thinking of hiring a weldor

[Patrickdozer]

Get what ya pay for. Skilled labor ain't cheap and cheap labor ain't skilled.

Speaking of welding, reminds me of stories I have heard over the years, about the old timers and the ones who would drink a fifth of whiskey throughout the day and could weld flawlessly and pass X-Ray test with flying colors. Or the man who could strike an arc and be able to stand there and have a conversation with you without watching his weld. So there are some talented people out there unfortunately there becoming harder to find.

 

[CNC Dan]

Reminds me of a story I read about a guy applying to be a cat skinner. He came out to the cat, spent 10 minutes looking it over, checking the oil, greasing everything and then starting it and letting it warm up. Then he made a pass and it was pretty rough. The guy hiring thought the guy had never run a cat so he made another pass and it was quite a bit better. The employer was still skeptical if the guy was right for the job so he made a third pass and smoothed out the first pass like a pool table. The employers jaw dropped! Then they talked about the salary. The guy said $20/hr for the 1st pass, $25/hr for the second pass and $30/hr for the 3rd pass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojFZ__4t7ck&feature=youtube_gdata_player

 

[Sodo]

Funny stories but I wouldn't hire a guy who plays games. No employer offers top dollar to every applicant, that's just stupid. And no applicant really thinks an employer is that dumb. Well maybe some.

If an employer says the rate is 20-30, then a guy who I'd hire says "Well what keeps me happy coming in to work everyday is $XX and this what I can do". A guy who's really good but willing to play games right off the getgo seems like a risky deal.

But this isn't like normal employment,,,,, For short hobby jobs like this you need to have some fun, and a guy playing games could be fun to work with. And there's no commitment. As you said chemistry is pretty important in this deal.

 

[k0ua]

"This is my $9 dollar an hour welding and this is my $22 an hour welding" :laughing: pretty funny

 

[Arc weld]

Sometimes you have to pay more to get someone who's really good and in the end it's usually worth it if the guy lives up to his reputation. There's nothing wrong with a guy saying he needs more money to do a specialized job. Say you hire a guy as a general welder but know he also has his pressure ticket. An odd job comes in and it needs a pressure welder. You can't hold it against the guy for saying he wants more money to do it because it requires more skill and qualification than what he's being paid for.

 

[muddstopper]

Well, the guy showed up today, with his wife. Not what i was expecting, but things went pretty well i think. We spend some time going over my ideals and what I expected. For this job, I feel i need to be pretty flexible. He works second shift at a place that make truck bodies. They also mount cranes on some of the bodies, which to me is a plus since i am planning on building a knuckle boom loader to mount on my processor. Anyways, one day a wk and only on a Saturday will he be available, which works for me since i am only home on wkends. He seemed interested in the project. Didnt turn on the welder, but i did throw out a few questions which he answered to my satisfaction. I had the 1in plate laid out ready to weld, but he was in his dress cloths so i just asked him how he would go about welding it together. Bevel, tack, preheat, skip around to each side to keep from warping, clamp it to my hbeam while welding, things i would do. We talked money but didnt throw out any numbers. Said he wanted to think about it and get back to me. I think the biggest thing he expects is for me to draw something out on paper, but i knew that was coming. Hard to see whats in my thick skull. I really need some sort of cad software thats easy to learn and try to get this thing drawn up. I dont know if he will accept pencil and napkin drawings. I kind of get the feeling hes a blueprint guy more than a fabricator. Well, it is what it is, if he calls back I guess i have found my guy, if not, I will just keep piddleing along until I get it done

 

[Arc weld]

I kind of figured you could tell a lot about him just by talking to him. That said he should have showed up ready to do a weld. Nothing wrong with wanting a picture for clarification. A lot of times someone will have an idea/picture in their mind and 10 other people will have a different picture in their mind from that same idea. If he builds truck bodies probably has a good idea how to build things and keep them square without warping.

 

[LD1]

I guess I would be hard to fault him for showing up nice if the expectations of the "interview" were not clear.

I have been to interviews for a mechanic position that clearly stated formal dress. Have been to others that clearly state work clothes as there will be hands on testing.

The ones that don't make things clear, what do you do? Dress up and feel awkward sitting in a room with the maintenance manager in his greasy work clothes? Or dress in jeans and shirt(like most maintenance people dress outside work) and risk feeling akward in an interview with suit and tie types?

 

[Big Barn]

Tough call. Personally I guess because it wasn't an interview for a full time job and for a private individual, I would have shown up in clean work clothes.

But then what do I know. I've never had to apply for a job...

Terry

 

[/pine]

...I think the biggest thing he expects is for me to draw something out on paper,...

Or it may be that expects that if he is not handed a set of production drawings/fabrication notes etc...That you might be hovering over his shoulder and possibly questioning his techniques if they differ from your own...(even if the end results are the same or better!)...

Not really sure what you would prefer...an already skilled and experienced fabricator/welder or someone with some skills and potential (and a willingness to learn and produce) but would work for much less than the former...but would require close supervision and guidance...

IMO...An experienced fabricator is going to want to be informed of the task, shown the materials, tools and equipment and then be left alone to get the job done...

IMO...it comes down to either being more concerned about production and crossing projects off the "to do" list ASAP or...becoming a mentor and offering an opportunity for someone to get some hands on experience...