WWYD? Repair way more than estimate

[ShaleniFarm]

Hello All,
What would you do?
I took an old log splitter in for repair to a hyd shop. I got an estimate of $265. My wife got a call and they said, come get it, $265. When I went to get it, they said $497!! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

The person who gave me the estimate wasn't there. The guy who called said he never said $265. So I left. I called the guy who gave the estimate. He said, it needed different parts, I thought you wanted it fixed no matter what. He came down to $420. Still too much. /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

Of course, I don't have it written down. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Don't know what to do. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif I want to tell him to undo what he did and give it back.

Thanks,
Neil.

 

[JJT]

If the splitter is worth $420 you're stuck, if it's not, simply abandon it. I'd pay the bill and send the owner a letter expressing your displeasure and never go back.

Sorry to hear you got burned, but this is a fairly common ploy. If I know and trust the guy I still do business on a handshake, all others must be in writing.

 

[ShaleniFarm]

Thanks.
Not sure what it is worth. I couldn't sell it for $420.
I doubt the owner cares, if they do this.

I should have got a write up. I will the next time.

I'll sleep on it until monday.

Have a good one.

 

[rambler]

This doesn't help, but my BiL had the fuek shutoff break on his little 15hp Kubota. Called the dealer, had them pick it up, fix, & return.

Was $90 to fix.

Was $300 for the pickup & delivery. Of a tiny tractor, less than 6 mile trip.

Wow.

--->Paul

 

[George2615]

Wow $300 for pickup & delivery and only 6 miles away. A good reason to own your own trailer. Would not take too many trips to the dealer to warrant a trailer purchase. The fuel shutoff price is probably close since most are built into the filter assy. and sold as a unit plus the cost of labor.

As for Neil there's not much you can do if you didn't get the estimate in writing. I guess you will have to decide if the splitter is worth that much.

 

[JerryG]

on it. I know what I would do. I would be looking for a different place for my business. If it was going to be that much over the estimate, they should have spoke with you about it before doing the work. $300 is absolutely absurd for 6 miles. I would have been too ashamed to even give you a ticket for that amount.

 

[JimR]

Look at it this way. You can't buy a new splitter or even a good used for that price. Bite the bullet. Get your splitter back and use it. live and learn is what I have to say. Just don't bring anything there again for service unless you get a written estimate.

 

[ShaleniFarm]

Well, I picked it up. $420. Like JimR says, I can't get one for that price.

I will un-recommend the shop to anyone I know, though.

Thanks for all the input.

Have a good one,
Neil.

 

[RobJ]

Well all well that ends well...sort of. But you said maybe you should tell him to undo what he did and you would pick it up. You would still be on the hook for the labor costs. You brought it in and he spent time on it. When I was in the business people didn't always understand that. Bring in an old engine, I tear it down, work up an estimate. Person says nevermind I'll replace it. Uhhh, person still owes me a few hours labor for the time. The usual cry is but you didn't do anything.

Check the warranty on your receipt and if anything happens be sure to take it back. Use the heck out of it in the mean time. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Soundguy]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The fuel shutoff price is probably close since most are built into the filter assy. and sold as a unit plus the cost of labor.
)</font>

Yowzers... the fuel tap and shutoff for my 72 and 90hp fords, with filter assembly is a whopping 25$.. and I can get my hands dirty and screw it into the bottom of the tank for that price...

Perhaps the guy with the 15hp kubota needs to spens 20$ on a set of cheap wrenches from harbor freight and do some basic repair of his own next time.. vs 390$ for 15 minutes of work and a 20 minute round trip trailer ride.... that come out to about 617$ an hour.... I think I'm in the wrong business.

If your friend lives in florida.. I'll drive out for 3/4's of that and fix it for him next time.... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Soundguy

 

[MossRoad]

<font color="blue"> Well, I picked it up. $420. Like JimR says, I can't get one for that price.
I will un-recommend the shop to anyone I know, though.
Thanks for all the input.
Have a good one,
Neil. </font>

That's the spirit. Live and learn. Also, check with your local BBB and see if the shop has any complaints against it. If none, O.K. Yours was the fluke. However, if several complaints on record, add another one. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

We have a local auto repair shop near my work. I did a little business with them over the years. Small stuff. Then I had carb trouble on my truck. They told me $600+ for a new carb. I asked if they could rebuild it instead. They told me it was un-rebuildable( I know a few things about carbs and knew this was bologna). I told them no thanks and took it to another guy down the road. He sparyed a can of gumout in it and changed the fuel filter. He said he felt bad because he had to charge me for a whole can of gumout... $11.00. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif That was in 1992 and the truck still runs on that same filter and can of gumout. The body rotted off, but it still runs. I never went back to that bad business and told the owner I thought he was either incompetent or a criminal. He told me to lump it. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif I told him to double lump it. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif Live and learn. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Soundguy]

Reminds me of a 'cough' machine shop that built us a set of cutter spools for a milling machine. These spools bolted on to a square driven axle, and then pockets are welded to the spool, and then teeth seated in the socket. Anyway.. we had a spool bend from hitting a large flint ball, and then it rolle dit around in the cutting drum, bending one spool too bad to be pressed out flat.

We had this machine shop build us one. We sent them the technical drawings.. all 'simple' stuff.. it was essentially a piece of 3/4 plate, 3' diameter, with a square arbor. plate was cut inhalf, and had a 4" flange at the arbor where it bolted to the axle. Notch out for the pockets were evenly spaced around the outside circumference. and then the pockets were provided so that they could be welded on at the correct angle.

When we went to pick it up, the darn machine shop had welded every single pocket on backwards.. making it where the teeth would face down, rather than out...

I got on the phone with the machinist and asked what happened.. he got the drawing out and said 'what' I told him the problem, and he said it looked fine to him.. I asked him that same question... was he incompetent or just shafting us... went down hill from there... We either wanted them to correctly re-mount the pockets, or reduce the bill, as we would have to have them re-mounted. At first they agreed to lower the bill.. in the end.. they did neither...We had to pay full price to get the spool from them so we could then have it fixed cause it was costing us so much money without the equipment running... ( they went out of business later that year.. guess they were doing as good a job for everyone else as they did for us... ).

However that shop had that was running the metal working equipment.. he was not a 'machinist'...

I'm a CE, not a ME.. but the technical drawings were plain as day easy to read... go figure..

Soundguy

 

[MossRoad]

<font color="blue">guess they were doing as good a job for everyone else as they did for us... </font>

/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[rambler]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( </font><font color="blueclass=small">( The fuel shutoff price is probably close since most are built into the filter assy. and sold as a unit plus the cost of labor.
)</font>

Yowzers... the fuel tap and shutoff for my 72 and 90hp fords, with filter assembly is a whopping 25$.. and I can get my hands dirty and screw it into the bottom of the tank for that price...

Perhaps the guy with the 15hp kubota needs to spens 20$ on a set of cheap wrenches from harbor freight and do some basic repair of his own next time.. vs 390$ for 15 minutes of work and a 20 minute round trip trailer ride.... that come out to about 617$ an hour.... I think I'm in the wrong business.

If your friend lives in florida.. I'll drive out for 3/4's of that and fix it for him next time.... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Soundguy )</font>

Well, it was 26 outside, going on 12 for a high the next day, and no heated area to work in. BiL has a weekly travel job so is lucky if he gets 36 hours off to travel the 4 hour trip to the acrage. So, I don't blame him for not doing it himself, and guess he didn't want to bother me. The whole fuel shutoff/ filter/ tubing area was pretty much messed up, so the $90 parts & labor was not out of line. The travel fee, tho, well that was a real eye opener. No wonder when my little 1720 was having problems with a hyd line leaking & I called them, first question was, 'Do you want us to pick it up?' Thank goodness I said no! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

--->Paul

 

[Soundguy]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The whole fuel shutoff/ filter/ tubing area was pretty much messed up, so the $90 parts & labor was not out of line. )</font>

Yep.. that wasn't the big issue. Figure 25$ for the fuel tap/filter, and another 20$ for the line, and the other 50 as the shop labor for an hour.. that's no big deal. Incedentally, that's the prices my 7610s cost.. new tap for the tank with filter, and the hard line fromthe tap to the first water trap assembly. Took about 15 minutes to change.. course the shop is going to hit you for the full hour of labor. It is the 300$ trip charge that is hard to stomache.

Soundguy