For a 1 color Premium Cast 7 year vinyl on 3 sides of a 12 ft panel truck?
Client supplies art. I just output, cut, weed and apply. Big graphic. About 60-70% coverage.
If anybody has an idea, I'd appreciate some guidence. I don't want to bid too high OR too low. :-)
Thanks, Mark
Posted by William DeBekker (Member # 3848) on :
Mark, Does the truck have rivits or not.. If it was a big smooth blank canvas I would charge around a 700 to 900 depending on the how complicated the layout was... If it had rivits I would add about 40% to 50% for the extra time.. Plus I don't like dealing with rivits.
I look at your request like a phone request. I use the sign pricing guide as Guideline and adjust from there.. The "BOOK" says 2 sides under 25' 586.00 plus 321.00 for the back. and I usally go around 75% to 80% of that.
Hope this helps
Posted by Dwayne Hunter (Member # 133) on :
I agree. Rivets do make a difference. They soak up time like a sponge!!!
For just the decals, I charge according to sq. ft. of decal mat'l multiplied by $5-8, depending on how intricate the design. Let's assume it's simple, so the mat'l costs $840. I'd break down the job into separate tasks and charge $40 per hour. 1 to clean, 3 per big side, 1.5 per small side, and this would be for a truck with a minimal amount of rivets, so we have 8.5 hours or $340.
So total would be $1180, however in most cases, I figure in the unforeseen, so I'd call it $1250-$1300. Depending on your market, this may be high, may be low. However, if they want a billboard, they got to pay for a billboard.
Good luck...
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
most big trucks you can figure just like if you were doing a 4x10 alum panel or sign board, except you dont need to charge for the alum.
Posted by Mark Rogan (Member # 3678) on :
OK. Thanks all. Sounds like rivets are a big deal, huh? I've never done a truck before and this would be my first. Besides the rivets, are there any other downfalls I should be aware of?
Posted by Dwayne Hunter (Member # 133) on :
If you are doing it on-site or outside, YES. If you're going to do it on-site, check, double-check and triple check your list of supplies before the day before. I've flown all the way to Louisiana before, only to find out I've forgot a tape measure. Of course, you can find one of those in La., but I lost two hours going into town.
If you're outside, you have to factor in temperature, wind, surface temp. of the truck. Hot vinyl sticks quick & stretches easy. The wind on some days here in NC can literally pull the decal out of your hands, esp. if you're just starting to apply it and it's acting as a big sail!!!
If you're inside at your own shop, don't sweat anything (but rivets). However, if you read enough articles and posts on dealing with them, you'll be comfortable enough before you ever start. Just don't try to squish em'...roll right over em'...
Posted by Steve Shortreed (Member # 436) on :
In order to price a job, it is essential to know your hourly shop rate. From years of experience, I know that that figure is going to be between $70 and $100. Do a realistic estmate of the time involved in completeing the job, add in your material costs, including mark-up, and last but not least, your profit margin. Add it all up and you will know exactly what you need to ensure you make money on the job.
To learn more about determining your specific hourly rate, drop by Mark Smith's Estimate Software website. You'll find a free download called ProfitWatch. Get it and use it!
There is also an excellant article by Jeff Cahill on how to determine your hourly shop rate. It's available at the SignCraft Website as an Adobe pdf file. Here's a direct link to make it easier for you.
There are most likely going to be seams. If you tuck some of the vinyl in them, your overall length should be a little extra to compensate. Bring some extra vinyl scraps and some One Shot just in case you need to doctor up a spot or two since it's your first truck. Hopefully you've had a look at the truck. With all the variations of how they are built, riveting patterns can be quite different. Some have a few and some have tons of them. Hopefully its not worse. (Had a customer for years with art and cartoons on his trailers, but when he wanted the last one it was CORRUGATED every 8 inches horizontally. Had to walk away from that one.)
Tip for later... If you are doing large areas of painting on a trailer outside in the sun, make sure to open a door. A darker colored trailer will be hotter on the inside than the outside. If you use two coats for coverage, the second one can cause lifting (looks like cracks or cottage cheese) because the paint is drying backwards.
