I have decided to hand my truck over to a mechanic since his price seems reasonable. I am looking to have her gutted, blasted, welded and primed. My question is to you all, what should i ask this company before i hand her over to make sure I'm getting the best quality work possible.
A few general questions to ask: Are they insured? Terms of payments, completion date, etc. How many different people will be working on it? Are you prepared for setbacks? Can you do the do***enting, notes, photos, etc.? Seems that a Divco is a specialized make, how much rot is there? In my experience, the cheap price to get you in the door may result in cost overruns in the long term. Ask for his references - then go and check out his past work. Good luck, Tom
The best thing to do is some research on this particular mechanic...see pictures of his previous work, speak to previous customers. Get everything I mean EVERYTHING in writing up front. Find out how much it is going to cost to get started and how often he wants to get paid for progress. Ask for regular updates and pictures of his work to make sure he isnt just shining you on to make more money. Ask him if it is okay to do random drop-ins to check progress in person. Make sure he has a clear understanding of your expectations and make sure you have a clear understanding of his expectations. Set a timeline and discuss possible setbacks and make sure you are both prepared for them... Sent via the internet courtesy of Al Gore
Pay him as the work progresses. If you get too far ahead with the payments he will probably stop and work on someone else's project. I have a friend currently in this situation. Charlie Stephens
thanks for all this feedback! any additions most welcomed! Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
My mechanic is a completely different person than the one I use to paint or sandblast my parts. You sure you're contracting the right person?
I may be using a middleman but fact is his price is pretty good for the gutting blasting any body work and then epoxy. any questions you think I should ask? Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Yep and have defined progress spots for when the payments are due. He will have to know that he has to have certain things done before the next payment is due and you will know that the work you are paying for has been done.
I'd break up the work. Ask for a price to blast the Divco, separate from other work. Then have him give you a price on the other work once it's blasted. That will ensure that he's really looking at everything that could reveal itself after blasting, and you and he are both protected from unexpected things, and he can more accurately quote the work. I'm not sure how anyone could give you a price that didn't include extra for the unexpected, unless it was after blasting. Just too many things that can hide under all the paint, rust, and dirt.
he asked my budget for the project up to painting with the epoxy ... I have him the number he agreed. I don't want any surprises and that's where I'm nervous. if the price spills over what we talked about I'm in for trouble. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
exactly. ^^^ why would you have a mechanic weld on your truck, do you call a carpenter to fix your plumbing?
The Jalopy Journal
