SHOP RATE $

[kermit]

I was asked what my shop rate is to make miscellaneous stuff like nickel silver reelseat hardware, ferrules, agate guides, etc. For me to set up my large lathe or milling machine, it's $50/hour, with a two hour minimum. This cost is less material. I think it’s fair. I have to set up the machine, make one or more pieces, then clean up the mess. Your Honda shop will set you back $75 to $100/hr!

[rsagebrush]

Sounds fair to me, in the end it never mattered what the rate was anyhow, I just charged what I thought my time and aggravation was worth.

[jeffkn1]

The last repairs I paid for were calculated at an hourly rate of $80. Often, my needs are basic but they require either skills I lack or tooling I lack. An hour's worth of repair may allow me to continue or complete something (or 3 or 4 somethings) that's not going to otherwise get done. Consider what some of you might spend weekly at Starbuck's, whose door I passed through once, and not since.
Eighty bucks for skilled work? Yeah. Hell, yeah.

[BigTJ]

I would agree. Car mechanics are getting $80-100 an hour these days. $50 would be very fair.

John

[ctwhite]

I don't make fly rods but I do make custom cabinetry and furniture. Our clientele is very much the same. My base is $90 per hour for general shop functions and no client blinks. Bespoke runs to $125 per hour. Again, no client blinks.

$50 per hour isn't fair, it's cheap. And plenty of folks will take you up on that rate because they're cheap, too. Creative people undervalue their work. You should charge more...

[JoeBolt]

$80/hr with 2hr. Minimum discounted?
Charge more, enjoy serious offers; and go well beyond 2hrs in real time.
2¢
I know absolutely nothing about this, except for admiring.
Machine talent should be fairly compensated!
It is absolutely stunning what can be fabricated with care.

[bluesjay]

Hi Guys, The consensus seems to be $80. I know Dan's efficient, but there's $30 layin' out there, eh?

Jay Edwards

[adrien schnee]

Dan, your rate sounds very fair and I’m certain your skills are a bargain for that price and most appreciated by your customers.

You say “ Your Honda shop will set you back $75 - $100 an hour! “ however. That may be true in your case, but I drive an older Civic and CRV and use Honda dealer’s garages for all servicing apart from brakes, simple suspension work and engine oil changes. Though the cost has gone up from a few years ago, the official Honda dealer shop rate is currently equivalent to $13.75 US an hour. For everyone - I don’t get a special rate.

[JoeBolt]

https://youtu.be/oLXbvJtfFqg

[RSalar]

$50 per hour is cheap and $80 to $100 seems fair and reasonable. That's why I think bamboo fly rod makers aren't charging enough. You hear the 50 to 60 hours to make a bamboo fly rod number tossed around quite a bit. 50 hours times $50 equals $2500 for just the labor. Then you have to add on the cost of materials. $50 for 1/2 culm of high quality Tonkin cane, $80 for a good set of ferrules. $30 for guides, $100 for a nice reel seat and another $65 for the rod tube and sack. That comes to $2,825 per rod and the overhead hasn't been covered: heat and lights, depreciation on the machinery, health insurance, fire insurance, repairs and maintenance. That has to be at least $100 per rod probably more like $200. Then you have a lot of time that you are not doing actual physical work on the rod -- phone calls with customers, paying bills, sweeping the floor, etc. So at a minimum you have to charge $3000 per fly rod to make just $50/hr. Using the same costs above, in order to make $65 per hour you need to get $3,775 per rod. Yet you see them going for a lot less -- under $1500. That guy or gal is only making $20 per hour. It's a labor of love at that point.

[Vaughanwilson3022]

Agree that $50 is too low as that has to cover labor, utility costs, equipment costs, etc. Rates should be a minimum of 2 times what you’re comfortable receiving as rate to cover these costs - $80 an hour or more is reasonable.

[jim royston]

These shop rates presuppose that you have work going through the shop.

[RSalar]

These shop rates presuppose that you have work going through the shop.

True — regardless of what we think is fair we can’t change that nagging law of supply and demand

[penta-spey]

Taking shop rate out of the picture for the moment, what are some examples of what your total charge is for a guide strip and rewrap?

[kermit]

This is my standard rod recondition charge https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tQY ... GfNL4/edit

[RSalar]

This is my standard rod recondition charge https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tQY ... GfNL4/edit

$350 plus shipping! That’s very reasonable — I don’t know how you can do it for that little. What are you making …. $3.50 / hour?

[bamboo rodley]

I think it is difficult to suggest a shop rate to someone without knowing all the variables involved in that individual's operation. For instance, comparing someone who is building or repairing bamboo fly rods in a home based shop to what a mechanic charges for car repairs just doesn't make sense. The auto mechanic has huge overhead costs when you account for building expense, equipment, liability insurance, etc. I think a better formula would simply be to figure out what you want to make per hour as your wage, add that to your overhead expenses, and go from there. Perhaps $50/hr makes sense if 80% of that is your wage. You also need to balance what you charge with your desire to stay busy. If your rates are too high, people may go elsewhere, but if your rates are to low you won't be able to stay in business.

[Flyfishingco]

Do what you love and the money will come.

[jim royston]

I said that to my mother once and her reply was “who says that?”
Advising other people how to conduct their business is a bit of a stretch. The key is having enough work to bill!
Make money THEN do what you love is my philosophy.

[3creeks]

There is actually a book titled "Do What You Love The Money Will Follow".
https://www.amazon.com/What-Love-Money- ... 3198&psc=1