Shop pricing....

Man the hardest part of trying to run a shop is pricing shit. I've never had to pay for work so all my prices seem borderline high, but I hear people charging 3 and 4 times the price I do. I really think i've lost a couple customers cause my prices were to low. So I got a question...what is a reasonable price for certain work on trucks. Both from people who have paid shops to do it, or from shops who are charging this to do it.

1. Install a weld in notch.2. Install inner fenders or tubs.3. Round bar a set of fenders.4. Sheetmetal a bed, fully sheetmetaled smoothed and tubbed. 5. Tub the firewall for larger wheels. 6. Shave tail lights. 7. Install skin.

All this is just metal work. I don't bond so well with bondo. Ussually end up having more on me than on the truck. Help a brotha out and share some prices.

I think the best thing to do is figure out what you need to make hourly, then figure out roughly what the shop costs you to run hourly, including misc supplies and all that stuff. Add the 2 together and then base your quotes on that number. So if you figure 4 hours for a notch, quote 4 hours. Then be clear that anything extra you run into like seized box bolts and shit like that is hourly on top of your intitial quote.

Pricing stuff is a shitty deal. People also base a lot of what they THINK they should be paying on where the work is being done. We work out of a fully equipped shop with a hoist, all the tools we need to do a 'professional' job. But because the shop is behind my buddies house, people think they shouldnt have to pay 'professional' rates.

^^^^ i agree, but what you also have to understand, where your located at, may cost someone double in rent or maybe even half that.

What they tell all owners of a business to figure out how they dont go bankrupt is take your weekly base pay that will REASONABLY pay your bills (what you need to get by) then what your cost materials in, and divide by the ACTUAL aamount if TIME YOU want to spend working that week. Or for it to figure out your hourly rate for the people that bring their parts. Tell a customer that you bring the parts, i charge this per hour.

To be honest a lot of pricing has to do with where you are located (within the country). I've heard of shops in the south doing bags and a bodydrop for $3500!!

We have very few reputable shops in the North East. We have a handful of people who don't run shops, but do the work in their garage or something similar. You just have to be prepared to shell out a little more up here. Bags and a bodydrop I can see running from $5-10k (depending on backhalves or crazy tubework etc.).

Originally posted by iLLblazer



We work out of a fully equipped shop with a hoist, all the tools we need to do a 'professional' job. But because the shop is behind my buddies house, people think they shouldnt have to pay 'professional' rates.

Only if I did...my life would be alot easier. It wouldn't take me 5 guys and 2 hours to get a cab pulled off a truck. What is it like to pull a cab by pushing a button......is that heaven. LOL Thanks for the input guys. The pricing and money aspect of the shop life have been the hardest for me to handle so far. That and how to handle working on friends trucks. So far it been fun and very exhausting. Working full-time and runnin a shop full time sucks. But hopefully one of the two takes off here in the next year or so. Thaks again.

^ It is heaven. Did it with a Blazer tub at my uncles shop years ago.

Now that I have a little bit of room, I am considering a lift. I'll still probably work on the ground a lot. But at least I can store two cars in one spot.

Charge by the hour on everything!!! You run into problems on everything and a quote is based on a job that goes perfectly. I have been doing hourly jobs for the past year and no one has had a problem yet.

I also charge hourly and its made everything a hell of alot easier on me. Also when i went to this system i found my work improved cause i knew i could take my time doing it instead of keeping a clock running in the back of my head and rushing things so i didnt loose money. I also dont give quotes for materials since steel has risen 39% in the area since april. IMO it keeps both parties happy and avoids alot of drama like we see so much of nowadays. I post daily progress on projects so the owners see the work being done as it happens, if they see something they dont like they can get ahold of me and the problem will be adressed before its "covered up" by a floor or bodywork. If they run out of money or are unhappy with the timefrain i have their truck they can simply come get it and the bill stops there. No "he owes me money" or "he didnt do this" arguements. I honestly dont see why the big shops dont show build threads cause more ofen than not its the big shops work underneath a ride thats scary. Sounds shady to some clients but if they dont want me to do it my way theres somone right behind them that does.

if this isnt one of my biggest problems, then it is friends trucks. i know most of my pricing is on the low side but i love helpn people out and seein their excitement when they finally have a bagged ride at like 35 with two kids and a mortgage. love bein self employed and enjoyn work, def long hrs and time away from my kids but gotta say it was nice to finally leave my job. three yrs of being a paramedic, shop owner, and 120hrs a week....i was spent.

if this isnt one of my biggest problems, then it is friends trucks. i know most of my pricing is on the low side but i love helpn people out and seein their excitement when they finally have a bagged ride at like 35 with two kids and a mortgage. love bein self employed and enjoyn work, def long hrs and time away from my kids but gotta say it was nice to finally leave my job. three yrs of being a paramedic, shop owner, and 120hrs a week....i was spent.