Thoughts on a late winter/early spring New England meet

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by BQS4 BUMMER!!! Is there any one nearby that you could take them to to get posted till then?

Not sure. My friend Al lives a few miles from my shop, I could ask him if he could load the photos maybe.

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft Bob, when are you coming to Clearwater? Let's meet up for a beer at least! I'm sure other Florida Opeler's would like to meet you. Maybe we can do a Clearwater RallyBob meet! My shop would be a good place to get together. Got a cool Opel you can drive, instead of renting a boring car. Pm me when you get a chance. Lyle

Getting closer to this happening Lyle. Trying to nail down a date I'll be in Florida by next week. I'm hoping it will coincide with a racing date for Ernie Bello (he has a real Kadett C and lives in West Palm Beach).

Bob

[69opelgtfvr]

I'd be interested!

[Tru-Craft]

Bob, I thought you were coming to FL in april?
Hope I didn't miss you!
Lyle

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft Bob, I thought you were coming to FL in april? Hope I didn't miss you! Lyle

I decided to stay here and get some work done instead. I'm already in the hole setting up my shop, but taking the time off and spending money in FL would have just put me a few more steps backwards.

As it is, I've had my lift installed for two months but haven't used it yet. I'm finally getting an electrician in there next week to hook up the lift and my welding power. The shop has tons of 208 volt 3-phase, but not any single phase 208 volt breakers to be found. So that's out of my league, I want an electrician to do the higher voltage stuff. And with the prices of copper and my need for 60 amp service to my welders, it ain't gonna be cheap.

Bob

[RallyBob]

Major breakthrough yesterday. I got my welder plug(s) wired in, and got my lift wired. Starting to get pretty pysched now, I can finally start doing some work at the new shop!

There's still lots to do in terms of shop prep, but at least now I can do filler projects and start getting caught up again. I'm 6 months behind on all my projects!

Bob

[madhatterpdc]

Originally Posted by RallyBob There's still lots to do in terms of shop prep, but at least now I can do filler projects and start getting caught up again. I'm 6 months behind on all my projects! Bob

Don't tell us that means that it's going to be 6 months before we can have a meet down there?

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by madhatterpdc Don't tell us that means that it's going to be 6 months before we can have a meet down there?

Probably. I mean, I'm nowhere near ready to have one now. Even if I did, we'd have to limit it to about 4-5 people, that's how little standing room there is! And with Carlisle around the corner, the timing is bad for most folks. Then by summer everyone is on vacation, so there's very little chance of a get-together then. Maybe fall?

[Tru-Craft]

Bob, sorry you couldn't make it to FL.
I agree the shop comes first, money is nice!
One thing I did in my shop was run 3/4 PVC pipe around the walls, now I have air at every machine. No long hoses to trip over and clean around.
Most of my machines are 3 phase, breakers are expensive.
For my Tig welder I used a #8 3wire cord and made up a 25ft heavy duty extension cord. My welder is on a rolling cart with a 1/4" x 2' x 4' steel plate on top.
Lyle

[samdog]

Brian, If you have the time on this Friday the 11th I would greatly appreciate you coming with me to Dr Bob's for a Holly carb adjustment on the 2.5 roller cam motor. I know that this is not a big Opel meet but once you have made the journey to Opel Mecca you will only then experience true Opel enlightenment. In other words Bob makes it clear why we have Opels.

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft Bob, sorry you couldn't make it to FL. I agree the shop comes first, money is nice!

Trouble is Lyle, my shop only costs me money! I don't make any money from it, remember I cannot do any jobs for pay here. All the projects are my own with only a couple of exceptions. Those are all freebie jobs so in fact I am just losing more money on them. There's a good reason I'm not in business, I couldn't make money if I had a printing press and printing plates...

One thing I did in my shop was run 3/4 PVC pipe around the walls, now I have air at every machine. No long hoses to trip over and clean around.

When I am ready to buy a compressor, I will definitely run hard-line on the walls. But the compressor is only the 3rd item of importance on my list. I need a new metal chop saw and a hydraulic tubing bender first. Then a compressor.

For my Tig welder I used a #8 3wire cord and made up a 25ft heavy duty extension cord. My welder is on a rolling cart with a 1/4" x 2' x 4' steel plate on top. Lyle

I had my welding plugs installed in two locations. One is near the back wall, and I have a steel-framed bench awaiting a 4' x 7" piece of 3/8" thick steel for a welding surface which is about 2 feet away from the wall outlet. The other outlet is about 10 feet away from my lift, and they were both wired with #4 wire. My TIG welder puts out 310 amps at max capacity, and it will trip a 50 amp breaker with ease when welding aluminum! So I had to go a little overkill to keep this from happening, because it's annoying as heck to say the least.

Bob

[Tru-Craft]

Originally Posted by RallyBob Trouble is Lyle, my shop only costs me money! I don't make any money from it, remember I cannot do any jobs for pay here. All the projects are my own with only a couple of exceptions. Those are all freebie jobs so in fact I am just losing more money on them. Bob

"There's a good reason I'm not in business, I couldn't make money if I had a printing press and printing plates"
You're funny..............and modest!
From the projects I've seen you work on, talent/skill is not the problem!
Being small like me, you have to find projects that fit your skill and limited equipment ability. Sub-contracting works also.
A few good companies or customers can keep you busy and make you good money.
Why can't you make $, because of zoning laws?
You are a micro, micro business........rules don't apply!
Are you saying you can't have income or you can't manufacture parts?
US of A, the land of the free!!
Lyle

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft From the projects I've seen you work on, talent/skill is not the problem!

Quoting jobs to make me money is my problem. Making stuff and getting it to work is not the issue, it's just charging enough hours! Which is why I like working for the restoration shop...I work the hours, I get paid for my work. My boss charges the customer for the hours I work, that's it!
No stress for me, I like that.

Why can't you make $, because of zoning laws? You are a micro, micro business........rules don't apply! Are you saying you can't have income or you can't manufacture parts? US of A, the land of the free!! Lyle

Connecticut is one of the hardest states to open a business in, and the overhead is ridiculous. Anything automotive requires lots of permits...they cost far more than I'm willing to pay. Besides, my shop doesn't qualify for any auto-type business anyway, too small.

Then there's our DEP (Dept of Environmental Protection....think EPA x 10), if you are registered as an automotive business or a manufacturer, then the environmental guys get their foot in the door...extra money thanks to all the regulations/restrictions pertaining to dust/debris/waste disposal, etc.

As an example of the overhead, when I owned C & R (but had completely stopped doing any business), it cost me $6500 per year just to keep the 'name'. I don't want to get into that again.

So I rented the shop as a hobby shop. Part of the lease requirement is liability insurance, so that the property owner doesn't get sued. If I lose my insurance, I get kicked out. Now, my insurance specifically states I can use it for my own personal hobby work only, no commercial work....nothing for money. If I do this, I void my insurance, which means I lose my lease.. Oh yeah, the insurance carrier is in my building too, so a bit tough to sneak that past them! They were the ONLY insurance company that would do a liabilty insurance policy in a commercial building, but for non-commercial use. I tried for 5 weeks to get insurance, everyone else turned me down!

Bob

[West Coast GT]

Just curious, do you get a bonus, finder's fee, whatever you want to call it, if you bring business into the shop you work for?

And can the client specifiy that you do the work?

[opelwasp]

So Bob, your saying, if you bought a car from me for $100 transfered the title to your name, you do all kinds of "personal" custom work on it, then decide you don't want it any more and sell it back to me for say $6000, you would be ok?

[Tru-Craft]

Originally Posted by RallyBob Quoting jobs to make me money is my problem. Making stuff and getting it to work is not the issue, it's just charging enough hours! Which is why I like working for the restoration shop...I work the hours, I get paid for my work. My boss charges the customer for the hours I work, that's it! No stress for me, I like that. Connecticut is one of the hardest states to open a business in, and the overhead is ridiculous. Anything automotive requires lots of permits...they cost far more than I'm willing to pay. Besides, my shop doesn't qualify for any auto-type business anyway, too small. Then there's our DEP (Dept of Environmental Protection....think EPA x 10), if you are registered as an automotive business or a manufacturer, then the environmental guys get their foot in the door...extra money thanks to all the regulations/restrictions pertaining to dust/debris/waste disposal, etc. As an example of the overhead, when I owned C & R (but had completely stopped doing any business), it cost me $6500 per year just to keep the 'name'. I don't want to get into that again. So I rented the shop as a hobby shop. Part of the lease requirement is liability insurance, so that the property owner doesn't get sued. If I lose my insurance, I get kicked out. Now, my insurance specifically states I can use it for my own personal hobby work only, no commercial work....nothing for money. If I do this, I void my insurance, which means I lose my lease.. Oh yeah, the insurance carrier is in my building too, so a bit tough to sneak that past them! They were the ONLY insurance company that would do a liabilty insurance policy in a commercial building, but for non-commercial use. I tried for 5 weeks to get insurance, everyone else turned me down! Bob

As a "Hobby Shop" not open to the public, I don't see why you need Liability insurance. The complex owner should have a blanket liability ins plan.

The North East is very strick on everything! My Family lives in Buffalo, NY.
Taxes, fee's, ins, permit's, EPA...........
I wonder why business is moving out???

Florida is very good for a Micro business."Hobby Shops".
The EPA has never inspected my shop, since 1992! I keep no chemical containers larger than 5 gallons, just in case.
Fire dept does an exit light, and fire extinguisher check about once a year.
Liability insurance not required, but cheap.
No business license, permits or fee's.
I am incorporated, that costs $150/year.

Bob, a unit next to my shop is available!
2,000 SQ FT, with office, bathroom, large overhead door, high ceilings for $936/month, taxes included.
We have custom cabinet shops, granite shop, auto repair shop, roofing company, fab shop, and a real nice Machine shop in our complex.
Lyle

[markandson]

Originally Posted by opelwasp So Bob, your saying, if you bought a car from me for $100 transfered the title to your name, you do all kinds of "personal" custom work on it, then decide you don't want it any more and sell it back to me for say $6000, you would be ok?

Sounds like a good idea to me as long as it does not get done so often that it appears to be a commercial business. My lawyer always says "If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck" so just doing the purchase sell thing will not keep you clean if it is over done, the authorities would look at you and say hmmmmm sure looks like a duck let's squeeze it a little and see if it quacks

[Gary]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft ......Bob, a unit next to my shop is available! 2,000 SQ FT, with office, bathroom, large overhead door, high ceilings for $936/month, taxes included. Lyle

Bob's Canadian blood could never tolerate the climate.

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Tru-Craft