DAB
12-20-2015, 3:36pm
now and then, i get asked to make something, do i find out what exactly is desired, go off and do a rough design, estimate how much lumber is required, try to guess how long it will take me to design, build, and finish it, and then try to gauge what a fair price will be, allowing me to cover my costs and maybe put a few bucks into the 'fun fund'.
sometimes the project proceeds, other times, i'm thanked (or cussed at) for my time and life moves on.
I was poking thru the wood forum today, saw that a thread i had posted 5 years ago on how to make a cutting board (sound familiar?) has been viewed over 57,000 times. most threads there are viewed in the hundreds if they are lucky.
i then wandered further and found that the same website sells a set of plans on....yep, how to make a cutting board. you can download a PDF for $6, or get a snail mail version for $9.
i gave my plan away to the internet.
on a large cutting board, say 11x14x2, there is about 2 board feet of finished material, but once you account for cut offs and bad board sections, i normally figure to start with at least 4 board feet of rough lumber. say it's mostly maple, that runs about $4/BF. so that's about 16-20 bucks of material before i start.
a board like that takes about 2 days to make up, time that my work bench and tools and clamps are not available for other things part of the time. then include glue, sand paper, rags, gloves, and finish material, and i'm into it for about 30-40 bucks. depending on who is asking, i'll ask 200-250 for that kind of board. if you are a jerk, it goes up. if you are not, it goes down. sometimes to zero if i like you well enough.
i give away a fair amount of stuff each year, just asking peeps to cover shipping if possible.
so maybe i should try to sell plans at $5 a pop. it would be residual income, the money just comes in as downloads are made, doesn't require any attention from me directly.
but here's the thing. i enjoy making things. i think i'm pretty good at it most days. i don't do it to make a living.
end of rambling, guess i have a different take on life than the rest of the world.
:DAB:
sometimes the project proceeds, other times, i'm thanked (or cussed at) for my time and life moves on.
I was poking thru the wood forum today, saw that a thread i had posted 5 years ago on how to make a cutting board (sound familiar?) has been viewed over 57,000 times. most threads there are viewed in the hundreds if they are lucky.
i then wandered further and found that the same website sells a set of plans on....yep, how to make a cutting board. you can download a PDF for $6, or get a snail mail version for $9.
i gave my plan away to the internet.
on a large cutting board, say 11x14x2, there is about 2 board feet of finished material, but once you account for cut offs and bad board sections, i normally figure to start with at least 4 board feet of rough lumber. say it's mostly maple, that runs about $4/BF. so that's about 16-20 bucks of material before i start.
a board like that takes about 2 days to make up, time that my work bench and tools and clamps are not available for other things part of the time. then include glue, sand paper, rags, gloves, and finish material, and i'm into it for about 30-40 bucks. depending on who is asking, i'll ask 200-250 for that kind of board. if you are a jerk, it goes up. if you are not, it goes down. sometimes to zero if i like you well enough.
i give away a fair amount of stuff each year, just asking peeps to cover shipping if possible.
so maybe i should try to sell plans at $5 a pop. it would be residual income, the money just comes in as downloads are made, doesn't require any attention from me directly.
but here's the thing. i enjoy making things. i think i'm pretty good at it most days. i don't do it to make a living.
end of rambling, guess i have a different take on life than the rest of the world.
:DAB: