Replies

1. 
   jim_"crazy_legs"_blodg | Mar 11, 2000 05:34am | #1

   *
   Doc - I do so many different kinds of work that I never have come up with a good square foot price. I always count the doors and figure so much per door, so much per window, and multiply that by the number of windows. Same for base, I think "two days", or whatever.

   The last new house I bid, I went through it like that, hole by hole, closet by closet, then just for kicks I double checked my time estimates against Jim Tolpin's in his book "Finish Carpenter's Manual". He and I were within 2%.

   So I checked his time estimates against the last house I had a time log recorded for, and we were right there again. That was all the proof I needed. I'm not sayin' he right on, but I'm sayin' he's right on for my methods and techniques. Now I just refer to his time estimates and things work out fine.

1. 
   Thomas_Moen | Mar 11, 2000 11:09am | #2

   *Ditto what Jim said. I use Jim Tolpin's labor hours as a guide for pricing my finish work, but add a little labor to my schedule for some things because I'm a little slow. (slow WORKING, you numbskulls) I don't charge for my slowness, though :-) Works for me. Like you, I don't like working by the hour, but sometimes I will if I think it won't stress my client out too much (and me!), or if the job demands it.As for what to charge for more complicated things that aren't in a book, I just guess the first time. Usually I find that I underbid, but since I keep track of hours worked on each task, I have some hard data to base any future bids on. So I figure that was the cost of my "tuition". I know that's kind of risky, but then again my jobs usually aren't very big.

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   wood_doctor | Mar 13, 2000 03:28am | #3

   *Thanks guys for your input. Who is Jim Tolpin, I've never heard of him or his book. If it is a useful tool I would like to get my hands on it. Where do you get it, anybody else use this book?

1. 
   jim_"crazy_legs"_blodg | Mar 13, 2000 05:57am | #4

   *Doc - the title is "Finish Carpenter's Manual", published by Craftsman Book Company, Carlsbad, CA. If you call them, they can tell you where to get it nearby. It is in all the mail order book stores that I get catalogs for and I recommend it for sure. Jim Tolpin used to write a lot for Fine Homebuilding and has written at least two other books I know of - "Making a living at Woodworking" (or something close to that) and "The Cottage Book" (I think).

1. 
   Andy_Engel_ | Mar 16, 2000 07:06pm | #5

   *Jim's written a couple of books for the TP, with the most recent two being The New Cottage Home and The New Family Home.Andy

2. 
   wood_doctor | Mar 16, 2000 07:06pm | #6

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   I am wondering how all you trim carpenters breakdown your labor charges. I have always gone by the square foot, and then extra per joint of crown /chair. Stairs are extra, everything that is not standard, is extra. Standard would be : Hanging Doors , casing windows, and base. Extras would be like a mantle, or built ins, any custom work.
   This system works great up to a point. It seems to work better in trac houses because the trim details are simple. On the other hand, when you get into some decorative things, like 3 piece crown , and wainscoating, and a house full of extras, the bill can get to running pretty high.
   I don't like the "by the hour" method, don't want anybody watching my clock. And if you up your square foot price for a specific builder because he generally uses more trim than others, you may get burned on other houses.
   Just wonderin how everybody else does it....