Small engine techs....lets talk.

[THALL10326]

Ill tell ya, the job is fun, the customers are usually really nice, you get a broad sample of society...Ill give it that.

One thing I have customers do that just seems to always grind my gears, is I can get 1 guy walk in the back, and say to me..."You got time to sharpen a chain"?

Chain stuff is almost always done while you wait, takes about 3-5 minutes depending on the saw, to remove the chain, geind it, check it out, blow the saw off under the cover, put it back on, and tension...hey...good for a quick bucks.

So I tell the guy...Sure.

So he brings in an Echo CS-510, I start taking off the chain..then another guy brings in a big Homelite...he says he wants it sharpened..I tell him I can do it as soon as I finish these first guy...he tell me they are together..same bill...so I say..okay..

Then a 3rd guy brings in a 455 Rancher, wants me to sharpen the chain, and replace the clutch..

So...Im alone in the back at this point, it was early in the morning, 1 co-worker was off, the other was Ill at the time. So I have 4 guys now standing around the bench, talking and carrying on...I get the Echo done, and now the 2nd guy wants to point something out on his homelite..while Im trying to put the echo back together. I get the echo done. Now he wants to know what file to use...then the 2nd guy wants to know what file his saw uses...

I pull up the homelite, start taking off the bar...1st guy walks back in, he wants a new chain for his Echo..uggh

I sharpen the chain on the homelite saw, I ask the guy if HE wants a new bar, he says no.

Keep in mind here, these chains were BAD...they had been handfiled, freehand for a while and the angles were staggered pretty bad, Ireally had ot clean em up.

So I go look at the bar on the Echo, it's a 18", so I think it is 72DL,, I cut that chain, mend it...etc..

Now the guy tells me he wants the new chain on the saw...so I have to put that chain on, and take off the sharpened one.

So I pull up the Husky, and it's a mess..the spur is eaten in half. The chain is wrecked, the bar is wrecked...air filter is off it, recoil wont go all the way back in...I tell him it's going to be tedious to get it all gathered up, as we dont stock husky saw parts beyond just rolls of chain...so it will all have to be ordered (spur, bar, bar nuts he lost, etc) and he is just b*tching to me about how he stood around for 25 minutes only to have me tell him I didnt carry husky parts...blah blah..

So we put his parts on order...In the mean time Ive had 2 people stnading in the shop holding chains waiting to have them sharpened. Both are royally pissed at the fact they have had to stand around..

MY complaint is...Why does everyone think they are the only customer...Why cant people drop stuff off, and let it be worked on at a normal pace, something like that...and why cant "pros" know what they want done to their equipment before they show up?

I mean, if the guy came in and said " I have 3 saws that need work, 1 needs a new chain, and 1 sharpened, 1 needs a sharpen, and 1 needs parts, can you do that now"? I could have easily streamlined the whole thing, and had the first 2 out in 10 minutes or less, easy...the 3rd I would have put on the list as a drop-off, knowing it needed parts.

I would have been servicing the other walk in customers in a quick fashion, no long waits.

I dont really like walk in work. The people standing around, trying to talk to you while you are working...they bug you, and frankly make me nervous. I get especially pissed when they try to "help"....And they get mad when you ask em to back off, go inside, etc..

We have 5 signs on the shop door reading "EMPLOYEES ONLY" "NO ENTRY" "COSTOMERS NOT ALLOWED IN SHOP" "NO ADMITTANCE" "WORK AREA, KEEP OUT". And people just walk right out there...

Sorry...had to vent, customers do this all the time to us..they start off with one problem, and after you are elbows deep in it..."oh yeah and"

Like someone drops off a mower, just wanting the blades sharpened...right....okay, Ill do it while you wait.

Zip the blades off..."Oh yeah, and the belt jumps off" So you put a new belt on..

Then they ask you if a blade is bent...you say "no". They scowl and say, " I was hoping that was what that noise was".

What noise...

Boom...mandrel bearings are long gone in one of the spindles...so after all that it gets signed in and put on the list...

I swear we should charge extra for "customer withholding information".

Thankfully, only about 2% of customers pull this crap...

Red ya need to do what I do and make a few bucks in the process. I get the same deal your talking about all the time, "have you got a minute to sharpen a chain right now". Most times my answer is do you need it right now. They say yes, I was planning on sawing today. Here's the clincher. I go well are ya saying you only have one chain for your saw, they go yes. I say welp ya need to get a few spare chains so you won't be caught without a sharp chain. They go well thats true, your right. I sell them a few new chains and makem leave that dull one. The ones that refuse to buy a new chain the answer to "can you do it right now" is NO!! Sometimes they get hot and start bit-ching. I just tellem quit ya bit-ching and buy a dayumm chain or leave your dull till I get around to it. 99 times out of a 100 they buy a new chain and leave the dull one. I call it getem while they are down,LOL

I also get the ones that want to jump ahead of everyone else. I'll have a saw or trimmer tore apart on the bench that I'm in the middle of. Here comes Mr I Want You To Stop And Look At Mine Right Now. Sometimes I may stop and take a look at theirs but most times I say this unit I'm working on now was here before you came in, this isn't the ER room. Some find me to be a real smart azz but the way I see it would these same people like me jumping ahead of them at the grocery store line, hell no. I'm a firm beleiver in first come first served. Not withstanding I do a awful lot of on the spot repairs so I have little mercy for those that think they can jump ahead of everyone esle, especially when I'm right in the middle of repairing the unit that came in before the I Want Mine Now guy.

Best one to date. Had a contractor in the middle of a concrete cutting job. Apparently his machine stopped. Its 1.55pm. I go to lunch at 2pm everyday so people on a regular lunch hour can swing by on their lunch hour and buy. This guy calls and tells me his concrete saw had stopped and he's in the middle of a job, can he bring it over. I say sure but I'm going to lunch in 5 minutes so bring it by at 3pm and we'll see whats going on with it. He gets all tissy on the phone saying I need it done now. I say have you had your lunch yet today, he goes yeah. I say good, I haven't and its 2pm and I need a
f-cking hambuger, see ya at 3pm. He never did bring his saw by, wonder if he got it running, all I know is that burger sure did taste good. That story sound mean Red?, it shouldn't. See the line where he said he had his lunch. Welp that job wasn't so important he would skip his lunch over it so why should I,LOL

 

[Rookie1]

Mower shop I deal with wont work on anything while you wait and they have a big sign when you walk in to inform you of that.Ive been ther picking up parts and seen them tell people no way will they fix right now because they were busy. But the other day they were slow and an old man came in and needed rope on recoil. They did it while he waited. I think customers/the public sucks when it comes to stuff like that. Too bad you need them to make money.

 

[THALL10326]

Mower shop I deal with wont work on anything while you wait and they have a big sign when you walk in to inform you of that.Ive been ther picking up parts and seen them tell people no way will they fix right now because they were busy. But the other day they were slow and an old man came in and needed rope on recoil. They did it while he waited. I think customers/the public sucks when it comes to stuff like that. Too bad you need them to make money.

So true, ya need good customers to make da money. Most people are good people. Whatcha don't need is the few demanding pricks that aren't good customers to begin with, he needs you more than you need him and its your job to make him understand that. Once ya do guess what, he becomes a good customer.

My old boss, bless his soul, told me one of the best lines I ever heard. He said I might smell his azz but I'm not gonna kiss it,LOLOLOL

 

[slowp]

There's a hardware store in Eureka, CA, or used to be one, with benches, a fire pit, and reading material. They also went the extra mile with a bakery display and espresso.

Madsens has a couple of benches, regular coffee, Loggers World and popcorn.

The sawshop where I go to buy the big ticket items has coffee, popcorn and sometimes donuts. Lots of stuff to look at while waiting. Sometimes I'll buy other stuff that I didn't plan on. They carry some croakies at a very low price. If you've got the room and budget why not set up some chairs?

 

[Rookie1]

My old boss, bless his soul, told me one of the best lines I ever heard. He said I might smell his azz but I'm not gonna kiss it,LOLOLOL

That is good. I have never heard that before. Ill have to remember it.

 

[Bowtie]

We got a Wacker plate compactor in from a customer Wednesday with an older I/C 5hp Briggs motor. Customer stated that it wouldnt start. So, after determining the low oil switch was stuck and fixing that, I had spark, but no fuel. I started taking the carb off and realized the mounting flange was broken on one side, and cracked on the other side. This means new carb. (128$, yikes!). They called the customer, and he was all wound up saying we broke it. (I unloaded the damn thing myself, and did the work, I KNOW I didnt break it)

The sales guy came in the shop a few hours later laughing. I asked him what was so funny. He says "remember the plate compactor you took apart"? I says ya. He says "the customer called back to give the go ahead to order the carb, and in the process of B-Sing with him, he tells me that the shed where that thing was stored in was in a tornado last spring, and he hasnt used it since". Now it was my turn to cuss and fuss. I had the manager giving me the evil eye wondering if I broke it. Some customers...:censored:

 

[THALL10326]

We got a Wacker plate compactor in from a customer Wednesday with an older I/C 5hp Briggs motor. Customer stated that it wouldnt start. So, after determining the low oil switch was stuck and fixing that, I had spark, but no fuel. I started taking the carb off and realized the mounting flange was broken on one side, and cracked on the other side. This means new carb. (128$, yikes!). They called the customer, and he was all wound up saying we broke it. (I unloaded the damn thing myself, and did the work, I KNOW I didnt break it)

The sales guy came in the shop a few hours later laughing. I asked him what was so funny. He says "remember the plate compactor you took apart"? I says ya. He says "the customer called back to give the go ahead to order the carb, and in the process of B-Sing with him, he tells me that the shed where that thing was stored in was in a tornado last spring, and he hasnt used it since". Now it was my turn to cuss and fuss. I had the manager giving me the evil eye wondering if I broke it. Some customers...:censored:

Ya see all kinds doncha,LOL

Sold a lady a MS310 once. A few days later she brough it back raising hell, dayumm thing is POS, it won't start. I was busy, tossed a tag on it and said I'll get to it.

Saw looked like new for it was only a few days old. An old farmer walked in while I was fooling with. I popped the gas cap and sniffed and went what the f-ck is in this tank. The old farmer stuck his nose near the tank and grinned and said give me a paper towel. He rolled it up , stuck it down in the tank and pullled it out. He said watch. He took a match and lit the towel and it sat there and burnt nice and slow and then the smell became clear, kerosene.

I called the lady to come get her saw and when she showed up it was my turn to have alittle fun. I said there is nothing wrong with this saw except for the dummy putting kerosense in the fuel tank. She goes whattttttttt. I said yup, it was filled with kerosene. She goes oh I'm so sorry, I have a mexican thats clearing for me and he was the one using it. As she walked out the door I thought serves ya right,LOLOLOLOL

Aint it funny how the product is always a POS whenever they screw the product up by doing something stupid, gotta lovem..............

 

[eyolf]

For those shops that keep a "coffee shop corner" , maybe printing out this thread (and zearch out a few more like it?) will come to be a real sales tool.
Or at least a customer education tool.

In one sense, I'm kind of a liberal thinker: you can't have my guns, chainsaws, or put diapers on my cows, but beginning every transaction with just a bit of respect for the other guy will usually pay off. I'm handy enough to seldom need repair services at small-engine shops, and I have enough redundancy (extra equipment) that I don't usually suffer if something breaks. That's the best way to keep on keepin' on out in the country.

BUt when I do need goods or services, it really isn't that hard to call ahead, describe the problem or need, and find out if they can help you right away...or not. Sometimes the person you need can't come to the phone, but being prepared to leave a detailed message has always resulted in a return call a short time later. I can honestly say that none of these local guys has ever been short and surly with me, and I can point out a couple of instances where local guys have really gone the extra mile to take care of me.

AS I type this, I can point out an instance where being respectful of the folks in your neighborhood actually serves one well: The fan hood over our range was getting noisy and wouldn't hold up for a lot longer; I mentioned that at church to the fellow that owns a hardware, furniture, and appliance store. About a month ago, he calls me and mentions that one of the lines he's carrying is discontinuing a couple of microwave models and is blowing some old stock out at a really good price. I agree to take one, and when we're picking it up, I notice it in a sales flyer on the counter...subject to stock on hand.

He'd ordered it in for me, but was only able to get just that one.

How many folks demanding their spot at the head of the line got one?

 

[ropensaddle]

So true, ya need good customers to make da money. Most people are good people. Whatcha don't need is the few demanding pricks that aren't good customers to begin with, he needs you more than you need him and its your job to make him understand that. Once ya do guess what, he becomes a good customer.

My old boss, bless his soul, told me one of the best lines I ever heard. He said I might smell his azz but I'm not gonna kiss it,LOLOLOL

Hey thall buddy I am a demanding prick because I make my living
with a saw and can't wait on lawnmowers,weed eaters etc that have had fuel mix stored in them all winter to be repaired? I understand what your saying and is why I fix my own now! I also order my own parts with huskies and bought several saws so I am never down. I ran the 372 as my only big to moderate saw for four and a half years until gettin the bug. I now can wait if a coil goes out for shipment! I hope ms 200 goes long enough
to get me a spare climb saw cause I can't order online and will have to drive considerable distance to see if he has the part or if it will be an unpleasant experiance!

 

[THALL10326]

The all time best

Since we're sorta talking about customers and such this one comes to mind as my all time best. I think big Hoss was at the shop to wittness this exchange with my all time favorite customer.

Feller comes to the shop door one morning as I'm going out the door. So he and I both are on the outside the shop with the door open. He has a 025 in his hand and the look on his face says he isn't happy. I go whats wrong with that saw. He goes I've been cranking this SOB all morning and it won't start. I hate this saw. Its hard to crank and I can't get it to start to save my azz.
I'm thinking well at least your talking my type of language. I say well when was the last time you had it running, he goes last year. I said it hasn't been sitting that long with fuel in it has it. He goes oh no, I dranined it and ran it dry when I put it away last year. I'm like ok, hand it here. I'm thinking maybe he has flooded it so I'm checking for a wet muffler but its dry. I pull the cord a few times and nothing, no hick up, no notihng. It did crank a tad hard but 025's are noted for that. I said ya got fresh mix in right, he gives me a puzzled look. I'm thinking ok, lets have a sniff of this fuel. I take the cap and he did not lie, he did put away bone dry. It was still bone dry. I said buddy did you know this saw was empty, he goes so, I'm like what the hell is wrong with you. I said did you really expect it to start when you haven't put any fuel in it. Now my customer is not speaking to me. I get my mix can and fill it up, pull the rope a few times and varoom. I hand it back to him and tell him they don't run on air. Whats he do, he goes well why does it crank so hard. I said from now on put fuel in it and start eating Cheerios,LOLOL

I will never forget him giving me the damest look as he took his saw and left, I bet he thought I was a smart azz and I was, anyone that dayumm dumb should be razzed abit...

 

[THALL10326]

Hey thall buddy I am a demanding prick because I make my living
with a saw and can't wait on lawnmowers,weed eaters etc that have had fuel mix stored in them all winter to be repaired? I understand what your saying and is why I fix my own now! I also order my own parts with huskies and bought several saws so I am never down. I ran the 372 as my only big to moderate saw for four and a half years until gettin the bug. I now can wait if a coil goes out for shipment! I hope ms 200 goes long enough
to get me a spare climb saw cause I can't order online and will have to drive considerable distance to see if he has the part or if it will be an unpleasant experiance!

Well Rope your not the average customer, your a pro guy that makes a living with your tools. I cater to guys like you, your the type of guy I will stop what I'm doing and try to getcha back up and running ASAP. Course now if your a demanding prick and ya bring that Husky in the Stihl shop your not gonna get ahead of the pro Stihl guy, you will hear what I tell all my Husky customers , thats whatcha get for buying that dayumm thing,LOLOLOL

All kidding aside I understand exactly where ya coming from Rope. A coil should be stocked for a saw such as a 372, its a very popular model. Ya need to tell that guy, man stocking a coil won't break the piggie bank.....

 

[ropensaddle]

Well Rope your not the average customer, your a pro guy that makes a living with your tools. I cater to guys like you, your the type of guy I will stop what I'm doing and try to getcha back up and running ASAP. Course now if your a demanding prick and ya bring that Husky in the Stihl shop your not gonna get ahead of the pro Stihl guy, you will hear what I tell all my Husky customers , thats whatcha get for buying that dayumm thing,LOLOLOL

All kidding aside I understand exactly where ya coming from Rope. A coil should be stocked for a saw such as a 372, its a very popular model. Ya need to tell that guy, man stocking a coil won't break the piggie bank.....

Yeah I told him I bought the saw from him he said he usually has
a couple in stock but another dealer hit him up and he has not restocked
and was waiting for a large enough order! I understand he needs to have
a big enough order to cover shipping and all so I am not too :censored:
I finally bought a new bar for the six year old saw I am still using
the bar on my backup I keep meaning to post a pic of it with it's unusual
wear pattern it has served me well! It is probably the longest hour bar
I have ever used as they usually get bent but I will use it until it's gone I bought a new windsor 20" are they better than oregon?

Oh I also put an 8 pin on that baby wow it like that!

 

[spacemule]

I'm sure you've all heard the joke "where does a 500 pound gorilla sleep? Anywhere he wants to." Well, what does a paying customer with a fi####l of cash say? That's right, anything he wants to.

There ought to be a law that saw dealers have to be at least as smart as the customers. If I go in and tell the dealer man to sharpen my blade, I don't want to hear about "that saw ain't got no blade chief, it's a bar."

Well fudge me with a stick! A bar is where I go before I come here and deal with aholes like you, and I don't see any beer in that saw. If I want to call the blade a purple hairy mouthed dildo, that's my business, as long as you sharpen my hairy mouthed dildo and charge a reasonable price and be quick about it. But I didn't want to upset the shop man's sensibilities, so I acquiesced and told him to sharpen my got damed bar.

Then he tells me that I need to keep the blade out of rocks. Hmm, a saw is a tool made to cut things. If a saw will not cut things, then it is either a poorly engineered piece of equipment or I have been taken on a piece of crap. If I want to saw rocks, then got damed it all I'm a gonna saw rocks! If your pos saw won't do that, then that's your problem.

Anyway, I get my blade back and it's sharpened all right--damned near 3/4 of the teeth are gone! On top of all this, the butthole charged me nearly the price of a new blade to butcher mine and call it sharpening. I stood there and watched, and he took damned near 30 minutes on one chain! Now, I understand a dealer has to make some money, but I don't like providing the Vaseline like this. I tell you, there ought to be a law against dumb arsed saw techs!

 

[THALL10326]

Yeah I told him I bought the saw from him he said he usually has
a couple in stock but another dealer hit him up and he has not restocked
and was waiting for a large enough order! I understand he needs to have
a big enough order to cover shipping and all so I am not too :censored:
I finally bought a new bar for the six year old saw I am still using
the bar on my backup I keep meaning to post a pic of it with it's unusual
wear pattern it has served me well! It is probably the longest hour bar
I have ever used as they usually get bent but I will use it until it's gone I bought a new windsor 20" are they better than oregon?

Oh I also put an 8 pin on that baby wow it like that!

Well that lowlife bas-tard, he gave your coil to another dealer to sell to someone else. If I was you I'd sneak overthere late tonite and set his shop on fire and leave a note that says, This is whatcha get for giving another dealer my coil, your friend, Rope. That will show him you mean business,LOL

I understand Windsor bars are ok. Better than Oregon I couldn't say, can say Stihl bars are better than both,hahahaha

 

[THALL10326]

I'm sure you've all heard the joke "where does a 500 pound gorilla sleep? Anywhere he wants to." Well, what does a paying customer with a fi####l of cash say? That's right, anything he wants to.

There ought to be a law that saw dealers have to be at least as smart as the customers. If I go in and tell the dealer man to sharpen my blade, I don't want to hear about "that saw ain't got no blade chief, it's a bar."

Well fudge me with a stick! A bar is where I go before I come here and deal with aholes like you, and I don't see any beer in that saw. If I want to call the blade a purple hairy mouthed dildo, that's my business, as long as you sharpen my hairy mouthed dildo and charge a reasonable price and be quick about it. But I didn't want to upset the shop man's sensibilities, so I acquiesced and told him to sharpen my got damed bar.

Then he tells me that I need to keep the blade out of rocks. Hmm, a saw is a tool made to cut things. If a saw will not cut things, then it is either a poorly engineered piece of equipment or I have been taken on a piece of crap. If I want to saw rocks, then got damed it all I'm a gonna saw rocks! If your pos saw won't do that, then that's your problem.

Anyway, I get my blade back and it's sharpened all right--damned near 3/4 of the teeth are gone! On top of all this, the butthole charged me nearly the price of a new blade to butcher mine and call it sharpening. I stood there and watched, and he took damned near 30 minutes on one chain! Now, I understand a dealer has to make some money, but I don't like providing the Vaseline like this. I tell you, there ought to be a law against dumb arsed saw techs!

If ya want Vaseline that's 1.99 extra,LOLOLOL

 

[belgian]

Best one to date. Had a contractor in the middle of a concrete cutting job. Apparently his machine stopped. Its 1.55pm. I go to lunch at 2pm everyday so people on a regular lunch hour can swing by on their lunch hour and buy. This guy calls and tells me his concrete saw had stopped and he's in the middle of a job, can he bring it over. I say sure but I'm going to lunch in 5 minutes so bring it by at 3pm and we'll see whats going on with it. He gets all tissy on the phone saying I need it done now. I say have you had your lunch yet today, he goes yeah. I say good, I haven't and its 2pm and I need a
f-cking hambuger, see ya at 3pm. He never did bring his saw by, wonder if he got it running, all I know is that burger sure did taste good. That story sound mean Red?, it shouldn't. See the line where he said he had his lunch. Welp that job wasn't so important he would skip his lunch over it so why should I,LOL

Tommy boy,

I am sorry to say that I don't agree with your view on this particular case :

- this was a pro customer : they usually don't argue over the price of a repair but do expect service when they need it. Downtime is $$$$ for them, which is not the case with the regular home joe.

- lunchtime at 2pm is rather unusual, so I can understand that this contractor had some ??? with your lunch priority.

- a contractor is a potential customer for additional sales. You lost an opportunity imo for future sales.

I don't like to skip my lunch either but in case of need, work goes before the burger... I have postponed (or skipped)my lunch several times for customers with a problem, especially if they are regulars.

This advice was free of charge but I will probably give you a call next week to whop your ... :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[BloodOnTheIce]

We usually eat lunch at 2pm for the same reason, we have a GM Research plant around the corner from the shop and they all go on lunch from noon until 1pm. Alot of the guys will run errands and we are pretty busy from 11-1:30 so the boss and myself, never get a chance to eat until the lunch runsh is over. Customers stroll in at 2 and wonder why I'm trying to fit in lunch between helping customers.

 

[THALL10326]

Tommy boy,

I am sorry to say that I don't agree with your view on this particular case :

- this was a pro customer : they usually don't argue over the price of a repair but do expect service when they need it. Downtime is $$$$ for them, which is not the case with the regular home joe.

- lunchtime at 2pm is rather unusual, so I can understand that this contractor had some ??? with your lunch priority.

- a contractor is a potential customer for additional sales. You lost an opportunity imo for future sales.

I don't like to skip my lunch either but in case of need, work goes before the burger... I have postponed (or skipped)my lunch several times for customers with a problem, especially if they are regulars.

This advice was free of charge but I will probably give you a call next week to whop your ... :hmm3grin2orange:

As I asked him, had your lunch, he said yes. Lets turn this around. If that job was so important to him why didn't he skip lunch. That way had the saw stopped around noon I woulda said bring it on over right now, I got 2 hours before lunch. Ya see Brother Belgian at lunchtime his main concern wasn't the job or the saw, it was his lunch. At 2pm I'm just like him, my main concern is filling my belly,LOLOL That burger sure did taste good,mmmmmm

Far as lost sales from him have you any idea how many sales I pick up around noon while I'm giving up a regular noon time lunch everyday of the week so the guys can come in on their regular lunch hour, trust me, the number is staggering compared to that one contractor. Can't getem all Belgian so you do whatcha can to get the most.

 

[stihl86]

I have to ask, why did you ask him if he ate lunch? You really think he gives a f--k if you ate?
Isn't you livelihood based on your customers? Your entitled to lunch like everyone else, but your customers definitely don't want to hear about your problems.

 

[Metals406]

As a self employed guy, I can say I've had my run-ins. Had an 'engineer' come into my welding shop one day, with a piece of graph paper in his hand. I said, 'howdy, what can I do for you?'

He had a perfectly scaled drawing of a plate system to stop the driveline from bashing thru the floorboard on his little race car... 280Z I think. I said "God Bless you". He asked why? I said with a chuckle, "You wouldn't believe the napkin, poorly drawn, kindergarten drawings I get sometimes, and this is clear and concise." He snobbishly said "Well, I am an engineer".

I asked what the drawing was, and he explained it to me. He then asked what I would charge him? I said, heck I'll charge you 50 dollars. HE FLIPPED OUT! "50 dollars? Why there's only like 3 dollars in material there!!"

Not only was there NOT 3 dollars in material there... But with shop rate and material, he was getting it for half or less than what it should have cost. I told him he should check the other shops in the area, and have a nice day.

In my experience, if you want something expedited from a shop of any kind... Money talks. If I have something I really need fixed, spending a little extra may get you back in the saddle a bit quicker.

Me: Hey I need this _______ right away.

Shop: We can't really get to it right now, but I can get to it tomorrow.

Me: I'll give you 35 bucks cash in hand plus rate if you can do it today.

Shop: I'll see what I can do for you.

Running a shop comes down to one thing... Money. Overhead is a bit*h, and money makes the shop owner feel like going to work in the morning. Power bill, parts, heating, lease/rent, comp (if you have employees), consumables, etc, etc...

If he turns down the extra money, and really can't get to it, thank the man, and either go somewhere else--or wait until he can get to it.