Luthier Quick Tip 13 Fair Pricing Of Your Work

When it comes to pricing the guitars you make or the luthier services you provide, fairness is where it all starts.
Support the Highline Guitars KZbin channel by purchasing a guitar or tool plan at www.eguitarplan...

[@yankeepeters2270]

Good advice, Chris. One thing I might add is for luthiers or repair places, is to stick to a promised delivery date. I’ve found that in some of the places I’ve used in the past were lackadaisical about getting the guitar back at the promised date, without the customer having to call to find out what the status is past the promised delivery time without getting vague excuses as to why it’s not ready. If the luthier can’t deliver on time, let the customer know beforehand, and give options.

[@justinrayguitars6024]

Might I also add as far as repair work don't be afraid to turn down jobs. Nothing hurts your business worse than taking on something way over your ability. Pass that on to a more experienced luthier. Theirs no shame in admitting something is to much. Another great video!

[@GillRigged]

This is by far the most logical and reasonable advice that I have found in this topic. Instant subscribe. Thank you!

[@dappawap]

Good advise! I am a piano technician with 16 years of experience and have found out the hard way. You need to respect yourself and the industry, that is undercutting can lead to eventual lowered quality and ruin the art, be it piano technology or luthier. Also goid advise for musicians in general!

[@ResoBridge]

Here in the UK I think most guitar buyers will refer to retail musical instrument shops as their first point of enquiry for repairs. Most guitar /musical instrument shops offer some form of instrument repair. However they seem to have the attitude that repair is something they are expected to provide and they don't expect to make any money out of it. Consequently their repair fees are low and the quality of the work they do varies a lot.

[@wheelerdavea]

Years ago, I moved my auto repair shop from California to Washington state. I shopped all the other repair shops in the area and priced my shop rate $5.00 an hour higher than the highest of them. I didn't want to be that new guy undercutting their price. I was busy from the first day I opened my doors. I realize luthier business is different than auto repair, but but the theory is sound I think.

[@janefoxguitars6061]

I do the same thing for my graphic design business. When I charged $30 an hour I couldn't get any work. I bumped that to $80 and hour and I was swamped. I originally was priced at $80 because that's what my experience was worth but I got scared when I saw so many other freelancers charging less so I dropped my price. Turns out people want quality and they will pay for it, they don't want to waste $30 an hour for 10 hours of crap when they can pay for 5 hours at $80 and get much better work.

[@mrfrontranger7911]

Quality workmanship ,cheap prices , speedy delivery. Pick any 2

[@lyndelguitars9478]

Thanks yet again for another video with advise that is very useful to me as an upstart in this business! Much appreciated!

[@zsaxeshed5743]

Great advice brother man!

[@HighlineGuitars]

Appreciate it!

[@cantilever73]

Very interesting and correct, thanks for your advices!

[@chrishunter9256]

I really appreciate your content!

[@AdrianDecaux]

Chris, thanks for your tips, very informative and helpful as always!

[@Caballeroscuro78]

Another master class ! Thanks for sharing 🙂

[@lavh93]

great advice

[@PiersBishop]

Hi Chris. What are your thoughts about pricing artwork on any guitars that someone might make? There seems to be a wide spread attitude (not just in the world of guitars) that artists should work for peanuts or for free. I frequently see self appointed commentators who criticise the price of a guitar as being overpriced even though it might have a piece of custom artwork on it. I just wondered what you think, IMO there always seems to be and enthusiasm for art work but a reluctance when it has to actually paid for, almost as if it should be a free bonus and not a pricing factor. A bit of background and an indication of why this subject is of interest to me:- I am an artist who has recently decided to bring my skill sets including those of an artist into the world of guitars. I am not very far along the journey yet. I began by buying cheap junk guitars and making them play well, then doing repairs Broken necks, electrics, frets etc), then stripping them down completely to do custom artwork. Currently I am at the kit building stage and have just upgraded my workshop to produce custom bodies first and then necks. So as you can see I'm quite serious about adding to the portfolio of things I make and look forward to exercising my art and design skills fully. I plan if possible to poke my nose into the Great Guitar Build Off 2022.

[@HighlineGuitars]

When it comes to guitars, originality can be mass produced on a massive scale if there's a demand. The price of original art depends on the demand for it. If no one knows who you are, they aren't going to pay you what you think your art is worth. You'll have to starve until you've established notoriety for what you do. Artists like Banksy, Haring, and Basquiat generated demand via notoriety during their lifetimes. All three had it tough in the beginning, but over time, they became superstars. However, for every three who become famous, millions languish in obscurity. If I were you, I would start by having my art printed onto multiple guitars, which would be sold at competitive prices. Perhaps a print to order arrangement. Build a following by promoting what you do. Once you've gained some notoriety, start doing the higher priced one-off guitars with custom painted artwork. Another idea would be to donate a few of your custom one-off guitars to several high profile charities to be auctioned off. Promote this effort everywhere you can and make sure you let people know where they can buy your other original creations. Those are my thoughts and good luck!

[@PiersBishop]

@@HighlineGuitars Thanks for being objective, you are of course correct about the struggle for recognition in the arts as anyone with experience, myself included is very aware. I was more concerned about a growing attitude that seems to exist amongst many that seem to see art as some sort of bonus that should be available for free. So for example you might see a Les Paul with some skilful additional work and yet many will complain if it is priced any higher than a similar guitar in plain standard condition.

[@matthewhubbert8588]

Hi mate I really appreciate the time, effort and giving you have done over the years to teach us all. You are marvelous I want to ask you about fret leveling if its ok, from a repair point of view. I know you have done some vids on it but I am having some troubles, in my mind, with getting it right. It could even be my expectations vs reality, I am aware lol. But want to look in depth at areas such as pressure, where and how much. Do we create a full neck length fallaway from 1st to last fret? How to line up ones body and movement better. Also, where are the most usual areas on a neck which cause most challenges getting a clean buzz free level due to the nature of string vibration, where the strings move most as the vibration moves up and back down the strings once plucked (from note to bridge and back and forth). I hope that makes some kind of sense. I may be overthinking the operation but its a repairmans bread and butter and I feel I'm missing something, possibly I hope you can assist. I trust you more than most Thank you again for all your amazing content

[@HighlineGuitars]

These two episodes explain my technique for fret leveling: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bIXMqGyQdsx9lbc kzbin.info/www/bejne/d32znaKvl7CikKs However, this is from a builder's point of view as I don't do repairs.

[@matthewhubbert8588]

@@HighlineGuitars thank you my friend. A few pointers in regards to body position, movement and pressure would be awesome and maybe your understanding of where a string vibrates most and general areas buzz is harder to get rid would be really helpful if ok. I know you have many other ideas you would like to discuss but it'd be interesting to hear your thoughts on that. Ps I did try yr radius beam sanding version as I had thought about that myself. For some reasons it didn't work too well for me lol

[@matthewhubbert8588]

@@HighlineGuitars I hope I'm not being a pain lol Your efforts are very kind. From New Zealand

[@HighlineGuitars]

@@matthewhubbert8588 Strings vibrate the most at the center of the scale length which is usually over the last few frets. That's why some luthiers add falloff from about the 15th fret to the last fret. I don't because I cringe at the idea of removing material unless it is necessary. As for body position, movement, and pressure, I don't know what you mean.

[@matthewhubbert8588]

@@HighlineGuitars I guess I mean when in the moment of making the file strokes how to best motion ones body and movements so we dont get off pine with what the goal is. And in regards to to vibration I find I get it mostly in the 1st to 12th fret area. Usually its ok in the upper register for me, at least 🙂

[@janefoxguitars6061]

Chris, in your hard costs you say to figure in the smallest little screw, with that in mind, how do you price your use of finish? I have gallons of sanding sealer, clear coats and lots of tints and dyes that all get used partially for each guitar - do you have a formula for how you add in those costs? And also what about other expendables like sawblades, sandpaper, router bits and wear and tear on buffing wheels etc...?

[@HighlineGuitars]

I debated on whether to add and explain what I call a "Shop Fee" to the deposit price. That's where you add the cost of tools, maintenance, etc. The problem with adding a shop fee is that you'd have to break it down for the client or they will complain about it. I think it's better to roll those costs in with the hourly rate you intend to charge. The cost of finishing materials should be included as a percentage of what was used in the parts and materials of the deposit price. My explanation was meant to be a simple quick tip, but as you've pointed out, it can get very complicated. However, applying due diligence early on will yield profitable results.

[@janefoxguitars6061]

​@@HighlineGuitars Thank you, great answer. I would rather keep it simple. Most of the materials that are expendable (paint, clear coat, band saw blades) can be used on many guitars so the individual breakdown for each guitar would seem kind of miniscule...it just adds up over time. Suddenly you seen that your $120 gallon of clear coat is almost gone and you have to order more - you can't charge that to one client.

[@brandonzaidi9717]

How many guitars should one build or how comfortable should one become at building guitars before trying to sell them? I'd figure you've got to practice and hone your skills a bit first right?

[@HighlineGuitars]

You can sell your very first build if you want to. There’s no rule that dictates how many you should build or practice on before you start selling. Just know that the market will decide if you’re going to succeed

[@brandonzaidi9717]

@@HighlineGuitars Thanks Chris! I'm starting my first build soon. As it's for my 5 year old son, I'm kinda looking into building 1/4 and 1/2 scale guitars for kids in the long run. Not sure how much of a market there is for that though. Anyways, really enjoy your videos and I have learned a ton from them! Thank you for the wealth of knowledge you share with all of us!

[@HighlineGuitars]

@@brandonzaidi9717 in my experience, kids outgrow small scale guitars so fast they just aren’t worth the time. I would consider a thin body Les Paul.

[@sambeguely1132]

for 'spec' guitars / basses of modest design and features how much time should it actually take a fairly experienced luthier to build from start to finish?

[@HighlineGuitars]

If you use traditional techniques, about 150 hours. If you use modern techniques, halve that.

[@sambeguely1132]

@@HighlineGuitars thank you. I think the time I spent on my first two means I could charge about $2/hr (or less) 😂