LAKESIDE RESTORATIONS

I know Im coming in late, but a pigged out boat in my place is not an option. Sure I charge for my work, but when I am done the problems are fixed & the boat is as clean as it came in or cleaner.. I have gotten many compliments & referals because of operating that way. It only takes a few minutes longer to wipe down paw prints & cover stuff with a towel to keep the boat clean.

Here is the kicker. I'm not even charging 90hr, but I did have to just raise my rate to 79.95hr. I have to try to keep inline with the other local places to keep the "good" local customers. For what i do I should be billing 90 or more per hr.. Luckily I can afford to currently have my rate where it is as it's family that works for me.

If I were you I'd bring the shoddy work & mess to the Marina's owner or managers attention. Tell them you want it made right (if you plan to stay there)..

Jamie / Lakeside

ATFastForward

I had a very bad experience at The Wharf Marina in Grand Haven.
I had in/out service there and at the end of the first season owning the boat I had then change the oil. Keep in mind the boat was brand new at the begining of the season and had 20 hours on it the end of the season.

When the boat was pulled out the following spring, they had changed the oil but never put the cocpit cover back on. My brand new boat with 20 hours on it was a total mess. When I opened the engine hatch they drained the water from the engines but never emptied the bilge. Luckily it was heated storage so no damage.

They did agree to detail the boat because of their mistake. They cleaned the interior but never did wax the boat as promised.

I had other problems with their service and wouldn't recommend!

CBR

Errr, none of those "folks" in the picture looked like mechanics to me.

JC really set himself up by admitting he was out on a snailbote.

Pesky Varmint

My boat is so filthy it is disgusting. Grease all over
inside and out. Dirt and crap all over.

Oh wait, I'm the one working on it. Oops.

Pesky Varmint

fund razor

Andrew Realtor?

fund razor

What a mess Chris.

I'll go.

My work is super busy from Sept to June.

So, I winterize and then have no time until go time.

A couple years in a row I did not get all of the water out of the intake Y pipe on my boat. 2004 it was the Port. 2005 it was SB.

Took it to the dealer in 2004 because I was busy, and the engine had to come out to find/repair the leak. Cost me a couple grand to get it fixed and they broke my transom assembly and then used Devcon to fix it instead of buying one. ("We couldn't find one.") This is the dealer. A third party outdrive shop (Outdrive Man on OSO) had one an hour away. Oh well.

So... here comes 2005. The opposite side is leaking. So... being my busy season I took it to the dealer.

This time he was super swamped with work. Memorial Day and everything.
They have the boat for 6 weeks. Then one day I get home from work and I have a message on my machine that says my transom is rotten. They quote 7500 bucks and say that they will need to do it in the winter. There will be no boating in 2005. Sorry. They were busy, couldn't find the leak, had other easier jobs lined up... poof. Instant transom rot.

So... I went and got the boat and waited until my busy time was over and I took the boat to an OSO member who has a local shop here. he took the boat down and got it wet a few times and found that the leak was the Y pipe again and that the transom was 18 years old... but not actually rotten.
Hard as new? No. Rotten? No.

So... OSO buddy fixed the boat and only charged me a couple hundred bucks more than the charge to pull the engine. New Y pipe. Drop engine back in.

Oh yeah... he didn't "detail" the boat but he sure cleaned the fingerprints and stuff off so that it was at least presentable. A cleaning was required... but it was a normal cleaning, not a disaster.

What did I learn?

The best guys probably don't work for the dealer.
Those are the guys most likely to pronounce your boat dead so that they can move on to an easier diagnosis.

Interceptor

The going hourly service rate seems to be just under $100 an hour. What portion of that $100 would a hired mechanic/tech receive ? Are some service facilities underpaying their mechanics/techs ?
How does a service facility get/keep good help in northern climates where year round employment probably cannot be guranteed ? Do they resort to seasonal transient help that probably is lacking in skills and care ?

There are a few very good service facilities in the Lake St. Claire area but typically like others the quality of service is marginal.

I also understand a lot of owners do not want to work on their boat but these things need constant maintenance and a lot if it is not that difficult. I'm amazed how often a member writes of a bad maintenance experience and it is something that isn't that difficult to complete with basic tools and a Clymers/Haynes type manual.
We probably all would be wiser to learn a little more about our boats and how to maintain them.
ed

sakoutis3

Some of us just don't have the time to work on their boats. I for one am an ex heavy equipment mechanic I have the technical know how but due to work no time. If I took the time then I'd be working on it not enjoying it. I didn't buy to give myself another job. The one I have is enough. When I choose to spend my hard earned money for maintenance or repairs I expect quality, professional work performed in a timely manner. In the real world this is just not the case.

DyD

I know that I will probably be shot for this but from the dealer point of view....

I work a dealer of large yachts where the warranty can really rack up big $$$$$$. They do not want to pay at all, I mean 6-12 months later they are still fighting over warranty and I'm not talking about $3000 this is close to #1,000,000 in warranty.

The dealers have their hands tied because the manufactureres have them by the "short and curlies".

I know it is so enfuriating. We as a dealer now are taking care of everything making sure that the boat is done right and CLEAN for the client. We will be charging a little extra on the front end. Will that hurt in sales, probably so, but to the customer to get things the way they should be and hopefully have them come back and buy something else from us, I hope so.

Chris288

I agree, your paying upwards of 100.00 an hour for quality, knowledgeable service, and they do things half-assed, and destroy your boat in the process. like I said earlier, this is the quality of the work I can see,, I dont want to think about the quality of the work I CANT...

I have seen other horror stories like at100 plus and how Lamb boats put his life and limb at risk by doing what they did.... I think I would have had to put my foot in his ass at that point.. What a bunch of hacks, they are worse than used car salesman...

We are all very finicky about our boats, I knew every upholstery scratch or paint scuff from bow to stern, I now have nicks, chips, scuffs all over the boat, bolster rails and handle,not to mention the grease, finger prints, blood, mud, water, and missing parts... I spent 4 hours the last two nights detailing the inside, it almost looks presentable, the other stuff will get touched up and fixed, just glad to have it back and running after 6 months at various shops...