River Cruiser
Guru
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2013
- Messages
- 1,357
- Location
- US
- Vessel Name
- Northern Lights II
- Vessel Make
- Bayliner 3870
I do probably 80% of all the work on my boat, 100% of maintenance - oil, filter, antifreeze changes & transmission fluid changes. About the only projects I have the marina mechanic do is Fiberglas, jelcoat bottom paint & I had him do a thru hull transducer. Having a older boat (1987) I buy most high dollar parts on line, I used to try to buy thru the marina but their prices were always 30%+ higher so I quit even giving them a try. I still buy most maintenance supplies from them because they're handy & have it in stock. They don't stock any type of electronics, filters for my boat other than for the Westerbeke gen. I made the decision that if I was going to wait for them to order a part & pay the freight I might as well shop for the best price. I was in the store yesterday & there was a new sign behind the counter "the hourly rate to install parts bought elsewhere will be $105.00" normal rate is $75.00. For some reason reading that really pissed me off & I decided to quit buying anything from them. If I need mechanic services I'll go the 63 miles down the river to Port Charles marina, they charge I believe $90.00 but have a reputation of doing excellent work, and it's a nice cruise. I know I'am being unreasonable but it seems that they're saying their parts charge is so high that if they can't screw you on parts then they'll do on the hourly rate. The only work I had planned to give them this winter was removing the rotten wood in the arch & glassing in new, installing a couple of cleats on the transom & a haul to replace anodes. It seems to me that if I keep buying from them & giving work to the mechanic I'am condoning this new scheme. Does anyone have any comments on this business practice, am I being unreasonable to stop buying anything from them, and what are mechanic rates in your area? RANT OVER.