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i got a question for you owner operators. other than the planned jobs and industrial stuff. what do you do when someone calls with an emergency gotta have it now, and i'll pay double premium for it job. do you keep scrap iron on the truck, do you question the person to death and figure ok, i need this and that piece of iron. i keep some short lengths of steel on my truck. like 1/4 angle and 1/4 channel and some 1/4 and 1/2 plate. the structural i keep some 4 ft lengths and some 2x4 plates and some strip steel. i also keep some ar400 in 24x24 1/4 and even some 16ga and 18ga cold rolled galv. well, i gotta call today and left the house around 6pm. btw, most of my work is dropped off at the house and i weld it up on the weekend and during the week after work. anyways, this call was an hour away on a shrimp boat. the only welder in town was backed up and he told the fella to call me. so i quote the guy my hourly rate and told him i get paid for drive time too, plus he boots the consumable bill. i mean i only quoted $45 hr on a fri at 6. but i got a soft heart for the commercial shrimpers here in SC. well i get there and he's got some kinda makeshift outrigger thing. i tell him i can get into place and scab it up and guaranteed the work to last till end of season. then we/ he or someone can go in there and replace the whole pipe. this fool throws a hissy and says he wants it replaced now. i told him i don't carry that kinda of stock on my truck and 7 pm on a fri theres nowhere to get 2 in sch 80 pipe. it would have required a 20 ft stick. well i call my friend, the town welder and ask him if he has any pipe, he says no, all out etc. the boat captain starts ranting and raving about what kinda welder comes to a job without the proper tools. i told him, well i gotta a welder, a hood, o/a setup, mig and a plasma, with rods and wire and gas for all. well we hagled and i told him o could weld up the pipe, yeah that was easy since he waited til it snapped in two, and the last piece held together of course was bananna peeled back almost an inch. well, from 7 to 10 i tack up beat and bang and fill. i ended up scabbing the pipe with every piece of angle i had on the truck. i hope like hell it keeps the pipe from flexing on the weld, cause i know the metal was fatigued and stressed. should an emergency welder have to tote a flatbed ful of iron to the job or am i just going about this the wrong way?"Retreat hell, were just fighting in the other direction"Miller Trailblazer 302, Extreme 12 VS, Dimension 400, Spectrum 375, HF 251D-1, Milermatic 251 w/ spoolgun  Hypertherm 1000Lincoln sp 1702000 F-450 to haul it
Reply:The second he started giving me crap the conversation would have ended and Forest gump would have been shrimping with his scuba gear. But thats just me.Drivesector Hobart Handler 140Hobart Handler 180Ready Welder 2Hobart Air Force 400Airco Stinger 225Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most."OZZY"
Reply:I'm not an owner operator or even a professional welder, but in my opinion, if the guy wanted you to actually build a whole new contraption for his boat he should have mentioned that you will need some materials and give you a rough idea of what you would need.If that was me that went out on a friday night to do a repair and the guy started throwing a hissy fit and flipping out on me, I would of told him to have a nice day, got back in my truck and went home for a cold beer.Most mobile welding rigs that I've seen are just one ton pickups.they usually have a welder, filler, torches, grinder, a vise and some protective gear and thats about it. I don't think you would be expected to carry around a mobile steel warehouse as well.If you want to avoid a situation like this in the future when someone calls, I suggest inquiring about the scope of the job and if it is just a welding repair orif it is fabrication that will require materials to complete the job.Just my opinion.
Reply:I bet dollars to donuts you will have an arguement about payment.  I have seen several of my employers over the years have to deal with this kind of attitude.  You are not a steel supplier.
Reply:well lotech, i called my friend who recommended me for the job on the way home. he's gonna foot the bill and then bill the captain. seeing as how he is the only welder it town i guess he can do it that way. but i told him he should throw in a 12 pack for the hassle."Retreat hell, were just fighting in the other direction"Miller Trailblazer 302, Extreme 12 VS, Dimension 400, Spectrum 375, HF 251D-1, Milermatic 251 w/ spoolgun  Hypertherm 1000Lincoln sp 1702000 F-450 to haul it
Reply:Just before telling him to **** off, I would have sung him a song. It goes something like this:"Row, row, row your boat...you jackass!!"He should have been offering you the cold beer for coming out at 6:00PM on a Friday evening.Some people have a tenuous grip on reality.Dave
Reply:I keep alot of stuff "in stock" I always aks about what the job is. If I get a call to fix an excavator bucket I usually bring some plate. If the person calling can't tell me what I need I charge then for going out to look, and going back to get stock. As you said, it depends on if they are a "good guy" or not. My soft heart will kill me, but thats why the GF is in charge of billing and finance. The beer/food on a late night call, or weekend job can make or break the job as well as the customers attitide.Disclaimer; "I am just an a$$hole welder, don't take it personally ."
Reply:Originally Posted by TozziWeldingI keep alot of stuff "in stock" I always aks about what the job is. If I get a call to fix an excavator bucket I usually bring some plate. If the person calling can't tell me what I need I charge then for going out to look, and going back to get stock. As you said, it depends on if they are a "good guy" or not. My soft heart will kill me, but thats why the GF is in charge of billing and finance. The beer/food on a late night call, or weekend job can make or break the job as well as the customers attitide.
Reply:He'd definatly pay dearly!DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:[QUOTE=Some people have a tenuous grip on reality.Dave[/QUOTE]  That's about right!   Unless you are billing your business as "all phases of on-site fabrication and repairs, on call 24-7", the customer (I'll use this term loosely) shouldn't have any reason to expect that kind of service. Hell, most shops would have told him to bring it down and check back in a few days. He's just ****ed because he knew he needed the repair months ago and didn't want to shell out and down the rig, now he's blaming Murphy and you.   Don't beat yourself up about it. If you have the storage and want to keep a better selection of stock on hand, by all means do so, but DO NOT feel obligated.If you don't have the time to do it right, then you definitely don't have the time to do it over.
Reply:the funniest part of the whole process, is all the guy needed to do was find a piece of pipe and drill a whole in both ends. on end was bolted to a plate on the boat and the other end hangs over the side with a cable to the large mast and block and tackle under it. hehehe, thats ok, hope the weld breaks in a storm. well, i shouldn't say that."Retreat hell, were just fighting in the other direction"Miller Trailblazer 302, Extreme 12 VS, Dimension 400, Spectrum 375, HF 251D-1, Milermatic 251 w/ spoolgun  Hypertherm 1000Lincoln sp 1702000 F-450 to haul it