It's the nature of craftsmen that the poor ones can always start your job today, the good ones can start it next week, and the great ones already have more work than they can keep up with. We, as customers, tend to make their lives more than a little difficult -- because we all want the great ones to do our work, but we want it done with the timelines of the good ones and the prices of the poor ones
I've had Rick do a small job for me several months back. Before sending the parts to him to work on, I asked how long it would take, and he gave me an estimate, and made it clear what the worst case would be time-wise. It was a small job, and it was done within the timeframe he estimated at the time I commissioned the work.
Could I have had it done faster by someone less busy? For sure. Could it have been done cheaper? Yes, there were cheaper alternatives. Was the quality worth the wait and the price? Absolutely. I found Rick to be nothing less than professional and quite helpful when the project timelines and technicalities were being discussed. And in the end, I was very pleased with the outcome. The trick to getting here is to be clear up front with what you're asking for and with what the shop is presently facing as a work queue. Just because you think your half hour job should be getting taken care of in a couple of weeks doesn't mean a bloody thing if the shop already has a few months of work lined up. What makes you think you're so special that you have a right to jump to the head of the line? My hat goes off to any craftsman in any line of work who is in such demand -- because it means he's great at what he does. But he's no different than you or I -- he only has so many working hours in a day.
Don't get me wrong -- I know very well myself how frustrating it can be to have someone take forever to complete something after setting very different expectations when they accepted the work. But I don't think that's the case here. As it turns out, I'm one of those guys who's been eating up Rick's time in the wee hours of the morning as we exchange emails over a build he's about to start for me. This has involved a lot more than order taking -- he challenged my design piece by piece, debated with me, and together we ended up agreeing on what in his own words will be "one HELL of a rifle build". We're both looking forward to this one. But here's the thing: I know not to expect to see it until August, and it could run a bit later than that depending on when the components arrive from the various manufacturers. Fine -- I know what to expect. I should have it by the end of the summer. And even if sh#t happens, I'll have it by Xmas no matter what. If I find that acceptable, and I do, then I get to pass "Go", pay a good deal more than $200, and know that I'm going to end up with a no-compromise dream rifle put together by a gifted and meticulous master craftsman.
This approach may not be for everyone. If you don't like his prices, or think he takes too long, I'm sure just down the street someone's brother's best friend just bought an old used lathe and hung a "gunsmith" sign over his door. I'm sure he'll be happy to take care of your job tomorrow morning and will have it done by lunchtime.
