Could I earn a living?

[Lozzo]

Get a Hi-Level account you will save a fortune on parts I will PM you the number.



Be selective with Hi-Level stuff, some of it is utter crap. They do extremely cheap but top quality brake seals and stuff like that though, which I've used in the past to good effect.

You'll find decent trade suppliers dotted about all over the country, I'll dig some numbers out for you from friends in the trade around the North.

[Red Herring]

Tiz funny how the world turns......... Chris goes away for a while, thinks some more, gets a job, saves up a bit, never listens to a word I ever say, or write.


.............don't buy me any biscuits, crisps or tea bags either, and his bikes still a POS:mrgreen:


Patronising old birds, speak sense young jedi ;)

Strange, it appears to me that is exactly what he did. He may not have told you so but people listen with their ears, not their mouth.

[Lozzo]

Top Tip:

Don't signwrite your van with anything to do with motorcycles or you'll have every gyppo and pikey chav b'stard breaking into it to steal stuff. Black the rear windows and have internal bars or mesh.

[Nobbylad]

Oh bloody hell.....this means you're going to charge me for doing my C&S, suspension and other bits and bobs now aren't you? :rolleyes:

Good luck mate and don't forget where I live!

[dizzyblonde]

There's a lot of hard work in store but it's all falling into place a bit now :)



It's not all about acting on the here and now, before it wasn't a viable option without a driving licence in '09, the point is he's getting a shovel on and finding his feet and that's all there is to say. Things are not about you proving a point so can we quit with the "I'm right, you're wrong" same old same old, not needed here. You don't need to type what you repeatedly say in person now does thee :p


Think you've missed the point by a country mile.:rolleyes:

The whole point, is just as RH said. Not about right, or wrong. Ironically. I posted a reply to the here and now, then read the thread back to see how far Chris has come in that time, and noticed something I'd written several years ago.... meh never mind.

[yorkie_chris]

Good luck,

Have you thought about getting a few ogers booked in the same area and doing work "on tour"? I've used this sort of thing with an Aprilia mechanic, he came up with the van for two days to work on a few bikes, everything was sorted through the forum.

Of course this would require someone with a place/garage to work on the bikes and room to sleep if needed... anyway just an idea.

Yes I'm up for that.
Garage would be great and I'm happy to kip in the van if the job is worthwhile!

Be selective with Hi-Level stuff, some of it is utter crap. They do extremely cheap but top quality brake seals and stuff like that though, which I've used in the past to good effect.

You'll find decent trade suppliers dotted about all over the country, I'll dig some numbers out for you from friends in the trade around the North.

Cheers Lozzo, much appreciated.

As it stands I buy hiflo oil filters, can do them about £6.50 for the SV. 10w40 semi synth about £4.50/l. Not much margin on those.

Strange, it appears to me that is exactly what he did. He may not have told you so but people listen with their ears, not their mouth.

See all, hear all, say nowt. Ett all, sup all, pay nowt :smt040

Top Tip:

Don't signwrite your van with anything to do with motorcycles or you'll have every gyppo and pikey chav b'stard breaking into it to steal stuff. Black the rear windows and have internal bars or mesh.

TBH I was intending on leaving the window clear and emptying it overnight, I'd rather the robbing chav tw*ts that live down the road can see into it that it's empty rather than cost me a new door every couple of months!

Oh bloody hell.....this means you're going to charge me for doing my C&S, suspension and other bits and bobs now aren't you? :rolleyes:

Good luck mate and don't forget where I live!

Yup!
But OTOH it won't cost you a load of fuel to come down here for the suspension bits because most of my tools can be van portable. Save you a fortune ;)

[missyburd]

meh never mind.
Indeed. I'm sure I didn't miss anything, re: that particular post I wasn't bothering to read between the lines and second-guessing what you were implying but I was bothered aboutm about the wording you chose to use, which was portrayed as an "I was right all along" dig.

Perhaps your advice was listened to, perhaps not, Chris has had an awful lot of people dishing out advice left, right and centre from those experienced and those inexperienced. Mostly very good advice (not saying yours wasn't), who knows where it comes from, who cares? It all makes a difference and it's all standing him in good stead. I couldn't care less who takes credit for it, I just found your post unnecessary, end of. Not derailing any more.

Originally Posted by dizzyblonde http://forums.sv650.org/images/ca_morpheus_gray/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://forums.sv650.org/showthread.php?p=2657082#post2657082)
Tiz funny how the world turns......... Chris goes away for a while, thinks some more, gets a job, saves up a bit, never listens to a word I ever say, or write.


.............don't buy me any biscuits, crisps or tea bags either, and his bikes still a POS:mrgreen:


Patronising old birds, speak sense young jedi :wink:

[andrewsmith]

Good luck mate

As Lozzo says don't signwrite the van. Also will make you insurance slightly less.

[yorkie_chris]

TBH I've heard the opposite, signwritten vans are easier to track when nicked, so reduces the premium.

Anywho, it's not getting done.

[Nobbylad]

So - are you going to have listed rates or just work on a 'gut feel' price for each job?

I'd imagine the former is easier, but the latter gives you room for manoeuvre (for when you come to mine ;) )

[yorkie_chris]

My thinking at the moment is for guideline rates.
For example an oil change might be £25 plus £5 if within 20 miles of home plus £0.20 per mile after that, or something along those lines.

I've got a fair feel for how long most things take so where to put my prices accordingly, guaranteed this is likely to evolve over time so we shall see.

[Sizzle Media]

I'm self employed and have been for several years. In fact I'm self employed and employing people in a number of ventures. It gives you a lot of freedom and satisfaction being your own boss, but its a struggle when starting out until you build a customer base. Once you've staked your claim it gets easier.

Make sure you budget for some business promotional activities such as leaflets, simple website, business cards. If you need help with some marketing ideas, i'll be happy to bounce some ideas around with you.
:smt115

[Paul the 6th]

I'm just having a fresh start at the moment since the conferences have all either been shrunk or culled.

Looking to create packages aimed at 'new start' companies, i.e. Package 1 - van sign written, work shirts/overalls, 5000 flyers for a set price including logo design and so on.

I'm in the process of getting the website sorted as I've had enough - I can't produce a page design upto the standard I want so I've decided to save time by letting someone else do it. Just found a company who will do domain name, hosting, page layout and it's all CMS for ease of upgrading etc. for £350+vat. Bargain compared to some of the ridiculous quotes I've had! Plus I'll finally be able to get a dedicated org shop online..

Just a thought chris - if you've got a van now, have you been to rufforth autojumble? There's a lot of engineering types there (powdercoating, part supplying, rare parts etc.) who flog a few bits and pieces - could you put together a service pack with oil/filters/spark plugs etc. and then take tools with you as well in case people don't have an Oil filter wrench or Spark plug socket - upsell etc.. Obviously it'd be a fair bit of stock to buy in the first place but rufforth is 40 mins away for you & it's about £10-£15 to trade there..

On top of that, use it as a promotional gig to get speaking to people handing out flyers for what you do, tell them about your services etc. If it turns out to be a load of crap then at least you tried..

[Specialone]

Good luck Chris, you'll need it ATM cos people are spending a lot less money, they are in my game anyway.

Getting an extension job ATM is hard, I'm more llikely to find rocking horse poo.

My advice for whats it's worth is...

Don't start off too cheap, it's so hard to get your prices up when you need to, price competitively but not cheap or you will be a busy fool.

Obviously keep your costs rock bottom, if you don't need it, don't buy it is what I try to stick to for my business.


Don't think you'll empty your van every night cos you will for a bit then it will get on your nerves then you'll leave a few things in and before you know it you'll have a full van.

Best of luck.

[yorkie_chris]

Not got the van yet Paul, hopefully shortly provided the insurers don't try and shaft me at the last hurdle. (#tears already limited supply of hair out a bit#)

Good idea about Rufforth, TBH I don't think there is much profit in selling service packs but as a promotional tool could be worth it.

[Paul the 6th]

Well if there's anything else you could flog just to cover your fuel & trading fee, atleast it gives you change to get talking to people. The powdercoating guys turn up & put a motorcycle alloy wheel, a radiator cover, an engine casing and some other bits on a table which have all been powder coated in various colours, and then just stand there dishing out business cards and quoting how much it would be for various bits doing "a kitcar chassis - about £150, give us a call on monday and we'll go from there" etc.

If you could get a spot near the front where bikes drive in and out you could offer bike servicing while people go browsing the stalls - but then tbh most of the people at rufforth are practical DIY types anyway so could be a bit daft.. Worth thinking about though, it's not always about the here & now, think about the long game.

[wyrdness]

Would you be doing tyre repairs or changes? That could be a good way to build a reputation. There's a guy in London who does mobile tyre repairs (http://www.roadsidecavalry.com/) who's become well known via word of mouth (& forum) recommendations. He doesn't even have a van, just an unbelievably laden bike. Handing out business cards is a great idea. I keep one of the Cavalry's in my wallet, in case I get a puncture.

[Icanopit]

Just a couple of thoughts Chris, there always seem to be a lot of track-day riders who only ride and can't repair and don't carry tools (mix business and pleasure) perhaps a service via organisers?? Van signage/adertising, removable magnetic signage when out and about.

Good luck

[Lozzo]

My thinking at the moment is for guideline rates.
For example an oil change might be £25 plus £5 if within 20 miles of home plus £0.20 per mile after that, or something along those lines.

I've got a fair feel for how long most things take so where to put my prices accordingly, guaranteed this is likely to evolve over time so we shall see.


It's worthwhile opening an account with Fowlers in Bristol for all OEM parts. They supply just about every dealer with spares for non-franchise stuff - we use them for all Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha stuff and they've got excellent stocks. As an independent you won't get huge discounts but you can pay on the phone by card and get next day delivery. We find it useful to offer OEM filters at extra cost if needed as some people prefer them and they aren't that much more expensive than Hi-Flo ones.

Cambrian Tyres in Wales do some good deals at times, so worth opening an account with them too.

Carb diaphragms for all makes from NRP Carbs in Manchester - don't bother buying OEM cos these are just as good at a fraction of the price.

Fork stanchions from ABE in Greenwich, good quality and much cheaper than OEM.

Reg/recs and CDI testing from Electrex World. Used them alot with no problems.

There's loads more out there, Ill make up a list

[GIZZY66]

Your reputation is everything , Do a good job and the customer will tell 3 people , do a bad job and they will tell 10 . Stick to your hourly rate , wee jobs might look easy to you and not worth the rate your charging (ie just call it a tenner) , if it was that easy they wouldn't ask , its knowlage as well as ability your charging for . If you tell someone tuesday morning make sure its tuesday morning it happens , learn to say no to the crap that his pal jimmy tried to fix first and remember theres no friends in buisness . There's more than enough work out there but GOOD mechanics are hard to find (two friends in the trade have been trying for months to get staff and can't). We've been going 76 years this year so the theory works . ps no can I pay you later , it loses you work . Good luck .

[plowsie]

Whatever you do...don't turn up on your bike ;)

Only kidding pal...All the best to you, I remember this idea when it first kicked off so glad your following through with it. Stick with it, your reputation through here and through friends is a great starter for you.

Good luck!

[Lozzo]

learn to say no to the crap that his pal jimmy tried to fix first

I agree with this one. If the bike looks completely fecked then just say no. There comes a point where you have a bike to fix that will cost ten times what the owner can afford to pay, and when you've lashed out for parts it's a job getting them to cough up enough to just cover parts costs let alone the labour. Not so bad when the bike is in your premises and they can't take it til it's paid for, but a nightmare when it's sat in their garage all the time you've been working on it.

We ask for a substantial deposit when the cost of repair looks likely to go over the value of the bike - happens a lot with young lads' scooters.

[Tim in Belgium]

Good luck with this Chris.

[DJFridge]

Good luck YC. I admire anyone with a viable idea, the get-up-and-go and the skill to carry it through. I know you've had shed-loads of advice already, this is just my thought (and it's easy for me to say this, because I don't personally know any of them):

There is no such thing as "mates rates".

If they are actually your friends, they will understand that you have to make a living wage or there is no point you doing it.

As others have said, the best form of advertising is word of mouth recommendations. Look professional, sound professional and, judging from the opinions of many people on this site, you'll do just fine.

[punyXpress]

First dibs for a go on your ' courtesy ' bike, Chris? ;)
Best of luck with your new venture.

[Tom_the_great]

im sure ive read it in another post but plus one on the stamp for services as to some folk (like me) it matters :)

best of luck :thumb:

[xXBADGERXx]

Great news feller

[Paul the 6th]

Tell ya what YC - you've done the old mechanical engineering degree and know how to solve a problem or two with a bit of logic & whatnot, are there any problem solving ideas you've had like fixerpeg or the ones on chewys stuff? I know you dont really have the full on machining and milling capabilities but if you could get a local firm to produce some bolt on bits for you, it could be another arm in your arsenal?

(obviously not talking about just copying fixerpeg & chewys ideas, but if you've had any of your own which might be useful for other people - cheaper alternative to rentec/givi topbox or hard luggage mounts? Really easy bullet camera mounts designed to bolt on to standard fairing fixing points? Waterproof Gadget mount to fit popular fruit flavoured technology products)

[maviczap]

Top Tip:

Don't signwrite your van with anything to do with motorcycles or you'll have every gyppo and pikey chav b'stard breaking into it to steal stuff. Black the rear windows and have internal bars or mesh.

Agreed... However


TBH I was intending on leaving the window clear and emptying it overnight, I'd rather the robbing chav tw*ts that live down the road can see into it that it's empty rather than cost me a new door every couple of months!

Do what my mums Gardner does, and have some removable signs made up, think his are that magnetic stuff.

You'll need to advertise, so every little helps, but you don't want them permanently on there for the pikey's to come and steal your stuff.

Also helps when you take stuff to the recycling centres, as ours don't accept trade waste, so he takes them off before he drops off his bags of cuttings etc.

Good luck and remember the customer is always right ;)

[Paul the 6th]

I gots magnetic roll in my office - ordered it in for a client & then never heard from them again. Been stood for a while if you're interested YC?

[Specialone]

Only use magnetic signs on your van if you want the paintwork pitted and to start going rusty.

It wrecks the paintwork in a relatively short space of time, when I first started out I had some, within 6 months it wrecked my paintwork, tons of little rusty pinholes in the paint appeared, I personally wouldn't use it again.

[Bluefish]

Also helps when you take stuff to the recycling centres, as ours don't accept trade waste, so he takes them off before he drops off his bags of cuttings etc.


__________________

That don't work round our way, they won't let you tip from any commercial veh without paying.

[Tim in Belgium]

Only use magnetic signs on your van if you want the paintwork pitted and to start going rusty.

It wrecks the paintwork in a relatively short space of time, when I first started out I had some, within 6 months it wrecked my paintwork, tons of little rusty pinholes in the paint appeared, I personally wouldn't use it again.

If you fit clear stickers over the contact patches (where the magnets grip) does this still happen, or is the whole thing magnetic?

[Specialone]

If you fit clear stickers over the contact patches (where the magnets grip) does this still happen, or is the whole thing magnetic?


Ones i had were fully magnetic.

[AZZ3R]

it's a job getting them to cough up enough to just cover parts

I agree with this but I wouldn't agree to finding the parts for them. Yes I know it's extra work which can be charged for but, if everyone asked then it would be come a problem as your'e having to goto & from jobs & in the mean time look for parts, may turn into a headache.

The mobile Fixing is brilliant, I've got a friend who runs his own job in the back of a van. He's actually doing really well, he said it was quite last year but still managed to buy a 2nd van?

Persoanlly, I'd let the person your helping find their own parts.

Hope it works, out sounds like a great Idea.
Look after the customer & the customer looks after the business :)

[Paul the 6th]

You could fit a vinyl patch slightly larger than the area where the magnet would sit, to protect the paintwork - and it wouldn't literally add about £2 to the price :thumbsup:

[Geese]

In ireland there was a shop that was selling oil very cheap. What the owner did was buy it in a big drum. Then sell it by the litre.

Basically, you ride up with a container and filled it up and went on your way (after paying). The oil was sold cheap to get people to come see the new shop.

I thought it was a great marketing ploy.

You could get a lot of bikers to come up and see who you and your van this way.

[Stuuk1]

Considering how things are going for me personally at the moment I am considering self employment.

Unsurprisingly this involves bikes, grease and spanners etc.

I am considering getting my car test passed and obtaining myself a 3 1/2 tonner, and setting myself up to do mobile motorcycle repairs and servicing, and bike transport. I don't mind any hours, or travelling, so long as it's paying.

Obviously I will need some manner of liability cover for this as well as business use cover on the van. Which at 21 and not yet holding a car license, will probably make my eyes water a bit.

I would need to cover overheads as well as £50 a week for me ma.

Throw your ideas in. Would anyone here pay someone to work outside their door? It would be a sight cheaper rate than dealers, perhaps a little less than the back-street small garage but not much.

Go for it, you have nothing to lose.

I would absolutely use a service like this, at the moment i use another guy from this forum and its a bit of a pain getting back from his place after dropping it off and then getting back to pick it up.

If someone could do it in my garden then i'd be on the phone right away, shame you are too far away!

[Ed]

...and you'd have another customer here:D