Paint Jail/Extortion

[Howitzer]

Well, got bit bad today. She's been in jail for 4 months and the body man has done nothing but leave it outside exposed to the elements. Went and rescued it today but i'm out my $2500 deposit.

Dang.

Just needed to vent.

[y5mgisi]

I would be hard pressed not to murder his entire family.

[dan42]

Why paint guys are so flaky I have no idea. I have so many horror stories of painters it's not even funny. I'm sure there are good painters out there but I have yet to find one that doesn't charge 15 grand for a paint job.
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[Mister-B]

And people wonder why "patina" is popular...
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[Mister-B]

So, can you take this guy to small claims court? Seems like enough money to be worth it, and he may cave and just pay you back once he sees you're serious about court
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[Square_78]

I'd go there with a baseball bat. I'd never give a $2500 deposit to anyone. He's got your truck that he can put a lein on if you don't pay him. Never give anyone that kind of money up front unless you are paying for a new engine or something that needs to be installed. Painters are almost all flakes. They keep your parts for 6 months and don't even touch them. A good one is rare to find. I've had so many horrible experiences that I don't even want to talk about it.
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[Shyguy]

Sorry to hear about the bad deal you got at the body shop. That is one of the reasons we do all our own body work and painting, besides it is a lot cheaper if we do it ourselves.

Body work and painting is pretty labor intensive if you do a good job, but in the end we have the satisfaction of knowing the job was done right and in a timely manner. It also gives my adult son and I time to spend time together.

[TBONE1964]

Is this body man a business or some guy working out of his garage in his back yard? Either way, scar his name all over town. Let everyone and the brother and mother know how this guy does business. How many other vehicles are in paint jail there?

My problem with body men and painters is they (not all) have contractors-ides. They get your deposit and use it to finish another job they promised someone (not all contractors). You know what I mean and they do have a reputation for this.

To defend a body man, It cost 10K to 15K because of material cost and it is a lot of freakin work to do a complete job, especially when there is a color change.

I once did body work and paint in the past and I never took a deposit and I worked on the vehicle at my own pace while working a 9 - 5 job and everything was agreed verbally before starting. If there was ever an issue with time or completion, I only ask for the money I had invested in material.

They are flaky because of chemical ingestion to the brain

[Dlm11]

Had something similar happen to me had a 69 camaro sit for over a year cars came in after me went in front of me. got my deposit 1500 back and car and and within a week he was gone packed up and closed. I got lucky
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[big_al_71]

I would spend another 2,500 for bail money as I would beat the crap out of him.


Also NEVER pay a deposit,that should be your first warning anyone that has to have your money to do a job for you means he is not a real business person. My father always told me a prepaid worker never does the job correctly advice I live by.

[kaynnon]

I can see the yahoo headline now, alabama body shop owner gets a Bondo grater shoved up his butt.

[jjzepplin]

I wish we could all get together and go over there and get your money back. I bet the sight of a thousand people (very angry people) would get him to see things a different way.

[Tinkermc]

Well as a body shop owner, (retired) now working at home we do get a bad rap. Most shops are not equipped for a resto job. Everyone wants that quick money from an insurance company to fix a small wreck. Resto work can be very time consuming and labor intensive. To be truthful when finished som people just don't have the money to pay the bill and want a payment plan. Well my suppliers want to be paid and I want to be paid so I can do simple stuff like pay my mortgage, buy my groceries, mostly stupid stuff---right.I keep it down to 2 restos at a time and have a 25X40 shop. If I get stopped on 1 I work on the other until my stuck passes. Keeping your resto here does nothing for my bottom line.Just my 2 cents worth.

[TBONE1964]

Originally Posted by kaynnon

I can see the yahoo headline now, alabama body shop owner gets a Bondo grater shoved up his butt.

[RenoKeene]

The best advice I ever got was "Pick a painter that you know you can kick his ass if you have to".

[slow-1]

Originally Posted by Mister-B

So, can you take this guy to small claims court? Seems like enough money to be worth it, and he may cave and just pay you back once he sees you're serious about court
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The way to go...then if he doesn't pay up, the Sheriff (or whatever you call them in Canada) goes and gets your $$$.

[Howitzer]

Yah, i plan on taking him to small claims court. See how that turns out. Even as i was loading it on my trailer he was telling me to leave it with him and he'd do the work. Unbelievable, like i want to leave my stuff there to have him work on it after the screaming match we ended up having. I'm sure the paint and body would have turned out great after that!

[tex_waco_usmc]

I haven't experienced paint prison and don't plan on it as I am learning how to paint as I go... My fathers theory was simple, if you want something done right the first time, do it yourself!

But, I don't think it is fair to anyone for all painters to be thrown into the same category. There are plenty of professional painters on this board that I am sure would be/are offended by the things people post about how every painter is a scam artist, blah, blah, blah.

I'm not saying that this guy didn't do you wrong and that you shouldn't do something to get your money back; what I am saying is don't lump all of them into the same pile as not all of them are bad guys!

I digress...

[Howitzer]

dan42,

Is $15000 the going rate for your neck of the woods?

This truck was originally from Nevada and it's in phenomenal shape, i've never done body work and it's intimidating for me to try, it seems more art form than science.

[PanelDeland]

Paint and bodywork are an art and a science.I have read enough horror stories to either do it myself orr to follow advice I once read.

When you take a vehicle to paint,write a contract.Spell out exactly what each side expects.Quality of work,color,body gaps,price,completion date,any special work,paymant schedule anything you can think of and both sign.Then you have an agreement for if you need to use the court.Most construction contracts allow a little time for weather problems and you might do that but an absolute completion date of a "No later than" type with penalty.A serious bodyman/restorer should be willing to do this since it will reflect his responsibilities and show good faith.

[leddzepp]

Originally Posted by big_al_71

I would spend another 2,500 for bail money as I would beat the crap out of him.


Also NEVER pay a deposit,that should be your first warning anyone that has to have your money to do a job for you means he is not a real business person. My father always told me a prepaid worker never does the job correctly advice I live by.

X 1000

If they need money up front, they are fly-by-night, not a real business. I have never given a deposit...the truck is collateral. If they can't do that, move on.
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[HIGHWAY BY THE SEA]

My 1968 C10 had this happen many years back when my father was the owner of it. This local MORON body-worker told him that he would have this truck "looking better than the showroom" and it would be "cherryed out" and "better than new". Days turned into weeks, which turned into months, which turned into a year, and he never even TOUCHED the truck. He was always letting people in front of my father too. The reasons he gave during this time for not doing the work in a timely manner were, "I am doing a lot of insurance claim work", to which dad promptly informed him that "My money is just as good as anyone's". After a year of these false promises and stall tactics my father broke the truck out of prison and told everyone in town NOT to go to this dude. While I understand that insurance work is quick pay, these people should NOT give false promises to customers.

[Longhorn 70]

I had a guy "Uniq Motorsports" in Mesa do the same thing to me. It was $3800 for the paint job. Took a YEAR to get the truck done, and wrong I might add. Left a $1900 deposit and had to bug him to get it done. I guess going over there every week and calling every once in a while at dinner time worked. His reason, prices had gone way up since we agreed on a price. If you'd have done it when we agreed, 2-4 weeks, it wouldn't have.

In the mean time many parts stolen off of the truck I drove there. It now wouldn't run and the wiring was ripped when they tried to steal it. They got the stereo, subs, amp, carb, and brackets off of the engine.

I had left many parts there he was going to install...many pieces ruined, dash pad, chrome, armrests, etc.

I wouldn't have left it there except there were many high dollar cars and customers there. So doofus me trusted the guy.

[WIDESIDE72]

My dad had a recent paint nightmare with a place calle "The Old Car Barn" in Edna, Tx He took the truck to a guy with the agreement that it would be "pay as you go" and that he could do it for around $5k. The $5k turned into $10k. It was done in a 6 mo period at least. Most of the work is very good. He did hare brain stuff like paint the brake booster and mc the same base clear as the trick even though it was untested and did not paint the gravel guard or ash tray we gave him. He also put a partial door skin on the ds and made the joint right at the door lock. I have to figure how th fet the clip on for the lock since there is a seam now. It was a full resto shop and the mechanic kept coming in and working on the truck. He put new brake shoes and cyls on back and tore the motor down and found it needed new heads (?) then blasted and painted the stock vc's wihout banging out the dents (?) They lost multiple special bolts as well as the accelerator pedal assy. Funny thing is they had several nice cars including a 69 vette roadster with a tri power 427 and a 57 tbird. I think they thought they could keep milking my dad and do the full resto. I wonder if they bagged and tagged everything but When he said "enough!" They dumped all of the bolts in a box. The shop is closed now, luckily he got it out before they shut down. They had a 10k lb four post lift for sale in the paper for $650 but was sold before my dad could get there.
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[67 chevelle]

everyone has a story , mine was at a place 9 months , when they finaly painted it it looked like a puff can job , next day i was there with a flat bed , took it to another shop and 2 weeks latter it looked like a show car