Paint guy rant!

[GMC AMI]

Here is my 72 4x4. After paying the paint guy he never finished my truck and I brought it home just like this, incomplete. Never pay before job is done. He has had the truck since May and held me up all this time. You just can not trust people these days!
The interior is left all apart as well and he lost all the little screws and bolts to put back together. Ohh, I think I will send him more work!

[64fleetside]

I really don't understand body/paint guys. I guess its the fumes, cause a mental breakdown or maybe the easy insurance money spoils them. I have seen this a 1000 times, has happened to me once or twice(I try to forget). Sorry, wish I could help, I know how it is. I have a 64 ready for paint but can find no one to paint it. I have a friend(?) who is a painter/bodyman, took him almost 2 years to paint another truck of mine(sat in bare metal in his shop almost a year), it came out so-so, but he still claims to be the best in the state. He starts lots of things, finishes very little. Brian

[GreyHoundSteve]

Yeah unfortunatly this story is all too common. I dont know what it is about them either except that just about everyone is like that now a days with any business. No matter who you go with or how much you pay chances are they arent going to deliver on their promise. Its a sad state of affairs when things start getting this bad but its become a trust no one kind of world and if your cant find someone who wont perform the work and get paid in a reasonable mutually benificial manner than keep looking because i know i have about zero faith anymore. The same thing happened to me on my last project. I dropped off my truck that was suposed to be painted in a 1 months time frame and a month and a half later it still hadnt been touched so i picked it back up. Luckily for me i only put a deposit down to cover materials and i picked them up too (though they were short). Im not in the body business but i think the poster above has it right ..... when they are slow they want your work but once they have it they want everyone elses work and forget about you.

[kwmech]

Went thru the same thing recently with my 79 tow truck --took the 'body' guy 6 months to paint it. I told him 'it's just a tow truck', I just want it 1 color and to look half way decent. Just the other night I [as in myself] just finished it up due to the same thing lost screws and parts, electrical not plugged in, bulbs being painted over. I wasn't looking for anything really perfect but it totally looks like ****. Some areas on the hood look like he barely took the time to sand it.

[Yukon Jack]

Sorry for the bad luck, went through that myself from Feb to October of this year - what fun.

[Harold Shepard]

Been there done that as well, except I let mine drag on for nearly three years with lots on $$ up front. This is why I am slowly putting together my own stuff (compressors, paint guns etc.) and planning on taking a course at the local community college. At least then if the body man drags his feet it will be my fault....

[junkyardjohn]

Originally Posted by Harold Shepard

Been there done that as well, except I let mine drag on for nearly three years with lots on $$ up front. This is why I am slowly putting together my own stuff (compressors, paint guns etc.) and planning on taking a course at the local community college. At least then if the body man drags his feet it will be my fault....

I'M WITH HAROLD ON THIS SUBJECT ... I GOT TIRED OF WAITING FOR MY TRUCK TO GET OUT OF PAINT PRISON & BOUGHT A COUPLE OF GOOD QUALITY GUNS, & LEARNED HOW TO PAINT EM MYSELF. WITH TODAYS PAINT, IT'S PRETTY IDIOT PROOF. I MAY NOT BE THE GREATEST PAINTER IN THE WORLD, BUT AT LEAST MY TRUCKS ARE NOT BEING HELD HOSTAGE ANYMORE. JOHN

[70c10]

When I had my flames done it sat on the lot for 2 months without moving. I kept calling and started getting firmer with them and then it took 2 or 3 days to do the job. Why not just make time and get it out of there?. Because of the insurance jobs!. I understand thats the bread and butter work but they should be real up front on the "true" time frame. I was told they needed my truck for 7-10 days. I would actually use them again but let the owner know I want a more accurate time estimate.

[72CSTC5]

Take it to Chip Foose and the Overhaulin' garage. They'll get it done in a week!!!

[Deuce]

Originally Posted by 72CSTC5

Take it to Chip Foose and the Overhaulin' garage. They'll get it done in a week!!!

Everybody wishes they could afford to do that!!!

[browndawg71]

take it from a professional bodyman , there aint no money in restorations . thats why nobody wants to fool w/ them. people in the collision industry are not in it because they like to work on restorations , they are in it for the $$$. and collisions = $$$ . take my advice, buy some tools and get after it .

[vtblazer]

I've heard all the terrible stories which is why I count myself really lucky.
I paid a regular body shop regular shop wages for my blazer and yes they put me off once or twice but nothing to serious. The whole reason I went to this particular shop was for the painter, he's a friend, does awesome work and has the work/moral ethics of a boyscout! I was very satisfied with his work/time frame.
2nd story gets even better.
My current body guy is an old guy that's been painting cars since most of us were in pampers. He does "putter" but rarely charges me for more than 4hrs a day reguardless of his time spent. Here's the kicker, the only thing he's driven for the last 33yrs has been his CHEVY TRUCK that he bought brandy new from the dealer. He loves these old trucks! Oh yeah, he only charges $25.00 an hour.
Did I fall into it or what? :p

[craigg1]

Originally Posted by browndawg71

take it from a professional bodyman , there aint no money in restorations . thats why nobody wants to fool w/ them. people in the collision industry are not in it because they like to work on restorations , they are in it for the $$$. and collisions = $$$ . take my advice, buy some tools and get after it .

If they dont like to do restoration work because there isn't any $$ in it, then the bodyguys need to charge a price that they think is worth their wild. Why take a job if you dont plan on finishing it and doing it right because their isn't any money in it?? I would pay extra to have my truck painted nice and the job done in a reasonable time.

[68gmcdually]

My bodyshop is taking its time as well. I think that I will bring it up next time I see them, probably on Christmas Day at supper as they are my parents. They keep telling me that they will work harder if I actually paid. They use my truck as a "fill in" when they aren't busy.

[GMC AMI]

Thanks for all the support. Get it in writing or be prepared for a let down. He claimed he had too much time in the truck and did not even do the tailgate which I thought should have been done at the same time as the rest of the truck. A green tailgate on a red truck, Merry Christmas!

[71Longbed]

sad man how much did you pay for that? looks too me like he used the cheap A$# one stagew and the body work looks shotty as of the times it takes trust me it does take long to get it right i just painted my first car i was rushed so it came it out soso but i know i couldve done a better job with more time

[67ChevyRedneck]

A friend of mine restored a 71 GTO with his dad. They did ALL the bodywork and it looked great. They took it to a "professional painters" They had put on one coat of prime and all the "painter" had to do was block sand, reprime, and paint. They paid $2,500 and it looked like $***!!! There was a LARGE clearcoat run on the trunk, and 4 smaller runs around the car. They also chipped the hell outta the nose, the headlight/grill piece, when they reinstalled it. They took it back and somehow got him to respray the trunk and nose and color sand the runs. I've painted 2 vehicles, both with acrylic, and have not had runs in either. I've even had compliments on my second paint job!!! I'm all for the "do it yourselfer" in me! When I spray my 67....if I ever get to it, I'm gonna try base/clear!

[bagged91]

Well, Browndawg71, my dad earned a pretty good living doing restoration work for nearly 38 years doing everything from Rolls/Bentley's to streetrods & customs to Sterling's & Macks. Mainly because nobody else around here would do it like he did for the price. He never charged by the hour, he quoted you a price & stuck to it. It made him bust his arse to get it done and by doing it right the first time, he didn't have to worry about call backs or complaints. His work was his advertisement, bad work = no jobs.

I learned to paint & do bodywork from him and I will NEVER take it to a local "production" shop. They don't put enough of their heart into the jobs...

[oldschooloutlaw]

Happens alot thats why I do mine myself. I took night classes at the tech school and a lot of patients. It takes longer than I like but its cheaper.

[ghetocrewzer]

Well im sorry for u guys havin such a rough time, I am a painter myself and done several of these trucks and in my experience they are never in as good of shape as the owners say LOL...And most want cheapest price they can get but want pefection, I am so into doing best work possible i rarely worry about what i am chargin and do what needs to be done to make them right. Now im sure if you pay ur body guy just like insurance companies do they will work on it till it is complete without takin in other projects. I always let my customers know insurance work comes first and they want me to do their work anyway they say it is well worth the wait. Longest i have kept one so far is a year and a half and that was 72 Longbed new rockers, cab corners, fender bottoms, stripped to bare metal, all bodywork, paint inside/out, cut/buff, install LMC interior kit, and install Custom Auto sound system. Also had to dye most of interior pieces so they all would match. Anyway he was a little pissy on phone in the end but once he saw it was estatic and has since brought more work..... Good work is worth the wait most of the time but i do understand where alot of u are comin from waitin and then it bein crappy work.

[64fleetside]

Where is Sallis, Gheto , I will bring you my 64. Brian

[ghetocrewzer]

Originally Posted by 64fleetside

Where is Sallis, Gheto , I will bring you my 64. Brian

The shop is in Durant,MS which is 60 miles north of Jackson and about 200 miles South of Memphis. Website is krazykreationcustoms.com but it is down for a couple days for server change.

[jiggs]

There is a triangle in economics. Quality, Price and Speed. Pick two. You will never have all three. That said I agree with Ghetocrewzer.

The problem with a production shop is not the trained workers, but the shoddy estimates and promises that are done by the management or estimating staff. Get the job in the door by promising the world to the customer and then worry about convincing the flat rate tradesmen to do the work for cut-throat time. It happens all the time where I work. The talent that we have is great, but we can't loose our shirts because the estimated and guarranteed time and price is half of what is needed to do things right.

Communication and being firm with the shop at the forefront is the ticket if you want things done in the time and manner you want. You may even have to skip the estimater and talk directly with the person that is going to be doing the work. He is the guy that will give you the truth.

We had a '70 Chev longbox in the shop for 2 years. The customer brought the truck down in pieces. The cab was junk, the used box he found was beat, and he wanted aftermarket front fenders. It was agreed at the start that it was a daily driver. In the end he wanted perfection. Two months after telling him his cab was not worth fixing, he brought another. It was just as bad, but he didn't want to look any more. He just about hit the roof when we told him how much to fix it, and after a month he decided to go ahead. He also wanted to supply his own repair panels. That took another month. After the forth drivers door and another two months we had enough pieces to start the repair on the cab. We went through 3 hoods before he decided to spend the money on a cowl induction hood. It was the third that actually fit.(Goodmark) ETC...ETC... This is why it took 2 years. Was it the shops fault??????

I'm not pointing fingers, but there is two sides to every story.

The general public does not realize the amount of time it takes to accomplish their dreams. Those of you who have decided to go it on your own will agree. It takes a lot of time.

To be fair, I don't know of a tradesman that would pass on insurance work for restoration. It is true, insurance work is a cash cow.

[4x4Poet]

It's autobody paint season in Montana. Winter cold eases setting the paint bay temp up as needed without having to fight too high Summer temps; no bugs; snow on the ground to keep the dust down, even if windy. To think; all these benefits and I'll still use single stage acrylic enamel.


What?? My K10 4x4 Sub has a basic interior (metal door panels). Me? Color sand a 4x4? Get real. Color sanding is for you street truckers. The K10 should be grateful to get any bondo.

Tough to hear of your plight, Mike. Go work truck simple. You'll be able to say the future scratches add character.

Oh, and I would ask for a walk thru to look for missing parts, bolts, etc. That's the least he could do to hopefully save you parts purchases.

[GMC AMI]

Thanks for your side. I did not try to cut corners or hurry the paint guy, he simply would not put it back together after I paid in full. After not bugging him he still rushed the Pass. side of box and left visable DA sander marks under the paint. I do not think he will stay in operation very long at this rate.