Paint Quote - What is Reasonable?

[chevmn]

From my perspective, I would not even consider hiring a vehicle restored in this day and time for a couple reasons. 1. I could not afford todays shop rates. 2. I have paid shops and been very disappointed in the results. And it is not just the body/paint profession. The same applies to other professions. HVAC, Concrete work, roofing, electrical, you name it......I see it everywhere. Guys go out and go into business, put a pretty wrap on a pickup, and suddenly they profess to be a pro, and expect $50-$100 an hour (or more), and make promises they either cannot keep or won't keep. Once in a while you can find someone who has experience, willing to work, and does the work on time and for a decent price, but those are getting harder and harder to find. Example.....a few years ago I was looking for someone to do a small concrete job. After several calls most never showed to even bid the job, one said it could not be done -- after him not returning my call, and I had to call him back a few weeks later. One would "call me back in a couple days once he got some material prices", and never heard back. I heard about an older gentleman (over 80) still doing concrete work, and gave him a call. He gave me what I considered a good price, and said it would be no problem. He was there when he promised, and if for any reason he was going to be late or one day had a Dr. appointment he called to let me know. The job was a 12x40 slab bridge over a stream on my property. He used fiber reinforcement concrete, provided the materials and labor, and when done the price was just a little over $2500 (yes materials included). Look around - there are still a few skilled, experienced individuals who still work for a fair price. But those are extremely tough to find these days (my concrete guy passed away about a year ago sadly). I did notice that the guy doing my concrete drove a 30 year old beat up rusty F150 vs. the guys in the new $80,000 trucks with the pretty wrap with job prices accordingly and never showed up to even bid the job. The best restored trucks (and cars) I have seen, are not done in pro shops......they are usually out of home shops by guys who do not restore vehicles for a living. You can purchase a lot of tools for 10-20K, especially if you shop around.