Pimpin ain't easy peeps.

[wsuwrhr]

Man I have been beating the pavement for weeks trying to get some work in the shop. Now that the holidays have passed and we are in the new year, let's hope stuff gets moving a bit better.

Starvin Marvin over here.

Brian

 

[Done-it-again]

What all do you do? We need parts made from time to time and use a couple of machine shops. Were located in Ontario so we are not that far.

 

[wsuwrhr]

What all do you do? We need parts made from time to time and use a couple of machine shops. Were located in Ontario so we are not that far.

Close. You are certainly welcome by I can even swing over if you have something for me to look at.

I manufacture all sorts of proprietary parts.

I have two HAAS VF4 mills with a fourth axis. A Mori AL-20 lathe and a HAAS SL30 lathe I am planning on buying a bar feeder for this year.

So I have big milling and pretty big turning capability.

 

[Done-it-again]

Close. You are certainly welcome by I can even swing over if you have something for me to look at.

I manufacture all sorts of proprietary parts.

I have two HAAS VF4 mills with a fourth axis. A HAAS SL30 lathe I am planning on buying a bar feeder this year and an Mori AL20 lathe.

So I have big milling and pretty big turning capability.

Sounds French to me, lol.......I'm sure we can find something, most of my parts are small. Soon as something comes up I'll shoot you a drawing or stop by and bring a part as well.

 

[FreeBird236]

I'm sure things will pick up, I've seen your top notch work....:thumbup:

 

[wsuwrhr]

Sounds French to me, lol.......I'm sure we can find something, most of my parts are small. Soon as something comes up I'll shoot you a drawing or stop by and bring a part as well.

Sounds good.

Translation:

I can make any small and big parts you need and I can put those parts on their side and do other stuff to them, and shit.

Brian

 

[wsuwrhr]

I'm sure things will pick up, I've seen your top notch work....:thumbup:

Thanks, me too.

I appreciate the kind words.

Brian

 

[wsuwrhr]

I've been toying with making some new school size(maybe)/for sure old school look "Turbine" wheels for Uncle Carl's Howard this spring.

Thinkin 15-20 in.

Thoughts?

Brian

 

[wsuwrhr]

What all do you do?

I also dabble in emergency and non emergency tree felling, cut to fireplace length and wood splitting, as well as 3yardbucketbackyardexcavation with bonus backhoe and bobcat experience, and I also seem to have some unfortunate experience in New Year's Eve water heater replacement, soffit rebuild and furnace Repair. Fish tank setup and maintenance. In my free time

I do it all.

Brian

 

[redone76]

PM sent...

 

[rivergames]

Anytime I need parts machined out, I just grab my jig saw, router and a belt sander :cool

 

[wsuwrhr]

Anytime I need parts machined out, I just grab my jig saw, router and a belt sander :cool

Machined out.....Noted.

Brian

 

[rivergames]

Machined out.....Noted.

Brian

Glad you getting a good a fixin on the REAL Machine talk lingo!

 

[Yellowboat]

Anytime I need parts machined out, I just grab my jig saw, router and a belt sander :cool

Wow you have a belt sander, lucky guy.


I wish I had parts needing to be made.

 

[RiverDave]

Wow you have a belt sander, lucky guy.


I wish I had parts needing to be made.

Don't laugh.. He rigged a couple of boats and they came out way nicer than one would think. Games is kind of a bad ass.

RD

 

[rivergames]

Wow you have a belt sander, lucky guy.


I wish I had parts needing to be made.

Best Harbor Freight tool I bought!

 

[wsuwrhr]

Games is kind of a bad ass.

RD

Kind of?

Brian

 

[rivergames]

Don't laugh.. He rigged a couple of boats and they came out way nicer than one would think. Games is kind of a bad ass.

RD

Haha thanks doggy. I can only wish I could have the skills you and Brian have when it come to ACTUALLY knowing what to do on a machine. I just redneck my shit, that takes 3 times longer, but somehow, still gitrdone

My bridgeport laughs at me when I hop on her. Then has the look of amazment 4 days later when I'm done making a battery tray/bracket

 

[pronstar]

:skull

[video=youtube_https;CTQwTDvN4ds]https://youtu.be/CTQwTDvN4ds[/video]

 

[Bigbore500r]

Sounds good.

Translation:

I can make any small and big parts you need and I can put those parts on their side and do other stuff to them, and shit.

Brian

You had me at "and shit" \

 

[wsuwrhr]

You had me at "and shit" \

I put that in for that exact effect.

 

[redone76]

So what do you think Brian?

 

[wsuwrhr]

So what do you think Brian?

Nice peices. I am working on numbers. Your parts are well within my wheelhouse.

 

[Hullbilly]

I also dabble in emergency and non emergency tree felling, cut to fireplace length and wood splitting, as well as 3yardbucketbackyardexcavation with bonus backhoe and bobcat experience, and I also seem to have some unfortunate experience in New Year's Eve water heater replacement, soffit rebuild and furnace Repair. Fish tank setup and maintenance. In my free time

I do it all.

Brian

Looks more like you're whorin' yourself out!

Hang tight, I'm guessing now that the holidays are over and the inauguration rapidly approaching people will be out spending again soon!

 

[Joker]

Brian, the machine shop I'm working at now can do the bigger parts. They burn 1 million BTUs an hour and the press weighs more than the Eiffel Tower.[emoji33]

 

[BHC Vic]

Looks more like you're whorin' yourself out!

Hang tight, I'm guessing now that the holidays are over and the inauguration rapidly approaching people will be out spending again soon!

I hope people start spending again. I'm going to try and not spend at all but it would be nice to see things moving. I have what I want/need for now so I want to have cash in hand ready to jump on some property next chance I get. They say work is going to stay busy for a few years

 

[wsuwrhr]

Looks more like you're whorin' yourself out!

Hang tight, I'm guessing now that the holidays are over and the inauguration rapidly approaching people will be out spending again soon!

Whatever it takes. I ain't too proud to beg. :yikes

Let's hope so.

 

[Wheeler]

Man I have been beating the pavement for weeks trying to get some work in the shop. Now that the holidays have passed and we are in the new year, let's hope stuff gets moving a bit better.

Starvin Marvin over here.

Brian

A friend of mine needs parts made for his Schiada, his name is Mike Collins. I'll send him your contact info. :thumbup:

 

[wsuwrhr]

A friend of mine needs parts made for his Schiada, his name is Mike Collins. I'll send him your contact info. :thumbup:

The Mike Collins, as in COLETR2 Mike? Sweet!! Thanks!

Hopefully he needs some conventional style billet pedals for that Schiada. I have several in stock.

Brian

 

[Outdrive1]

That's the same Mike. He's building a 21rc.

 

[wsuwrhr]

I always liked his TR2

 

[ColeTR2]

Brian I sent you a PM on FB ... Brian has made a lot of parts for me in the past off my CAD designs .. and helped me a ton with g-code questions

- Mike

 

[Go-Fly]

Whatever it takes. I ain't too proud to beg. :yikes

Let's hope so.

I enjoy seeing your work in all the threads you post. I think your skills and knowledge are not to be questioned. Are you just fishing for work or are you asking how to market a machine shop for stronger sales?

 

[BHC Vic]

Brian I sent you a PM on FB ... Brian has made a lot of parts for me in the past off my CAD designs .. and helped me a ton with g-code questions

- Mike

Those look like what he tried to make for George

 

[wsuwrhr]

I enjoy seeing your work in all the threads you post. I think your skills and knowledge are not to be questioned. Are you just fishing for work or are you asking how to market a machine shop for stronger sales?

Thanks GF, I appreciate the kind words, those are some lofty accolades sir.

Initially I was venting out of frustration. Nov/December was the worst year end I have ever had.

Marketing a machineshop has always been one of my challenges.

Brian

 

[RiverDave]

Marketing a machineshop has always been one of my challenges.

Brian

You and I have always had problems with "tone" in text, so I'll just say up front try to take it as friendly business advice and not criticism.


"What have you done to try and market your business?"

"How much time a week do you dedicate to NEW business?"

"Where are you putting your efforts? Advertising? Cold Calls? Warm Calls?"


I deal with a lot of small business owners and some large corporations. I also deal with some wealthy individuals that happen to own small / medium size business on the side. In reality the dynamics of owning the forum aren't all that different than owning a small machine shop in terms of the clientele.

The #1 thing I always hear from small businesses is "I'm so busy right now I can't advertise I can't take anymore work." Six months later they say "I'm so broke right now I can't afford to advertise." I always try to explain to them that advertising / marketing (whether with me or self marketing, or someone else) isn't for the right now, it is for the future. I always use the example of Coke / Pepsi / Budweiser and Coors. Does anyone not know what these brands are? Does everyone already have their preferences? Than why do these companies spend billions on advertising? It's for the up and comers, it's for the new clients, it's for future business. It's an investment in their own business to continue growth and profit.

The #1 Rule of business is you are either growing, or you are dying. There really isn't any inbetween in my mind.

Owning a Machine shop you are lucky, because even in idle times you have the ability to invest in your own future. There's a lot of businesses that don't have that opportunity. What I mean by that is if your shop is slow, and you have any kind of cash flow you can make your own parts and set them on the shelf for later sales. I'm not sure what your deal involves with that hose clamp deal, but that is the golden egg. I'd be running those things, and coming up with different sizes of them. I'd create a small transportable story board that I could take to places and sell them.. Or at least create the tools that you could hire a sales or marketing guy that he could successfully sell them. If your deal is lean on that in terms of partnership, you have plenty of products to make and sell online.

The important part of what I just said though is to remember your core business. Ask yourself what it is? Do you want to be in the XYZ parts business? Or do you want to be a job shop? If you want to be a job shop, than making those parts is a nice "side business" or something to keep you busy during slow times, and makes a great "investment / retirement" account. My buddy Roy is a job shop, he also owns get real performance. He is very cognitive of what he is as a business, but everytime those machines even start to slow down he is running parts for GRP. He's moving to Havasu, and I'd pretty much wager he has in stock the largest stock pile of bad ass billet parts for the marine industry period. He probably has 2,000 quarter turn gas caps as one example. It's all $$ in the bank. For you I think that Hose clamp deal is the golden egg.. But I'm not sure what the business relationship is with who ever the partner is. I think that could be a multi million dollar a year business in not time flat to be honest. Give me those things and I'd have them in every major parts supplier by now.

Moving forward though, under the assumption that you would rather be a job shop, instead of an XYZ parts guy. Even when you are busy you have to set aside some time in your work week to grow new business. Set aside 20 minutes a day at first and tell yourself "This is my time to figure out how I'm going to get new business." Don't log onto RDP. Don't surf the web. Don't look at invoices or prints. Don't check your e-mail. Sit there with a piece of blank white paper and a pencil (not a pen). Write down ideas. Create flow charts.. Start with the words "new business" in the middle of the paper, and try to come up with 5 ideas of where you can get new business. Then the next day sit down and write up a plan to execute a few of those ideas. Then the next day execute the plan. You will fail at first. It is normal. You follow that plan though and in 3 months you'll have an upswing of business from clients you've never heard of that will blow your mind.

Some helpful tips.. Your past customers generally make the best new customers. Look back on customers that you have't done work for since the beginning. See how their businesses have grown. Know and understand the products they make so when you call them you can properly discuss how you can be "value added" to their team. Tell them about the new machines and new capabilities and how they would be a good match for their products and prototyping. etc..

Some of your current customers can be your best sales reps. Call your good customers and tell them you will give them a % break on their next job for any new referrals they send your way. Or if they are friendly customers ask them if they know anybody that would be interested in your services.

(I picked those 2 examples because those are the easiest ways for your personality type to break into the mind set of capturing new business. I believe once you see the results of that, you will say "holy shit" and sit down with that blank piece of paper, and start coming up with your own ideas, of which there are 100's of thousands of ways.. none right / none wrong)

At the end of the day though you have to spend sometime per day focusing on business growth, otherwise you are always going to be "feast / famine / feast / famine" it's the new growth and new customers that allow for constant work flow which = growth = new machines = employees and a whole host of other headaches..

Which then gets into the other side of the problem. The #1 Killer of small business is too much sales. (It's true look it up) Too many sales can create cash flow problems. Over promising / under delivering and a host of other problems. If you are booked don't be afraid to tell even a good client "I'm sorry, we are a small growing shop and we just can't take this project on right now. I would love to quote your next project, but we can't make the timelines on this one with the work we have in house." Because if you burn one of those guys, they don't come back. If your honest with them, they'll give you the next quote and maybe you can hit a home run for them on that one. That's why all businesses have multiple vendors they deal with etc..

There ya go. There's the entry level RDP Business / machine shop business 101.

I got a few more things I could add to this later. A mindset of "capacity" or "How much business" etc.. Spend a few minutes of that new business development and find a couple of shops you could outsource too and have faith in if you are slammed. Develop some relationships on that front as well. Because if you really start growing fast, they will be your best resource to bridge the gaps in timelines. Even though you make less $$ it is worth it.

 

[wsuwrhr]

I don't have no problems with you RD.

Thanks for the advice. I appreciate you taking the type to type that all out.

You and I have always had problems with "tone" in text, so I'll just say up front try to take it as friendly business advice and not criticism.

RD

 

[RiverDave]

Do you know what the hardest thing about running RDP is? (seriously)

It's not like they hand out manuals on running forums and internet businesses.

The hardest thing for me is knowing what to do with my day. Technically "posting" on the forum can be considered work.. Too much posting though leaves no time for other aspects of the business. Too little posting and bad things happen.

So the hardest thing is to say "ok for the next 30 minutes I'm going to call new advertisers. For forty minutes I am going to call current guys and see what's up. For three hours I'm going to write new content.". Because I'll check on the board write a few posts.. click one of shintooo's youtube links, and I'll look up and all of a sudden it's five hours later and I'm like wtf?? I just sat down!

I recently started taking my own advice with a notebook with blank papers and I am setting alarms on my phone for different parts of the day to remind me to start my next part of the day etc.. So I don't focus too much on one thing and not another. Late last year we made up seven years of no vacations, and than he holidays and parties etc.. For myself I am just trying to get back into the swing of things. Part of that is routine and forcing yourself to do things that don't seem important at the time. (new business being one)

 

[rmarion]

Brian

I wish I had GOOD NEWS..

still beached on the sandbar...:thumbsdown

 

[wsuwrhr]

Brian

I wish I had GOOD NEWS..

still beached on the sandbar...:thumbsdown

That doesn't sound good

 

[jetboatperformance]

We say of the recreational Marine business , "Its Steak in May and Chile beans in November" ,,,,, Its taken us 25+ years to learn how to control, budget and live successfully and even then every "Mid" September I start calling my shop phone to make sure its still working , I feel your pain .. We need to get together sometime for a chat , We have two lathes and a Bridgeport but we sub out a lot of work , please PM me a number when time permits Tom

 

[wsuwrhr]

We say of the recreational Marine business , "Its Steak in May and Chile beans in November" ,,,,, Its taken us 25+ years to learn how to control, budget and live successfully and even then every "Mid" September I start calling my shop phone to make sure its still working , I feel your pain .. We need to get together sometime for a chat , We have two lathes and a Bridgeport but we sub out a lot of work , please PM me a number when time permits Tom

Yes sir. Close to it.

Brian

 

[Go-Fly]

Marketing is the most fun you can have with your business. There are highs and lows to all work flows even in city hall. If you've been at it for more then five years and haven't figured out when your highs and lows will come, you have a problem. As a business owner you never get used to the lows. You lay awake at night wondering what you did wrong, what you will do if it doesn't pick back up, money you spent that you wish you had back and the list goes on. It takes at least two people to run a business. One to run the business and the other to do marketing. If you do it all yourself, then you have to find time to market your business every day. Every day that goes by that you don't make contact with a prospective customer is wasted time. Would you let an employee stand in a corner, smoke cigarettes, play on his phone and do nothing all day......no. But that is what most business owners do when it comes to marketing their business. Fire yourself or change. The list is very short on how to get started on marketing your business or any business for that matter.

 

[Riverbound]

Marketing is the most fun you can have with your business. There are highs and lows to all work flows even in city hall. If you've been at it for more then five years and haven't figured out when your highs and lows will come, you have a problem. As a business owner you never get used to the lows. You lay awake at night wondering what you did wrong, what you will do if it doesn't pick back up, money you spent that you wish you had back and the list goes on. It takes at least two people to run a business. One to run the business and the other to do marketing. If you do it all yourself, then you have to find time to market your business every day. Every day that goes by that you don't make contact with a prospective customer is wasted time. Would you let an employee stand in a corner, smoke cigarettes, play on his phone and do nothing all day......no. But that is what most business owners do when it comes to marketing their business. Fire yourself or change. The list is very short on how to get started on marketing your business or any business for that matter.

Very true. The amount of time we spend focused on marketing is staggering. It's almost a full time job.

 

[Go-Fly]

Very true. The amount of time we spend focused on marketing is staggering. It's almost a full time job.

Years back you had the yellow pages and some print ads. Today there are so many avenues to advertise it's like Forest Gump being told all the ways to use shrimp. Some are free and some are paid for. You have to be on top of it every day.

 

[wsuwrhr]

Marketing is the most fun you can have with your business. There are highs and lows to all work flows even in city hall. If you've been at it for more then five years and haven't figured out when your highs and lows will come, you have a problem. As a business owner you never get used to the lows. You lay awake at night wondering what you did wrong, what you will do if it doesn't pick back up, money you spent that you wish you had back and the list goes on. It takes at least two people to run a business. One to run the business and the other to do marketing. If you do it all yourself, then you have to find time to market your business every day. Every day that goes by that you don't make contact with a prospective customer is wasted time. Would you let an employee stand in a corner, smoke cigarettes, play on his phone and do nothing all day......no. But that is what most business owners do when it comes to marketing their business. Fire yourself or change. The list is very short on how to get started on marketing your business or any business for that matter.

We think the same way GF. Eerie.

 

[rivergames]

Brian I sent you a PM on FB ... Brian has made a lot of parts for me in the past off my CAD designs .. and helped me a ton with g-code questions

- Mike

Mike, those pillow blocks are tits!

 

[wsuwrhr]

Got a hard hit from a fab shop I met at SEMA. Workin out when I am going by his shop to look at the parts he needs manufactured.

Just the shot in the arm I needed.

Pimpin ain't easy.

Brian

 

[River Runnin]

Looking for a better way! ...I thought I was gonna get a couple custom built, (and welded on!) cup holders! :smackhead

I had these on the other boat...they work!..but still hokey! :smackhead

Looking to replace-- and weld the new ones on-- cup holders that fit Yeti size tumblers! ...could even have that style, (shape) a couple three slots in the bottom for drainage, and made out of aluminum!

I haven't did much research yet of what's out there!....But if you got any ideas! billet, scraps, tubing, or combo of all?

 

[RiverDave]

I can make that for you but that is a lot of cutting time and burning up material and cutters for cup holders. I could look at some tubing and then figure a bottom and a weld on application if you are serious about it. I'm surprised you wouldn't want them moveable though?