Dean Lofthouse

I'm doing a Gundog demonstration with these two tomorrow afternoon. Let's hope they behave infront of about 150 people. I think my opening sentence is going to be, "Right Ladies and gents, these are "normally" well behave Gundogs and today I'm going to "try" and demonstrate.........

Also very much depends on how much waste you are removing from site. I've lost count of customer who I have told it would be cheaper to get a gardener in. But when it involves shifting large quantities of waste then that's when I/we come more into the equation. But "at the end of the day" I'm a Tree Surgeon, not a gardener. I have a grass cutting contract which I charge £300 per cut, these cuts, when I first started took a day, I've bought new equipment and have got the cuts down to 4 hours or half a day. Am I charging too much ?? Or does the new equipment justify the cost?

Yes your right looking at it like that My groundies new, 16, just left school and is in training, I also tell him I expect him to work but not bust a gut. As his experience grows, so will his wage packet. We normally only work 6 hours or so but if we have a hard day I pay him £50 so he doesn't get dis-heartened, any tips we get I give them to him.

No. my groundies on £35 per day Plus gardeners with crap gear and no quals earn £200 a day round here

No, simply because I also tell the customer how many hours it will take, give or take half an hour. It does make quoting quite easy because you know, with experience how long it will take. One customer nearly collapsed because the last time "he" did it it took him a week, to do the job and get shut of the waste. He was quite relieved when I said we could do it in 4 hours.

:confused1:

I would then do a day rate for trimming at £350, but that's based on 7 hours inc breaks. But don't forget, we can do a lot in one hour and that includes waste removal. Plus the £60 ph includes a groundy who will double what you could get done in the day.

Forgot to introduce Sid, the office junior.

Just enough room to swing a cat. Notice the Earth globe on my desk, needed for my global operations.

£60 per hour, not including breaks minimum and I'm not short of trimming jobs. You do a good job and they're quite happy to pay.

I would also imagine that if you do do a step cut that the second cut is always done below the first cut and not above. If it's done above it can leave a lip which will pull the saw up with the piece being lifted

Sounds like a normal day for us Joking aside, you normally find if its going to go pear shaped, it goes mega pear shaped.

Jason, jason, jason

You need to be more specific otherwise you will be misunderstood, you posted "how, lol" after Mozzas " Quality picture, good find" comment. See what I'm getting at?

Quality post full of meaning there Nuggs mate

Headlights

What's that a jet pack for accessing the canopy? Also where do you plug that 240v plug in?

I could make good use of one but you know what it's like, householders in the uk seem to like blocking access off to the rear of their properties with silly outbuildings or garages they fill with junk. There's loads of jobs we could have done with one of those, only to find the access is even too narrow or stepped for the humble wheel barrow

This one was on a Brilliantismum I think.

I thought there was a swear filter on this forum. I have a two stage Ingersoll Rand 8cfm compressor in my garage which I paid £50 for 15 years ago, I've not checked the oil since I bought it. Bomb proof Rupe

This is getting silly now, your just twisting and using part statements. Like you said, if your happy the way you are then stick with it mate. Just one example Dave. I used to recondition and sell, garden machinery, power tools and generators. On a genny, I used to replace the rotor bearing, brush pack, fully service the engine using fully synthetic oil, set the speed using a Hertz meter for accuracy. I would then go on markets with an exhibition unit selling these recons. There would be some scratter two units along selling a generator in shite state for the same price. Who is giving the most value or is one of us ripping off the customer. How can he justify the price. I've had lots of business's one of my first was a Kitchen manufacturing and fitting business partnership, I was 24 and had a Rolls Royce Silver Shadow 2 with private plate TYB2 , a Porsche 911 and a brand new renault 21 turbo all through the company, we employed about 15 staff. That business went down after 4 years because of my partner and bad busness ethic , I/we worked like a dog to fit kitchens for customers who had paid deposits and lwould have lost their money, only because I have high morals, the busness failed with no outstanding debt. I learnt a lot about business from there. I run my business from past experience and always have a backup plan, if the shite hits the fan I have lots of assets to sell. But all this sillyness has come from me saying I would not ask a customer what other quotes they have had, and my reasoning comes from my kitchen business. My service was unique to me and my company and what other people had quoted had no bearing whatsoever on what product "I" was offering, unless of course the other person was offering the exactly the same product at exactly the same standard of workmanship, produced with exactly the same materials and equipment. So let me just reiterate the original point. "I have never, in all my working life, asked anyone what they have been quoted and I never will" I am not interested in what someone else can do the job for, I'm interested in what I can do the job for. I have everything built in to my pricing system, income tax, chains, saw and equipment wear and tear, vehicle depreciation, fuel, groundy, insurance, office costs, tiolet roll for the office everything. Has every other quote taken into consideration these things. If one of my saws wears out, I go buy another, I don't even ask the price, I just buy it, I've got the funds in place for equipment breakdown. How many people on here work from day to day and would be stuffed if their chipper blew up, come on be honest. ...and thats the sort of business ethics you would be following up saying I'll match or beat that price by a tenner. Please take all I have said above tongue in cheek Dave, I'm typing this with a rye grin on my face, no malice intended. You have obviously got a busness that works for the market you are aiming at and if you did follow my busness model and ended up with an LDV and tow behind chipper then that model would be aimed at the domestic market and an LDV/tow behind combi is just fine for that mate

Cd's cost a few pence to make but cost lots in royalties. Song writers don't provide a one off service. My mortagage is not a busines overhead. If you want then, you come on domestic jobs with me and bring your Mog, trailer and winch. Dragging all the waste through ginnels down paths and over flower beds, I'll have my £8K landy and £18K chipper. You have your £45K mog and god knows what cost of trailer and crane, plus chipper £75K ?? You will not do the job a minute quicker than me. All I am saying without getting snotty, is that your equipment is more suited to specific jobs where more money can be made but not to other jobs. If you only ever did ball ache domestic jobs your crane mog and trailer are there for nothing, but you'd have to charge the same as me and you'd end up not covering overheads. You can't possibly price the same or lower than me and make money on domestic. You have specific overheads so have to target more profitable bigger jobs where you can save time with the equipment you have. We target different markets Dave, so you are right, what works for you works for you mate. Your obviously successful at what you do, but I'm hardly struggling am I, I keep my overheads low with smaller equipment to suit the market I'm aiming at. It doesn't alter the fact that IMO asking what someone else quoted is so hit and miss it's laughable

I was holding my breathe Peter, hoping you said no . SkyHucks two sandwiches short of a snack

Smart enough to set this forum up

Nail it to the tree with the fencing U nails.