Thread: Are your capabilities widely known?

My neighbour must think I'm the local Kennards Hire agent. One day I'll explain to him that Kennards charge for the use of their tools.

I have mixed feelings about this. I don't have much need of favours, but it would be nice to think I could recoup some costs by putting the word out and doing repair jobs etc. But my previous experience of doing business in a small town (gardening) is people seem to think you're a crook if you charge properly. Far better to do your business further from home. Plus I have one neighbour who would be on the war path if I was known to be running a business. So more hassle than it's worth I reckon.

The security risk is very very low here, and the majority of my lightweight stuff is cheap & cheerful.

Power tools are an easy target for thieves, About 22 years I was talking to a cop who said a engraved license number was as good as a receipt, and from around that time on I have always engraved my power tools.
Back then power tool prices where expensive as I remember my Makita compound mitre saw costing $995.00, but these days things have come down in price so thieves wont get as much. I think the target has turned to laptops and electrical devices that can fetch good prices.

Dave

Originally Posted by Gerbilsquasher

play a lot of AC/DC very loud on the shed stereo

Now you're talking, the smell of lacquer thinners in the air, angle grinder cranked up and a bit of acca-dacca...

Regards
Ray

PS, I keep pretty much to myself, but don't especially mind visitors, now and then, the rellies have been trained to bring VB when they want a job done, got a pretty fair security system touch wood. so far so good...

Ha ha! You been watching me?

I'm not sure that anyone that entered my shed without an escort would ever make it back out again, I likely wouldnt find them for months .
Most around here know I have "stuff" in my shed but most dont have a clue what it does. There are a few guys I'm ummmmmm noncommittal with due to one way traffic, but mostly they are ok. Maybe its when I do charge I dont charge enough! lol

Stuart

The amount of work I do for other people seems to have dried up since I started charging for the privilege.. Some people think I am the town bike.... There to be taken for a free ride...

When they spend tens of thousands on their workshop they might see my side of the story...

Reminds me of a story my mates dad (who is a machinist) told me.
He moved in close to me and his shed can be seen from the road, one day he had a guy open the gate and come in with a mower part he needed machining as a favour, and because he seen he had the gear he thought he could do it.
My mates day said fine it should take me about an hour and the guy was ready to leave.
My mates dad then said the mower is over there and while I am doing it you can mow my lawn. The guy stepped back and said your kidding right, which he replied you want me to work on your part for an hour while your at the pub or something relaxing? The guy said not to worry about and left with his part.

I thought that was a great way of getting someone to pay on the spot with no coin involved.

Dave

I forgot to mention he is in his early 60's and has had this sort of thing go on for many years.

Dave

Well if any of you are located in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, I'm a stringed instrument maker and I'm often trying to get various bits of machining done close to home and I'm more than happy to pay good cash for your time

Seriously, with most places having large cnc gear now, it's increasingly difficult to find anyone who wants to do small or one off jobs.

I think most guys here are talking about complete strangers walking into your yard and asking for favours. Being on the forum already gets your foot into the door from a lot of members.

Also when you ask on the forum no one is under any obligation to do the job, and it's up to them if they want to reply. From what I have seen everyone that has asked has got help.

Dave

My worksop opens up onto the street and I'm known locally as "the nutter who builds cars".

I live in a fairly affluent area and I probably have the only MIG or lathe within a 1km radius.

Heaps of people stop by for a chat and to ask how things are progressing but to date no one has asked me to make/fix/machine anything.

I don't think people in my suburb fix anything themselves, they just pay for it to be done.

My shop is 200m from the road, it's a rough gravel driveway and has no signs or even a letter box. Neither the house nor the shop is visible from the road, and that's how I like it.

I solved the 'favours' issue a long time ago. If I *offer* to do something, I don't expect anything in return - I didn't have to offer. If it's one of my neighbours with machinery (tractors etc) and they're stuck, fine, they keep an eye out when I'm away. What goes around comes around

Others get short shrift. Basically I tell them that I expect them to work on things for me in return for my using my tooling to do things for them - painting, cutting my weeds (bracken), other stuff I have little time or interest in doing that doesn't require anything except willingness to get a bit tired & dirty.

Amazing how they find other ways of getting what they need done.

People who try to guilt-trip me with comments on how lucky I am to have all that machinery while they have nothing get really short shrift. Especially those known to take overseas holidays instead of buying tools.

Needless to say I *never* allow anyone to use my tools, exceptions made at my sole discretion for people who have their own machines but needing something a bit bigger for a one-off etc.

As for the sculptor neighbour, my suggestion would be to talk about how much you'd like a stainless and bronze water feature for your front garden and how you'd appreciate his supplying it for you as a gesture of good neighbourness. Might give him the hint......

PDW

A judge working a double-homicide case tells the defendant, “You’re charged with beating your wife to death with a hammer.”

“You b%*&@#d!” yells a voice from the back of the courtroom.

“You’re also charged with killing your mother-in-law with a hammer,” says the judge.

“B%*&@#d!” the same person yells.

The judge addresses the man sitting in the back of the courtroom.“Sir, one more outburst and I’ll charge you with contempt.”

“I’m sorry, Your Honor,” says the man. “But I’ve been this b%*&@#d’s neighbor for 10 years, and every time I asked to borrow a hammer, he said he didn’t have one.”