How long does it take?

My response depends on what I am charging for it. Seriously though, I usually explain to them about the whole process the bowl goes through. I explain how long roughing takes; how long the drying process takes; the finish turning; and the finishing which I usually do when I have a large number of bowls to do. I try to give them an approximate time of actual work over the calendar time it takes from beginning to end.

Or, it takes a couple of hours, but first you practice for five years.

I give much the same spiel, but you know those people are always doing the numbers in their head to figure your hourly wage so I always add a bit about how I would make pretty good money if I could keep it all, but the gallery takes half, there are show fees, equipment expense, paying my own insurance, self-employment taxes, etc, until what's left to pay for my time isn't a lot.

Another favorite answer is that it is like asking an accomplished pianist how long it took him to learn a Scott Joplin tune. The answer might be "few hours and 15 years of practice," and that's how it is for me, too.

-mike paulson, fort collins, co

How old was the tree?

Personally, I wouldn't feel obligated to justify anything. It's art. There's talent involved. How can you price that?

If someone wants to buy a piece, they'll pay what you ask. If not, they won't.

Why price an object using time as a standard?

Just explain:

You turned it green and it took and hour or so.

It sat on your shelf for several months to dry.

Then you final turned and finished it and it took 2-3 hours.

God worked on the tree for a hundred years or so.

Raise your price and donate some to the pastor.

RonB

RonB wrote Raise your price and donate some to the pastor.

Sounds good to me Ron, I am the pastor :-)

Well there you go. A plan!!

Don't know what to tell you but................if you use baltic birch I have about an hours worth of grinding per bowl + 2-3 hours turning. No waiting for drying though (that is a plus). I think I would starve trying to sell these bowls. Remember Robert Sorby says in a catalog I have from them: "The only way to make a small fortune woodturning, is to start out with a large one." Unless the person buying an item has a lathe and the skills to create what you do..........the item should be a bargain at any price (within reason) regardless of time spent turning it. Good Luck Lyndell

"Lobby Dosser" wrote: How old was the tree? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Ha-ha. That question is valid only if you were the one who planted it.

Seriously, though, try to put yourself in the customer's place. It's a valid question, stemming from interest and curiosity, probably, rather than haggling strategy. A reasonable answer would be, "It varies a lot, depending on the bowl, and a lot of factors--could go from half a day to a week, sometimes."

Hi Darrell,

I heard a good line about that very subject at a meeting today. My answer would be (52 yrs)

Feel free to insert your own number here. :)

Best wishes, Dave

David Peebles Lyons, Ohio Revolutions Woodturning

It's also an Odd question and, it seems to me, somewhat rude. Say you were buying a hand knit scarf, would you ask how long it took to make it? How long did it take to make that sandwich? Etc. I might ask someone How they did something and not be bothered if they didn't want to discuss it

Lucky you.

Bjarte

I think Fred Styler - the lathe-meister has the answer in his poem:

How Long Does It Take To Turn One of Those? Do you mean? not plant the tree, but find the wood, just 'see' the piece, (as if I could)? to find a highly figured burl, a crotch, an eye, or pearly curl? And once I spy it, perhaps buy it, inventory, store, and dry it? Then saw or cut it, possibly I kiln it' glue, imbue with fill, or drill it? You mean, that once I'm satisfied it's stopped the warps, checks, cracks, once dried? And mounted on the lathe, to turn it, (which takes much practice, just to learn it; and then employ a gouge, or two, or use a skew, which I don't eschew, to mold it, shape it (what's your pleasure?) by all means, I'm sure to measure, then sand it smooth, please wear your mitts, from coarse to fine, 10,000 grits, then braze, or burnish, paint, or polish, (the goal: enhance, and don't demolish)? Is that your question, start to end, how long's that path, its way to wend? Or do you merely want to know how long it turned? Ten minutes, or so.

John A. Styer, The Lathe-meister

Honor the customer. Give a straight answer. I generally give a close estimate, followed by "but I have been doing them for twenty years." Give them credit for something, after all, they're looking at stuff in your booth, aren't they? Must have good taste....

I'd say just tell them what your gut feeling is and don't bother analyzing the whole thing. They're either looking for a measure of how much to be impressed, or wondering if they can compete with you. Then let them go back and try it themselves if they're a woodturner. Next time they'll be back knowing how long it took THEM to try. Whenever I ask that question I already know I'd starve if I had to make a living at it.

- Owen -

I did a fairly large (for my 14" lathe) ash bowl a few weeks ago for my wife... as I was buffing it, I was kind of adding up the time spent on cutting the blank, rough turning it, final turning, etc... I was REALLY glad that I wasn't making this one to sell, because I hit about 5 or 6 hours BEFORE I added the sanding, oiling and buffing time, which was at least 2 more hours...

I'd say that the "average" bowl has to take me about 3 or 4 hours from start to finish, and I think that I work fairly fast... (at least a lot faster than I did a few years ago)

mac

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Yeah.. I can relate to that.... I was kidding my chiropractor about getting "$45 a crack" one time and he told me "You're not paying me for the time I work on you, you're paying me for the 8 years of college and the expense of running an office"..

Since my best month selling bowls so far was about $600, I figure that about a year and a half of months like that would pay for my tools... Now, if wood was free and I didn't charge for labor, I could do this for a living! Of course, that would require the tools to last forever without expensive maintenance or replacement.. *g*

mac

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I actually did ask just that question last week!

We were in Baja and went to the local swap meet and there was a lady there selling hats woven out of plastic walmart bags.... She seemed to sell a few in the 20 minutes that we talked to her, at $25 each...

Maybe it's because I'm hoping to make a little money down there selling wood stuff, but one of the first things that popped out was something like "wow, those are really different, how long does it take you to make one?"

She didn't react as if I was being rude, so I hope I wasn't... she said something like "4 hours to a week, depending on how much I feel like making them"...

mac

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