WHER DID I GO WRONG

How would you handle this one: SO CALL’D FRIENDS

I have been fixing a Friend’s farm equipment when ever needed,
And chasing his cows, for a small fee. He would pay me in hay. I didn’t
Think that was a bad deal ,do you. Then he came tome and wanted two tractors completely gone threw. All but rebuilding the motors because they were ok. He asked me what would it cost to do both tractors, just to change all of the fluids, trans, oil, coolant, and hyd fluid, pluss paint,
New gages, new wiring harness, and front wheel bearings, So I did the math gave him a estimate on both tractors. I gave him this itemized list
On both tractor’s. I keep a copy for my self. I also told him that restoring these two tractors was going to be pricey , His answer was DON’T WORREY THE SKI IS THE LIMIT, We ordered all the supply’s started and finished the tractor show ready pulled it out of the shop and the second one the shop, He called me and told me he could not do the thing any more, I said what do you want to do, He said I want to pay you cash. So I thought now how do I do this I did not record the time spent. So I said to my wife what can I do, she replied well what the H---.I guess if he is a friend make easy on him, So we did $980.00, for
Lab, He dropped off a check I with drew from for shop supplies for the next tractor he canceled payment on the, then he called me a said he would not make it good , I called my ATT, he said pay off the check and keep the tractor, for it will cost you more to fight it in court than $980.00. Now here I have all the stuff to do the other tractor and it is done and show ready . Where has the good o boy hand shake and the mans agreement between men or woman gone. YES it P.M.O. big time
And he dose not understand I will not work on his farm equipment even After I explained to him you do not this to your friends ::::::::
THAT IS SO WRONG:: WHERE DID I GO WRONG
JR FRYE

I will try and down the tractor

I guess before I flew too far off the handle I'd try to find out what's going on in his life that made him change his mind. Did he suddenly fall on hard times? Is he having marital problems? A health problem just diagnosed? Coming down hard on him might not be just what he needs right now.

I restored an M last winter, and the problem is these monkeys don't have a clue! If you make one show ready depending on the tractor of coarse, their is now way to estimate time. I have done my last tractor for anyone. Parts and paint are sky high, so the sky had better be the limit! Its sad to say but unless the tractor is unusual for some reason or other, or sentimental, by the time you buy tires and tubes for it you are upside down in it. Sad really what our hobby has become.

I can't really say, but on the bright side I think your work looks great! To bad mine don't look like that.! Sorry for what happend thought. I hope it can be worked out.

That's good advice RR.

You Did Nothing Different Than Most of US ! People just Do these things Anymore &Then Can't Pay for the things They Want. Sorry You Got Burned,Thing's will never Be the Same Again Between the two of you .this Is Why we NEVER do Repair Work on Other Peoples Equipment.Our Uncle's were a Dealer Many Years ago & They Got Burned back then by Farmer's who did the Same Thing Then.

When the words out of his mouth was DON’T WORREY THE SKY IS THE LIMIT. People have this idea in there head and when you get the job done they back out. Usually the first thing out of there mouth is I don't have any money.

Might not be what he needs right now but I guarantee getting screwed over isn't what JR FRYE needs.The guy let his Alligator wants over run his Jaybird
wallet and now its time to pay up. If he can't pay up then at least give the guy the tractor that worked on it.

I'd find out what's up with him and the why. It may make it make sense to you, but it still isn't right.

He will probably show up for the tractor at some point. Send a registered letter that states you will be taking the tractor as payment by a certain date. Sell it then so that you don't deal with it anymore. I'd be making sure he couldn't come when you aren't around and pick it up.

Hahahaha, that happened to my wife's father this summer. A "friend" of his dosent work, lives off his kids disability or what ever he gets and is always broke. Well he asks her dad for money, as he's lent to him before, he told the guy ill give you $1800 for that steel rack hay wagon, so they agreed. He said when you come up with the money ill give u back the wagon. One day he wasent around and the guy came over and took the wagon back! Lol

JR FRYE: You have hit on one of the reasons I do not do much tractor/equipment repair anymore. I got tired of carrying people's bills. I have to pay my suppliers in a timely manner or I do not get anymore parts.

My son is doing some repair work but it is a few close friends/customers that I KNOW will pay their bills on time. Several fellows are bad mouthing him around the neighborhood because he will not work on their stuff. I told him that is better than holding the bag on unpaid repairs.

I would go talk to him man to man face to face and find out what is going on. If he just is out of money than maybe try to work out finishing the tractors and selling the last one to cover the bill with any surplus going back to him.

If he is just being hard headed about it then go after him for the bad check. Him stopping payment is still actionable in court. You also can get a mechanic's lien on him too for the unpaid bill. That mechanic's lien can result in a judgment in your favor and you then can sell the tractor for your money.

I'll tell you,I've had dammed poor work done too after a price was agreed on and it was all I could do to keep from kicking some azz,but what are you going to do?

Had a neighbor who lost his job and came here saying he'd do most anything to make some money. I had him paint the roof of the house and barn. He did a good job,I paid him what we'd agreed on. He had restored a couple of cars and did a nice job and I had a 3010 Deere that I wanted cleaned up and painted,so I asked him how much he'd soak me to do that if I bought the paint. He walked around and around it for what seemed like half an hour muttering wult,ahhh,wult,ahhhh......FINALLY he said he'd do it for $200. He came one morning wanting it and the forcast was for a big rain storm later that day and I told him that. He said he knew,he just wanted to start cleaning it up so I let him take it home. I went by there mid afternoon to chop a load of feed and the storm clouds were on the horizon. He was out there painting it. When I was done chopping and headed home,there were a few big drops of rain hitting me and and he was still out there painting. I thought he'd put it in his barn but no! Next morning is was still sitting there,paint all runny and blistered and he wasn't around.
He didn't come home until Monday and he went out and put another coat over that mess. I was ready to throttle him! I asked him if he was going to clean it up and re paint it. He about came right off the ground and started yelling that he'd done all he was doing to that dammed thing and he wanted his money. When my blood pressure came down enough to even be able to talk I asked him why he hadn't even sanded anything before he started painting? He asked me what I expected for $200?
He was the one who told ME $200 in the first place for Gods sakes. What the H3ll do you do in a situation like that but learn from it and never do any business with the guy again.

Beautiful work! I have been in tractor restoration business 20+ years. First as mentioned what has happened in his life? Second I had no issues like this until about three years ago I believe society values have just plain changed. Third the cost to do a tractor versus the value slip in common tractor values when done quickly sorts out the dreamers.

Last I knew bad check was something that you took to the P.A. and he would then take care of it but then one never knows now day if passing a bad check is illegal. I know if he asked me to do more work for him I would say pay up or get out

I think what the customer "needs" is to man up and stand by the agreement he entered into . Not a bunch of sorryaff excuses from him and everyone else why his problems should become everyone else's problems. That kind of attitude is what has brought this once great country to the brink of disaster. I feel almost certain the customer or someone else will soon inform us how his bad childhood justifies Mr. Frye restoring his tractor for free. Sorry I have this strong tendency to tell it like it is.

The truth is your fiend didn't want the tractor after all. When I work on something any more for other people I always get some money up front to cover expenses for supplies or have them get the parts and supplies.

Hi Sorry you got stuck like this, that's a nice tractor. I don't like working for friends and when I sold used tractors. I tried not to sell to friends, you could guarantee the one you sold them was a pain in the @$$, and would stress a friendship. It happened once and never again.

With what I fix now I tend to run from the skies the limit guys. 9 out of 10 times it translates to got no money. Or you tell them $3000 and the sky wasn't that high today.
I would rather a guy come on the yard and say he's got money problems, Usually means he's honest.
I have worked for a few like that. Told them if they could find money for parts as nobody does charge accounts much here now, I'd do the job and then they come pay the labor later.
they will usually have a check in my hand within a month to 6 weeks if thats what we agree to when someone pays them money.
I have guys tell me why do you work for so and so they owe money to everybody. Kinda look on there face when I don't have a problem getting paid is interesting.
I then find out the truth that guys hound the daylights out of them and spread rumors. And the guy appreciates that I try to work with what they got and get them out of trouble.
Yes I have been lucky and will get caught one day. But until then I will help the honest guys in trouble.
I would go talk to the guy and see what you can work out, even if it's a payment plan or sell the tractor for your costs. If that Tractor was a Fordson Major and near me I would love to buy it for whats owed!.
Regards Robert

Wher did you go wrong?

You didn't have a repair order, specifying what repairs were to be done at what cost, that spelled out that an express mechanic's lien would apply until the bill was paid, and that had the tractor owner's signature authorizing the work.

You cannot trust a man's word to be his bond these days. The days of being able to repair someone's equipment simply on their verbal authorization are long gone; you just need to own up to that, and change how you do business. Make them sign to authorize all repairs before you ever lift a wrench. If you find deeper problems after you start, make them sign off on those as well. Otherwise, it's as if you decided to do all this stuff on your own, without any authorization. DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT any conversations, including phone calls...and CYA six ways from Sunday.

My family ran a garage for 50 years, and that's what I took away from the experience.

I agree with Randy. Waaaaay too many times in my life I have gotten all worked up about something and then find out I was way wrong once I got the story. Talk to him, maybe he is overreacting to something in his own life.

(quoted from post at 09:33:11 12/20/13) Wher did you go wrong?

You didn't have a repair order, specifying what repairs were to be done at what cost, that spelled out that an express mechanic's lien would apply until the bill was paid, and that had the tractor owner's signature authorizing the work.

You cannot trust a man's word to be his bond these days. The days of being able to repair someone's equipment simply on their verbal authorization are long gone; you just need to own up to that, and change how you do business. Make them sign to authorize all repairs before you ever lift a wrench. If you find deeper problems after you start, make them sign off on those as well. Otherwise, it's as if you decided to do all this stuff on your own, without any authorization. DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT any conversations, including phone calls...and CYA six ways from Sunday.

My family ran a garage for 50 years, and that's what I took away from the experience.

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Great advice!
I don't go along with the "talk to the guy" crowd in this case. The guy didn't write a bad check. He stopped payment on a check. BIG difference.
Talk to a lawyer about getting a judgement. It's not as simple as just keeping the tractor.

I predict that the way you are going about this, he will come and get the tractor while you are out, or he will come with the local sheriff with papers allowing him to get the tractor Better do something other than complain and post on here, quickly. Tom

You didn't do anything wrong. Every so often one of these people come along.

Selling trees, I don't dig until I have cash in hand. Got too sick of trees sitting, people not showing up, etc.

When you have their cash, and agree on a time, they will show up.

Rick