What would be a fair price?

[42chevy]

I am thinking of putting a '47 Chevy truck together for an older couple in my shop. I would be changing it to a V8 and rewiring at the least. I know how to do the work but do not know a fair price to charge. I am thinking $30 an hour plus materials, does that sound fair? I would be using my welder, compressor etc obviously. The truck is very solid but needs alot of work, I may end up replacing glass and prepping the body also. I could use the money but want to be fair.

 

[LUCKY DEVIL 13]

I am thinking of putting a '47 Chevy truck together for an older couple in my shop. I would be changing it to a V8 and rewiring at the least. I know how to do the work but do not know a fair price to charge. I am thinking $30 an hour plus materials, does that sound fair? I would be using my welder, compressor etc obviously. The truck is very solid but needs alot of work, I may end up replacing glass and prepping the body also. I could use the money but want to be fair.

That is very reasonable I get between $15- $30 an hour for fab work and other stuff

 

[Willowbilly3]

About right, I also get $25-30 an hour but fly under the radar with no books or insurance since it is just part time seasonal income for me. Local dealerships are at around $75

 

[42chevy]

Good to know/ I want to be fair. It is extra money for me also.

 

[Old Iron]

Yep pretty much on the money for just extra work besides u get to play and be paid

 

[Tripper]

Here peeps charge $50-$60 hr. You might wanna give them a heads up as to how many hrs. all that might take & collect on a regular schedule.

BoB

 

[goose-em]

$30 and hour is pretty darn cheap IMHO. If you were running a shop you would need to take overhead and all into account. If that were 50% of the $30 then you are paying yourself $15 before taxes.

However it may be a fair price.

This is what I would do:

Have them open an escrow account at the local bank and deposit X amount of dollars in.

You keep track of everything, bolts, nuts, washers, cleaner, hours (typically in 15 minute increments) and by everything I mean EVERYTHING!!!!

With the escrow account you know the money is there and you can withdraw it as you need it. When you do take money out, say weekly, you also send them an accounting of what you did the week before and make sure you don't take more out than you actually spent/earned.

Good shops will keep track of everything. A friend of mine had a custom bike built recently, he was required to put an estimated amount into and escrow account, they estimated high. They would send him an accounting down to the smallest items, tack cloths, etc. along with how much they had withdrawn. Once the bike was ready for pickup they had already been paid and he had a little leftover. He was very happy with the experience and was able to keep track of how far along they were based on the accounting that he received.

Never give a firm price as you will miss something and lose money, work on time and materials and you will be okay.

 

[Tripper]

You keep track of everything, bolts, nuts, washers, cleaner, hours (typically in 15 minute increments) and by everything I mean EVERYTHING!!!!

Agreed! Most shops I know use software made especially for car repair shops. It's incredible how much parts can add up to, plus ordering & picking them up although a lot of the parts places here deliver to businesses! Just my 2¢.

BoB

 

[klink]

For 10 years I did sheetmetal work out of my little hobby shop... then one day a "customer" wasn't happy. I bent over backwards to make the guy happy and by happy I mean about $2500.00 real dollars out of my pocket to a "real" body shop (that never finished the work). Then the township showed up, seems they had a concern I was running an automotive repair shop in my backyard. THEN the IRS sent me a letter... I don't do anything anymore for anyone but really close friends and I MISS IT! I loved doing side work for people, good service for a good price made me feel good. I know countless people will have all kinds of advice on how to "avoid" this type of situation, but there isn't any advice that is correct, even from me. Just so you know, escrow accounts offer more protection for the person depositing than the person withdrawing. They will have to approve every withdrawal. $30 an hour does sound cheap though, but if you're doing time AND materials $30 and hour isn't bad. I normally gave a firm labor price and had them buy most of the material. Have Fun and keep it simple.

 

[sgtpontiac]

I am shocked that the bureau of Automotive Regulation

For 10 years I did sheetmetal work out of my little hobby shop... then one day a "customer" wasn't happy. I bent over backwards to make the guy happy and by happy I mean about $2500.00 real dollars out of my pocket to a "real" body shop (that never finished the work). Then the township showed up, seems they had a concern I was running an automotive repair shop in my backyard. THEN the IRS sent me a letter... I don't do anything anymore for anyone but really close friends and I MISS IT! I loved doing side work for people, good service for a good price made me feel good. I know countless people will have all kinds of advice on how to "avoid" this type of situation, but there isn't any advice that is correct, even from me. Just so you know, escrow accounts offer more protection for the person depositing than the person withdrawing. They will have to approve every withdrawal. $30 an hour does sound cheap though, but if you're doing time AND materials $30 and hour isn't bad. I normally gave a firm labor price and had them buy most of the material. Have Fun and keep it simple.

Didn't come calling too...... you can please some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time.....and some.....you can never please..... Being a tech and a service director for nearly 25 years prior to LE full time, I learned that pretty darn quickly.....no matter how far you try to go to please them....you never get there....!!

 

[biggeorge]

I like the Idea of having them pick up all the materials. It will save you time and money.Plus your not taking money out of your pocket and then waiting for them to pay for parts. just a thought.