Got to say something that has been bothering me.

[boscoebrea]

Wait times and doesn't answer the phone complaints,...Sure some are warranted, that said, too many people do not get it.
Custom work takes time,and most of those people are working to get your order out,that is what they get paid for
and answering the phone is not perority.
Patience,have it or do your own work.
Custom stocks,get on a waiting list,wait and then wait some more,most do tell you how long you have to wait,
Tuning and fixing,=have to see what is wrong,then have to order the parts,then this and that, patience.
Think about this,if a custom tuner is well known wouldn't he have more businss= more wait time,but remember you can always say I got my air gun tuned by so and so
Of course, if you purchase a new air gun and it does not work ,That would be another subject.
I think it is a good idea for the "tuner" and client to have a working understanding, and if there is a problem the tuner should call the client and tell him about it, that is also part of a tuners job,to keep the client informed....that should be upfront and the client should have enough faith in his chosen tuner to trust him.
One tuner is notorious for not answering the phone,yet people still complain about it.Every time I order something from him I get it within 2 weeks, I use his website to order.
Sorry for those that have had a bad experiences,always check out the "tuner" custom parts guy Before you proceed.
One more thought....I have waited too long on some custom parts or tune jobs ,custom stocks or resin models,and that person retired .or no longer is around.
I used to have a sheet that had the Air Gun tuners that belonged to the Air Gun Guild info on it...I do not even know if there is still a Air Gun Guild.
One thing I do know,air guns are a lot better nowadays.
Thank you for your patience.

 

[Ca_Varminter]

The one world class tuner that comes to mind is Allen Zasadny.

He does not have an email or Internet site.
The only contact is by phone.... But doesn't answer all the time...
But if you are lucky enough to get him to tune your gun or purchase one of his masterpieces...
He warns you not to call him to check on the progress.....

These guys need their time to work...
Also they don't like to have someone else answering the phone........
So please have a little Patience, and silence it golden to them!
or.. Make it yourself.....I do!!

 

[Ranchibi]

I understand what you are saying and in life I believe communication is very key to the success of all relationships. Wait times are usually no issue for me, just give me approximate times with a large leeway is no issue especially with custom work...it is "custom" for a good reason and needs extra time for the most part not just with airguns....like you said...patience.....

 

[A.G.R]

Im not sure I get the reason for this tread. If it were so easy, why not do it yourself. Nothing and I mean nothing bothers a craftsmen who is badgered with questions and progress calls. You knew going in the rules and half way through you get angry. Its why many get out of doing it as its not worth it. LITERALLY. You end up spending a week or more sometimes with a difficult gun. You charge under $500. ...hmmm
who wants to make $500 a week. McDonald,s pays more and you don't need to know sh!t

 

[MikeVV]

I do cylinder head porting on car and sometimes motorcycles engine heads.

I'll give the owner an approximate timeframe, but sometimes...poop happens...life gets in the way !
I hardly ever answer the phone...at "all" during the day, whether I'm working or not. But feel free to call in the evening, I normally answer the phone then, and help all that I can.
BUT, I also let folks know, about my comments above, so "I may not get back to you right away", before they drive off. Most understand, and don't have a problem with it.
"Just keep me informed" is the most common statement. And that I do.

Mike

 

[Smitty911]

Oh, this is a double edge sword. Having had lot's of custom work done by leaders in their industry's in various fields, it's truly a catch 22.

The Person spends a huge amount of time becoming a recognized expert.
Their prices increase to reflect their expertise.
Their queued up work increase as people want those services.
The people in the back of the line get impatient with the wait, and increase their phone calls and emails to get updated
This takes away the time the Expert can spend on moving thing though the Que, making everyone wait longer
They hire a helper, which slows the process because of training time and double checking the work
More people in the que, start demanding their "X" back, which leads to rushing
Rushing leads to potential quality issues,
Customers with a quality issue tend to make a bigger stink, sends "X" back, increasing wait times

For the last 20 or so years, if I've wanted custom work done, I've had the discussion on what is to be done, how long it will take and then the price. If they can't get the work done in the time I need it done, than the price won't matter. Case in point - When I raced ATV's. I sent my motor back to WV to get a stroker cranks installed and the head ported. Was told 3 months to get all the parts needed, the work done, assembled and sent back. Called once to make sure my motor arrived in safe condition and we didn't talk again until he opened the motor and had started working on it, back in 4 months.

I recently started learning to play the Viola, bought a beginners to intermediate one, as I didn't know how I'd like it. At some point I hope to "outgrow" this one and have one made. The Luthier that makes Art (His video of how he makes them is on YouTube and the level of detail/craftsmanship is off the hook.) that can produce Music, the Viola is 6-9 months to get finished. Not quite ready for that jump, but it's in my mind when I'm ready.

Smitty