Cost for welding on Sliders

I just ordered a set of weld on Trail Gear sliders from 4Wheel Parts. We have a local shop here in Richmond, VA. They can put them on for me. $300 to put them on.. Does that seem right? I can't weld....don't really know anyone that can...and I want it done right. Dooda says they do it all the time and they do it right.

 

I paid 250

 

that's not too far off....

 

Are they assembled already? Or do the plates and legs need welded and the angle set?

 

Gussets and pegs are already welded on to the sliders...so I think 300 may be steep??

 

I couldn't pass up the deal....303 free shipping.

 

300 would be good if he had do assemble it. If all he is doing is welding it to the frame with no adjustments it's probably 2 hr job

 

He quoted 3 hours to me.

 

Pretty much any price is the right price under your circumstances. Besides how do I even price out a job like yours when I have no idea how much work is involved? One off costs away more than something I do every day and have a system or jigs ready to go.

If I had to clamp them to your truck and weld 3 legs per side it is at least 2hours. If I have to assemble them first then add at least 1-2 hours. Since I have not done this before I would simply quote time and materials and if it took 2 hours more than expected that is your cost.

 

should only take 1 hour. I paid 100 for my fully assembled sliders to be welded on.

 

Well seeing that this is the product they sell, and he states he does this all the time....I would hope he would know.

 

This. I welded some sliders on. Took me longer to fit the plates, angle the sliders, tack it all in place, remove, weld the legs and gusset, then do the other side as well. After all that was done, actually welding the sliders to the frame took almost no time at all.

 

I'm going to call a few other places in the area to see. I was hoping to have everything done right there and be done with it. I think 300 is too much...especially if they just have to weld them to the frame.

 

As a good friend once said: People who have never owned their own business have no clue what it actually costs to open the doors let alone have the money to buy the tools to do the jobs the customers need done. If my tools, building and consumables were free I could actually survive charging what customers thought was a reasonable price.

 

I called two locally owned 4Wheel drive shops. One said 175, the other said 200. They simply asked if they were already put together and I told them yes. So all they need to do is prep the frame and weld. They both said no more than 2 hours. This is why I think 300 is too much, and 3 hours is too long. Especially with a place like 4Wheel Parts.

 

I paid what I thought was a reasonable price. Economically, whoever quoted him 300 is actually going to be worse off if he took his business elsewhere and paid less. After buying the equipment, that would be a sunk cost. It is wise after paying the sunk cost to do best to make it back. At this point he's paying for somebody's time. Which you could still argue that 1-2 hours is worth 300, but if somebody will do the same quality work for less, customers will probably head that way.

 

I'm not trying to be a cheap skate, I swear...but I've asked 2 locally owned shops..and two mobile welding companies...nothing over $200. One of the mobile guys quoted me 100 after I told him the gussets and pegs were already on. He said no more than 1.5 hours.

 

300 bucks is ripping you off

 

I'm in the OP's area and I've done several sets so far. We usually charge 250 -300 if we have to assemble. I believe it's 150 just to weld onto the frame. 45 mins to an hour per side. People forget about the consumables that are used and electricity isn't free. I'd offer to help but as of Thursday will be out of comission for a couple of months.

 

I had mine done for $80.00 for a set of 4x innovation sliders, the guy who did mine is a professional welder that works for a local engineering company that builds trucks and jeeps on the side. It probably took close to three hours to have everything done from beginning to end.