AK Arkie

If I can make it myself I rarely will pay for it. As a blacksmith there is just not much that I cannot make or believe that I will be able to make in the future. The best way to get past that is for it to cost less than I think my time is worth.

Hi Kevin, I am Scott and I am an addict as well. My addiction started in 1972 while watching Shad working at Sliver Dollar City, then coming home to the family farm and learning that my neighbor could use a forge! I started buying tools and forges anvils etc at auction with my trapping and hay hauling money. Only now in my maturity am I able to return to this obsession. Now I am firmly off the wagon and my wife believes that I am off my rocker. Working Iron in the Anchorage City limits has its own challenges.

True craftsmen are far more rare than we want to believe. The clown carpenter that you had to deal with is unfortunately the norm. You will not recommend him, he should not try to hire you again, all is as it should be. I second the motion on time limits on quotes. The most important thing that I learned from having a bakery is that you must price each item based on your costs. When I do blacksmithing for hire I often charge a batch fee to cover start-up time, this allows me to charge less per piece once I am involved in production work. Then there are the pieces that I do once because it is fun but to do as production I would charge much more because it can be hard work with no fun involved. It all depends on the customer and the time I have to offer. Keep up the good work! Scott