whats with people?

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I had a customer walk in the shop today and ask if we do welding I said " yes sir what ya got?" He shows me this transmission pan that apeared to have been drug over rocks for a 100 miles with a HUGE hole in it. He said I don't want to buy a pan I just want the hole welded up. I told him just looking at it he had a minimum 65.00 and depending on difficulty of fabricating the patch panel it might be more.He told me I was crazy and left. I don't feel I am in the wrong here. I know i got at least an hour in cleaning and fabrication before I even plug in the tig. I am sorry but my boss doesn't pay me for freebees. Just a vent I realy don't get peoples mindset sometimes. Especially when he could have gone to a junk yard and bought one for less than the repair.
Reply:That's all part of being in business. Dealing with people is a pain sometimes. I see 2 or 3 of these a month.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:I own a plumbing shop.  I have to deal with all kinds.   I have some who are an absolute pleasure to deal with,Then there are the others...the best ones are on the weekends, especially 7-9 at night.  The same ones who have jacked with their problem all day Sat,all day Sun.  The same ones who want to dicker on my rates.  The same ones who want pity because they live in a home they can't afford.  The same ones who have 3 high priced new cars in the drive.   I am 2nd generation ownership.  I charge a fair rate( fair to my shop as well as the customer) and provide a high quality service.   If this wasn't true, my shop would not have made it since 1967.   Common sense is getting to be a non-commodity, and its a d@@n shame.  I feel your pain brother.  I will try to get off my soap box now.Miller BobcatHarris cutting outfitMiller spectrum 625 plasmaVariety of shopmade tools
Reply:Probably just checking his options. Also probably already knew what the bone yard wanted, if they could find one. Next time ask if they've checked the bone yard. Only gives two options pretty much. 1.) They, or you are, cheaper. 2.) It's a "hard to find" and the other guys don't have any available. Now the ball is back in their court.Funny how your time isn't worth anything. Wonder if he works for free?
Reply:People are the worst 'arnt they?...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:he probably thought welding was like slathering on elmers glue with two cardboard pieces except using electricity, lol.
Reply:I live in miami and i see that all the time. I have an enclosed trailer with a tig and mig welder, i go to the costumers. they dont know the business or the skill that is required to do a welding repair. They want free jobs or something you know...
Reply:Originally Posted by Oscarhe probably thought welding was like slathering on elmers glue with two cardboard pieces except using electricity, lol.
Reply:$65 isn't bad at all for that. I know some shops have minimums near that, even.Lincoln 175HD
Reply:My Ford Diesel P/U didn't want to start this morning.  +25F & light snow in Anchorage.Figured the batteries were going--winters are hard on them up here.  After work, I went by the local independent battery place that I have dealt with for years.  I was thinking on the way, that the terminals are possibly corroded.  Normally I'm pretty good about checking and repairing things like that--I just haven't checked them for way too long.  The guy in the shop just shook his head at me and proceeded to attempt to get them off.  All 4 bolts were shot, and the terminals pretty badly corroded.  He replaced the 4 bolts, cleaned the terminals, and checked the batteries.  Cost was $1.68 for the bolts, & $10 for min shop rate.  After noticing the 2 bloody knuckles he had, I handed him an extra $10--would have been a $20 if I had had one with me.  I'll be sending my coworkers and friends to his shop.Jerry in Anchorage
Reply:Originally Posted by tig dummyI had a customer walk in.....He told me I was crazy and left....
Reply:I always say "I ain't nailing boards together here, I'm melting metal together. It takes time."
Reply:Originally Posted by dubl_tYea but.....was he right?  Customers are always right, you know.
Reply:You can't fix stupid!Powcon 200SMPowcon 300STVictor Journeyman O/A & CartApex Disc SanderCraftsman Belt/Disc Combo SanderWayne Air Compressor3 Craftsman Drill PressesEmerson Horizontal BandsawPorter-Cable Porta-Band7 Angle Grinders4 Bench Grinders
Reply:Almost every time I talk with a customer, especially answering the phone I walk away with Randall's voice in my head.  "This job would be great..."---Foul language warning ---[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSS8tiy9Y3U[/ame]Last edited by Alex22; 10-18-2012 at 12:19 AM.
Reply:I am third generation at our shop. Family business since 1970 I pushed my dad to get updated to tig for months with no results. Finally I said the hell with it put  myself through tig school on my OWN DIME. Purchased a new dynasty 200 and all consumables on my OWN DIME to further benifit the company. I don't use it every day or sometimes weeks but when I do HE knows its makin money we wouldn't otherwise.So maybe knowing what it takes to properly perform a tig weld and the people who want an elmers glue job just rub me the wrong way. I approach every project as if it was for my mom. If it ain't good enough for her it ain't good enough for any one else.
Reply:Originally Posted by MusktMy Ford Diesel P/U didn't want to start this morning.  +25F & light snow in Anchorage. I handed him an extra $10--would have been a $20 if I had had one with me.  I'll be sending my coworkers and friends to his shop.
Reply:Originally Posted by joshuabardwellOne day, my car wouldn't start. It would crank, and just for a second, would fire, but then it would stall out. Repeatedly. So I had it towed in to a local shop. I wasn't 100% pleased with the shop I had been going to, so I tried a new one. When I went to pick it up, I asked what the problem had been. The guy said that there had been something screwy with the computer and it had activated "immobilizer" mode, which prevents the car from running. All he had to do was reset the code and everything was fine. "What do I owe you," I asked him. "Twenty bucks," he said. I figured that was more than a fair rate for his time--heck, I was expecting to pay at least a "diagnostic charge" of $70 or so. So I started fishing in my wallet, and he cracked up and waved me off. He was just kidding. It only took him a minute to figure it out, and he couldn't justify charging me anything for that.So, needless to say, he's been my mechanic ever since.
Reply:Originally Posted by tig dummyI am third generation at our shop. Family business since 1970 I pushed my dad to get updated to tig for months with no results. Finally I said the hell with it put  myself through tig school on my OWN DIME. Purchased a new dynasty 200 and all consumables on my OWN DIME to further benifit the company. I don't use it every day or sometimes weeks but when I do HE knows its makin money we wouldn't otherwise.So maybe knowing what it takes to properly perform a tig weld and the people who want an elmers glue job just rub me the wrong way. I approach every project as if it was for my mom. If it ain't good enough for her it ain't good enough for any one else.
Reply:Hi, just before I retired I worked for a guy doing welding amd machining.......many a time he got people coming into the shop with a small job....."can you just weld this up" type of job, took an hour to do, and paid $5....I kid thee not.....$5.After a while I encouraged him to make a policy of $50 for the first hour and then pro rata thereoff.All those $5 jobs suddenly vanished and he never got time wasters again.....all those $5 jobs are time wasters when they take an hour to prepare and finish.If a job did take 5 minutes for a simple weld, most times it was just $5, as a special concession, and I got to do them....my hourly rate then  in 2000 was $18 an hour.You really have to look at the investment you have in the business just to do a simple 5 min welding job, and the customer who isn't prepared to outlay the money to have a workshop, equipment and wages on tap instantly for his disposal, must expect to pay the price for someone who does.Ian.
Reply:or just like a customer coming in with a bolt broke off. wants a firm price on getting it out. had many of them walk off mad.
Reply:I just welded the cross tubes in a wood boiler for a guy who owns a saw mill and uses he boiler to best the kiln and shop, the tubes were thin as could be, wore from the inside out, so just firing up an arc it'd blow through. So all together I spent 13.5 hours running stainless overhead on a giant can of worms. 7.5 lbs of rod on 5 2x4 cross tubes. Charged him 200 the first 6.5-7 hours, which he gave me  a 50 dollar tip.  The second time 7.5-8 hours I charged him 250 because of where and how much I had to weld. He acted like because I charged him 250 I took advantage of him... So all in all it was 500 for 13.5 or so hours.....And I thought I was a fair price, so on the way home (70 miles away) I remember what a guy I used to work for told me." at the end of the day, if you can't do something, you have to pay someone who can...."And I forgot to mention he and someone else already tried to mig the cracks, with a 110 mig and the wrong wire, and I spent half the time grinding all the chicken crap back out to fix the cracks.Ps I hate grinding.I think it was fair, so next time someone says your crazy for that, just remember, they can replace it, repair it, have you make a competent repair, or have someone else repair it, who may not be qualified to do so. So don't let it bother you.Miller bobcat 225g  - spoolmatic 1Mm250 - 30a spoolMiller spectrum 375Thermal arc 95 Everlast Ex 250As the boiler turns, these are the days of our lives
Reply:Theres a lot of money to be made in little $20 jobs, especially if you've got nothing better to do.If its a real friend, Im happy to go plasma something off for free, because I know I can call in the favor later...For anyone else, my minimum is $20 or else its not worth opening up the shop, firing everything up, clearing off the workbench, figuring out what needs to be done, doing it, etc.To the OP, I don't think you were in the wrong one bit... Some things just arent worth messing with unless you're making money at it... And if someone doesnt want to pay you enough to make it worthwhile, sucks to be them. lol.[Account Abandoned 8/8/16 Please Do Not Attempt Contact Or Expect A Reply]. See you on YouTube! -ChuckE2009
Reply:Originally Posted by Lanse And if someone doesnt want to pay you enough to make it worthwhile, sucks to be them. lol.
Reply:If you are working for nothing you may as well go fishing, you will go broke doing either but one is a much better way to go broke!Cheers AndrewOriginally Posted by FODFAIf you are working for nothing you may as well go fishing, you will go broke doing either but one is a much better way to go broke!Cheers Andrew
Reply:I do lots of stuff for others for the hell of it.Because I can and they need a break...Other times it's the barter system..I get what I want they get what they want...But in the end as long as everyone is happy.......zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Originally Posted by crab fishermanI go broke when I don't go fishing...!...
Reply:I don't hate people, I hate the public.Disclaimer; "I am just an a$$hole welder, don't take it personally ."
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterI do lots of stuff for others for the hell of it.Because I can and they need a break...Other times it's the barter system..I get what I want they get what they want...But in the end as long as everyone is happy.......zap!
Reply:I don't know anything about welding rates but getting a highly skilled professional to do technical work seems like it would be a lot like having a mechanic work on your car, or having the furnace guy out or plumber or a machinist fab something. As a lay person with no other involvement except being a hobbiest I would say 90 dollars per hour would be a steal. All that ss welding! OMFingG! 200 dollars for a whole day? I think that's crazy! What am I missing guys? This is high end skilled craftsmanship. Somebody educate me?Miller diversion 165Miller mig 211Hypertherm pm 30Milwaukee 6230 14 inch chop sawMd 45 mag drill (RIP; fell on its head)New MD 45! Thanks to the esposa!Finally got an O/A setup