only the price to cut.Anyway I picked up the jaws I had cut at another shop, it was a pleasure meeting and talking to these people compared to the first shop. I took a tape measure and square with me to check it before I left with it, all tolerances were within 1/16", cut on a 10' x 40' cnc plasma table. Thanks for everyones honest opinion. I was willing to pay them, but the owner has refused to talk to me... so screw 'em, I got some welding to do now.
Reply:so how much did the 2nd set of jaws cost you?tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:Originally Posted by brucerso how much did the 2nd set of jaws cost you?
Reply:Originally Posted by BAC$175 total, using new plate. I changed the design a little, made it more rounded, but I took a .dxf file with the drawings to the guy and he used my file to cut it.
Reply:When I found a google sketchup to .dxf converter that worked I changed the design. Here is what I picked up today...
Reply:looks MUCH better.
Reply:I'll tell you what, that is a nice cutting job.For something done that well, that is a good price too.Miller TrailBlazer 301Miller 12rc feederMiller ShopmasterMiller 22a feederPlasmaCam CNC TableHypertherm 45 cutterDrills, saws, blast cabinets etc.
Reply:Originally Posted by Oldiron2His having taken and paid doesn't change anything. If he'd had a long conversation and discussed all the differences from the original order, then still accepted the product, it might be arguable; even then, since the dimensions were incorrect, that fact wasn't obvious, and the incorrect size hadn't been agreed to when he paid, that fact alone would be legal grounds for his not paying.One more point is worth mentioning. Because the OP had his own time limit, he was under duress when he suddenly found the "CNC-cut part, which he hadn't even authorized yet, to be both overcharged and poorly made. He didn't accept it willingly, but did so only because he thought he needed it immediately and had no other choice. A court would take that into serious consideration.As for the shop refusing to compromise if the check is stopped, that is grounds for the shop loosing it all (and being sued for the lost time and the inconvenience it caused the OP). By trying to work out a reasonable refund, the OP has shown good faith, while the shop hasn't and thus deserves nothing.It's good to keep that highlighted advise in mind. It's easier then fixing the problem later.  I agree.