Do one man shops really not have any help?

I know there are a lot of folks who are one man shows. I was curious, they must have part time help available if they need it right? Even if it's only 10-12 hrs a week or Saturday mornings under the table. Not asking anyone to share controversial details but my line of thinking was that truly just operating as one man there must be a lot of decent jobs that would have to be turned down and the all-nighters at the end of a project just get that much harder without a backup helper.
Thanks for looking

Some do have help. Some don't. A supporting spouse is just about an absolute requirement.

If you make the choice to stay small, you have to accept that you are limited in the work you can take on. There's no way to have your cake and eat it too. As a result, big jobs usually have to go to big shops. The small guys have to either have a real specialty, or live on what falls through the cracks from those higher in the food chain.

I think to many here, they would rather have the freedom of working alone than the security of a larger customer. Others are eager to grow. Some have grown to a point and decided they weren't really getting ahead and have since scaled back.

Think I saw a poll once that like 80% of the members here work in a shop with less then 10 employees.

So......what part of ONE MAN do you not comprehend?
It's either one man....or it's more......and not one man.

I'm a one man band, been that way for a long time, even when I had a business partner.

This weekend I got SLAMMED!!!!!!!!!!!!! I knew I was going to have a push over this weekend, but on Friday when I picked
up the thing that needed to be done over the weekend, it somehow turned into double... And it was in packaging that I had never
seen before.. It took me 6 fucking hours to unpack that shit...

My cleaning guy will come and help when needed, but he went camping this weekend with his son, couldn't call him.

The guy who's always biddle boppin' around that I use(and pay) for stupid stuff.. Weeds, loading/unloading trucks, heavy cleaning
etc... He just had surgery on his foot.. He's a really good guy, but he's a head trauma and I can't use him for anything technical,
but for an older guy who is constantly in pain, he has the best work ethic of anybody I've ever seen.

I had a younger kid that did some stuff for me.. Last time I heard from/about him, his old lady was asking me for bail money, and I gave her
the cash I had.. So he's in the hole with me and won't show up... and if it only cost me $155 to get rid of somebody like that I'm fine with that...
I had high hopes for this kid... I was wrong. I was paying him $10 an hour cash... That is FAT money in New Mexico, especially for a 19 year old
in the middle of nowhere without a working car, a kid and another on its way.. I see him occasionally riding his bike, and hear about people getting
sick of him bumming money. I'd give him a second chance, if he would show up.. On a VERY tight rope..

I do have a skilled guy that helps me out occasionally, but its the weekend and I don't feel comfortable bugging him on SHORT notice on a weekend.

My better half would at least help with this stupid job, even if all she did was un pack it and lay it out... But she's in Colorado with her family.

I've got another guy that will help out on the weekends, but he's been having seizures again, and can't drive, and he's almost an hour away.. Which would
be no big deal, since I live almost an hour from the shop... He's just in the opposite direction, so I would have to go get him, or he would have to get
a ride and that just won't work out well. Sucks, because I really enjoy it when he is around.

I need to recruit a few more "helpers"..

My goal was to have everybody "helping" paid as true upfront employees by now.. But it just hasn't worked out that way... 1099's and
"casual labor"..

I'd gladly pay somebody $5 an hour to sit around here all day, watch TV and play on the computer and occasionally do a little thing here or there.
I'd pay $10 an hour if they could be unskilled and at least attempt to be productive... Just to have somebody to talk to.

I like having people around, but not all the time.. Its Sunday, its hot and a bit humid.. I've been working in nothing but my underwear for the
past 16 hours... DO NOT attempt to visualize that, I don't want to be liable for you psychiatric treatment. My best physical attribute is that I've
got a nice six pack.......... In my left hand.. Woops, GULP. 5 pack now...

So yes, there is help... Occasionally, sometimes there is no help here, sometimes there is a ton of help here.. I had quite a few days this
spring where I had 3 helpers in the shop with me, and 3 people outside cleaning this shit hole up at the same time... This weekend, its just me,
and me alone, and my dogs...

I wish my dogs had thumbs.

I worked by myself for years, it sucked I thought it was great but now that I have a few employees I love them. Without them I would be working my ass off. We make alot more money with them than without them. I will never go back to just me. I have had to fire a couple people but we always found better people. I was afraid to hire anyone then I gave up and hired a guy who was terrible I kept him for a few months and I couldnt waite to fire him. A few days later I hired a 20 year old girl with machine shop experience and now she runs my whole shop she is 23 now and has hired the other 3 people for me. She handles the stuff I dont want to. Dont worry the accountant handles the money.

I'm a one man band at 32 (turn 33 in 2 hours actually). Some months I'm busy and some months I'm really busy. Unfortunately I moved about an hour away from my nearest close friend, and none of them know how to do any machine work or care to learn how anyways. I also live in a town where it's hard to find anyone I am want coming by the shop, and the ones that I do are usually retired. Not that I am complaining. For now, I enjoy being a one man shop.

Bobw said:

I'd gladly pay somebody $5 an hour to sit around here all day, watch TV and play on the computer and occasionally do a little thing here or there.
I'd pay $10 an hour if they could be unskilled and at least attempt to be productive... Just to have somebody to talk to.

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If I can drink beer too, then I'm IN !!

dkmc said:

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I'll even buy the beer, the commute is your problem.

Bobw said:

I'll even buy the beer, the commute is your problem.

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He is going to need more than a couple of beers if he has to watch you working in your underwear!

I catch enough grief over shooting coyotes off my back porch in my underwear so I have a couple of theses taking care of the shop nowadays

Being a one man shop is though at times, having a lot of help in lifting and moving makes all the difference. I have lifting equipment over all my machinery and, a couple forklifts.

Steve

Bobw said:

I'll even buy the beer, the commute is your problem.

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You best be display'in some Canadian (Labatt blue) MINIMALLY or other Way DARKER craft beers if you want actual help in the shop. I know......"what's Labatt"??
I'm oiling up the chain on the Colombia first thing tomorrow.

swatkins said:

He is going to need more than a couple of beers if he has to watch you working in your underwear!

I catch enough grief over shooting coyotes off my back porch in my underwear so I have a couple of theses taking care of the shop nowadays

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Yea, the pants stay ON .....did I mention that?

dkmc said:

You best be display'in some Canadian (Labatt blue) MINIMALLY or other Way DARKER craft beers if you want actual help in the shop.

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I'm a simpleton, I like my Bud and my Blue Moon Belgian White.

Blackened VooDoo.. That's dark.. It's so dark it doesn't even taste good if its really cold.

Fadal Beer and Ale.. Never had it, but it probably tastes like slow tool changes and blown power supplies.

If you place a order from me every step of the process will be done by me, weather thats ordering material through to cashing your check. Only exception is if i have the gerbils out there to talk too. They have a nice small travel box and love riding the surface grinder table back and forwards (slowly) kinda rocks em to sleep, but yeah comes a point were some company is good. There also ace at document disposal.

Blazemaster said:

I'm a one man band at 32 (turn 33 in 2 hours actually). Some months I'm busy and some months I'm really busy. Unfortunately I moved about an hour away from my nearest close friend, and none of them know how to do any machine work or care to learn how anyways. I also live in a town where it's hard to find anyone I am want coming by the shop, and the ones that I do are usually retired. Not that I am complaining. For now, I enjoy being a one man shop.

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Happy Birthday!

I am a one man shop. It is loads of fun working by myself.

Anytime anything comes up, I have to take care of it. Even not taking out the trash eventually becomes a problem. I find that I spend a great deal of time working on stuff other than the absolute value stream. I am also trying to grow the business and product lines so there is a lot going on.

So over the last few months I picked up some CNC equipment. While I'm learning it, everything else is on hold. Doesn't do well for the cash flow.

Me and the Wife have been talking. Now that the youngest son is going into kindergarten, she is looking to work. I told her I was hiring. We will see how she out in the shop. Good I'm sure. She is a good listener and dependable. I would prefer it to be someone not related, but she is about the only person that will be ok with not getting a paycheck every week until things improve. lol

Not having any help for busy work type things around the shop would be one thing. I suppose with a place like this it's probably not so much of an issue but being a one man show don't some of you wish you had a machining related mind to bounce some ideas off of from time to time?

Like I say having a place such as PM to ask things you may be a bit unsure of is probably a luxury that wasn't available 15 or 20 years ago and when you got stuck you were on you own.

You have to be a pretty sharp fella to be a one man shop but in my mind someone occasionally to bounce things off would be reassuring?

Just thinking out loud....

Brent

yardbird said:

Not having any help for busy work type things around the shop would be one thing. I suppose with a place like this it's probably not so much of an issue but being a one man show don't some of you wish you had a machining related mind to bounce some ideas off of from time to time?

Like I say having a place such as PM to ask things you may be a bit unsure of is probably a luxury that wasn't available 15 or 20 years ago and when you got stuck you were on you own.

You have to be a pretty sharp fella to be a one man shop but in my mind someone occasionally to bounce things off would be reassuring?

Just thinking out loud....

Brent

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You are absolutely right, having the resources of the internet, particularly PM and the like, make being a one man band possible. Asking an esteemed group like this to give your plan a once over is priceless.

Steve

vmipacman said:

I know there are a lot of folks who are one man shows. I was curious, they must have part time help available if they need it right? Even if it's only 10-12 hrs a week or Saturday mornings under the table. Not asking anyone to share controversial details but my line of thinking was that truly just operating as one man there must be a lot of decent jobs that would have to be turned down and the all-nighters at the end of a project just get that much harder without a backup helper.
Thanks for looking

Click to expand...

I am a one man show but I have a full time job and only run stuff on the side. Well, I did back before the oil crash and I actually had work. I do it all except picking up and delivering parts. My wife likes to drive and I dont have time for it so it works out well. I have tried to get her to do the paperwork but she just wont. I dont pay anyone "under the table" mainly because I am terrified of the IRS. There have been times when I have really needed help and could probably have done a lot more work and made more money but its a catch 22 around here. When there was plenty of work all the decent machinists had jobs and were getting plenty of OT. Now that there are plenty of machinists available there isnt any work.