Instrument Specialties Inc.

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to take a minute to address some questions regarding current time frames etc. here in Rhode Island.


I'll start by saying this. We love our customers!

When I started Instrument Specialties, I never imagined we would grow to have such a large presence in the industry and it is very humbling to be able to say our work is featured on television as well as countless show cars all over the world.

Things have changed here over the years.

Initially, I typically would have around 100 jobs ongoing at any one time.
The point we have grown to at this time, we have almost 500 jobs in process right now.

The dilemma is that we are a small crew. I am very much still involved in this hands on work to ensure my high standard of quality. Quality is the main importance to me.

The volume of jobs we have and the type or work we are now doing just doesn't allow for a quick turn around in many cases.

The majority of the jobs we get now are multi faceted and complex. Like, the turn key dash board restorations. I used to get maybe 5 a year? Now we seem to have 50 or more of those here at any one time. I owe that to Graveyard Carz showcasing that service.

I hate to see people disappointed that we have a long time frame in some cases, but its because you like what we do!

Here is where we are at timeline wise generally speaking:

If you have just a gauge cluster, we are trending about 4-6 weeks based on complexity.

If you add in plastic chrome plating, timeline gets pushed out considerably as we bottle neck at the detail painting phase. Myself and only one other person handle that delicate finish work. Be prepared for an 8-10 month turn around due to the volume of work we currently have.

If you want an entire turn key dash restoration or complete interior resto: be prepared to wait closer to a year because of the complexity and processes for each component.

I always say to folks starting a resto, plan ahead. If you do that, these times wont hold you up. For those who wait till the dash needs to go back in to decide they need it gone through, well...we still want to help you but you have to wait like all the other patient people that did so ahead of you.

I promise the wait will be worth it. We give our all and we stand behind our work.

Thanks for everything!
Mike

I know exactly what you mean . We tell people upfront what our average turnaround time is , then it never fails , you get some people call
3 days after their radio arrives here wanting a "progress report" .
And then their are the restoration shops that wait till about a week
before their customer is scheduled to pick up their car before they decide to send us the radio , even though they have had the car in their shop for a year . Most people understand about turnaround times , but an amazing number of people out there think that we are just sitting around with nothing to do waiting for a job to come in , like the Maytag repair man .

Greg

Glad to hear both you guys are busy.

I've used Greg's services before and was more than happy. I have heard good things about Mike's services.

Anyone who wants a quick turn around while asking for perfection really should get another hobby.

We, at Hames Restoration, have used Mike to restore several of our dashes and have been very satisfied with the high quality of his work. Then again, as mentioned before, planning ahead is the key. Mike and his crew do quality work that you can count on working correctly once it is installed in your car.

Thanks again to Mike and the crew for all you do.

Mike, have you considered hiring more employees, particularly in the paint phase where you have the bottleneck?

We've always had good service from Mike and crew.

Planning is definitely the key, I've been bit by that myself several times on my own stuff. Often, when I've chosen the quicker path to getting something done, I've not been happy with the result.

If we could find a qualified person, yes.

We have looked for a long time now. I've posted help wanted ads on our facebook page, local newspapers, tech schools, car forums. We haven't even had replies for the job. It's very very tedious and many people don't have the patience or are intimidated by it. It doesn't seem that the upcoming generation has an interest in working with their hands.

Unless its a keyboard or a phone..... LOL

Mike and Greg, we are in the same boat. Hard to turn away work but we are running a 6 month backlog without any relief in sight.

Actually it's one hand and a joy stick*


*you can take that literally or not

Perhaps your approaching/reaching the "wrong" job market of canidates?, granted I'm sure you want a "automotive enthusiast" with the right credentials applying for the job, but Instrument painting and detailing are basically "art work", and while some guys/gals can screw together a mighty fine looking vehicle, they often rely on others for paint, body, upholstery, instrument detailing, etc, etc, so while they may possess some fine automotive assembly skills, they often lack the talent needed to produce the detail that the individual components require...

I'd suggest you look for individuals in the arts, particularly the Architectural 3 dimensional model builders, this skill requires attention to detail in miniature, the ability to produce/create models and details in various mediums, so hand/finger dexterity as well as eye/hand/finger coordination for detailed work is often second nature for the individual, perhaps posting your job offer at schools like R.I.S.D. (Rhode Island School of Design) would yield you a candidate? they have a fine Architecture program with 3D electives

Although the 3D Architectural model maker is a dying breed with the advent of computer generated graphics, they are out there...

Mike

You just gave me an excellent idea.

The heater control lettering on my 70 Challenger is looking a bit forlorn and have considered pulling the bezel and sending it off for a refresh,,,,but is a bear to pull and would be out of service for the duration.

However my little wife has unexpectedly turned into becoming quite the freehand artist and has been turning out reams of these drawing since signing up for a drawing class some 3 years ago,,,,having never drawn anything in her life except from an ATM.

These are only a very small sample, each taking a couple of hours. I now refer to her as Grandma Moses and considering setting her up as a sidewalk artist for some car parts mad money.

I suspect that she could do this freehand without even having to pull the bezel.

Any advice as to best approach to refinish the lettering appreciated.

Very nice artwork. That is talent right there

We are in the same boat, a lot of backlog and Like Mike, I refuse to sacrifice the quality. The last 6 hires for a fourth employee did nothing but drain the checkbook. I have 3 good people and have stopped looking for a 4th at the present time.

I'd add to look at plastic model builder hobbiests.

A lot of the detail resto work translates well from plastic model building.

Maybe put a job posting at a local hobby store (if one still exists if your area)

For me as long as a company is up front about the time it will take im ok with it. But when a company says you will have it in a month guaranteed and three months later still no parts I can get a little hot.

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I have posted ads multiple times with RISD and local hobby shops as well, no bites.

This might be a crazy idea but the reproduction bezels are manufactured overseas. Maybe you could send them out for detailing although it could be risky and expensive shipping out of country but I bet the labor would be very reasonable. Mike Ross of BE&A possibly could hook you up with whoever is doing the present repop detailing. I don't think you are really competing with one another since certain guys only want original parts while others don't mind a reproduction. Like I said crazy thought.

D@mm, that's frustrating.

Good to hear of your "problem" Mike

I remember a customer in Canada with a heating and cooling business who told me he wouldn't hire anyone under 45 ever again. Now we sound like our dads Unfortunately there's some truth to that. Even my own 2 sons, 26 and 18, have never worked on anything mechanical even though I offered both "hey lets build YOU a 68 Hemi Dart - less the Hemi" Neither took me up on it.

I too could use a good person. I'm gonna poach a good 59yo machinist/machine builder from the industrial automation (robotics) company I worked at for 25 years. I would go on out of town service/repair with this guy and he wouldn't take breaks or lunches. We would push on and do WHATEVER was necessary to get the job done and get home.

Sad thing is in 35+ years of working I have only met about 5 people I would actually hire and I'm married to one of them. One was a young guy I mentored. He was a junior in high school taking night classes at community college with me. Now owns a 75 person engineering company with international satellite offices. Point is, I think some of the REALLY GOOD people do there own thing.