What would you do ? Not the TV show!

Grotius wrote: Are you able to provide some pictures of the project to get an idea of the size?

No pictures, they do not allow it saying "trade secret" ! WTF????

Grotius wrote: If the installation is running and profits 10k a day. Why not pay 50k for a high end solution?

Leme try to explain the mentality around here with some examples:
- Waiter's here are paid 300 Euro/month, all of them own the latest iPhone costing 900 to 1200 E. Till 7 months ago the salary was 200 euro.
- People that own and drive very expensive cars costing over 40 to 70K go to gas stations to put 5 Euro of gas in it, and put brakes that cost 7 euros on those cars, only after the existing ones are completely shot.
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Personally, there are over 12 industrial machines here that i asked 700 to 6500E to fix, they are rusting and collecting dust for several years, including a 1998 Trumpf 4KW laser with automatic pallets, that got burned to a crisp by a 19 year old who told them he could install and set it up (not fix, it was bought in Germany in working condition), and is now used as feeding ground for mice.
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I think i have some pictures of an Amada punch press with Fanuc controls that i was maintaining and servicing and programming some 9 years back, until the owner threw 10 euros at me for an hour of manual programming, so i quit. Two years later the monitor on it died, so normally i refused to fix it, so he found some other guy to do that and the result was the same as above, literally burned to a crisp. I will find the pictures and upload them for sure.
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It is very hard to understand the mentality around here, although in general we are very nice and very friendly people, some issues still remain....
This got to long... Thank you all for the support.

If the client is making your job hard now ( no photos), then you must ask:
1. What is your core business?
2. How easy is the customer going to be to work with when the job gets harder?
3. Why make his problem your problem?

I have often found if you step out of your core business, you often get burnt.
If your core business is fixing machine tools, should you be fixing production lines?

Really, they shell out 350k and don't have the sense to send somebody to take it apart in a way so they can actually put it back together? Then they find a local guy and expect him to fix it for them without taking pictures? Either they are really naive or really smart.
I bet the "seller" would be quite happy to find out the buyer had brought somebody else in to put it back together.
Just imagine the controller doesn't work, how many mesa cards are you going to need to get that thing running on LinuxCNC?
I wouldn't touch that thing unless I was REALLY desperate for work.

rodw wrote: If the client is making your job hard now ( no photos), then you must ask:
1. What is your core business?
2. How easy is the customer going to be to work with when the job gets harder?
3. Why make his problem your problem?

I am dealing with two of them, the third is in US.
One of them wants me to manage the whole factory and fix the machine, the other (younger) one wants the machine working and insists it is an easy job !

rodw wrote: I have often found if you step out of your core business, you often get burnt.
If your core business is fixing machine tools, should you be fixing production lines?

That is very true, but i also maintain some production lines, so not stepping out much.
Thank you.

Aciera wrote: Either they are really naive or really smart.

Naive. They did not bother to find me before purchasing the machine, that would have save a decent chunk of money and time.

Aciera wrote: I bet the "seller" would be quite happy to find out the buyer had brought somebody else in to put it back together.

They would be, they already calculated over 30K for that, so that becomes "easy money" for them, and no more warranty.

Aciera wrote: Just imagine the controller doesn't work, how many mesa cards are you going to need to get that thing running on LinuxCNC?

Roughly 50 to 100 of them, and that still seems low.

Aciera wrote: I wouldn't touch that thing unless I was REALLY desperate for work.

At the moment i am desperate for money, not for work. I invested everything ( as i usually do ) on the machines i have built and decided not to sell them, so i am in a bit of a pickle, but not nearly desperate enough to go that route.
Thank you.

What would I do? I'm an aircraft engineer, and if someone brought a junk plane to me, and had the attitude that it should be easy to fix, I'd politely decline due to too many commitments, and recommend them to my competition, in the hope that the screw over my competitor

Where are you? What is your relationship with the buyers? Do you trust them to pay you weekly, on time, and not dick you around?

"the other (younger) one wants the machine working and insists it is an easy job !"



That is a warning right there! Unrealistic expectations.

Do they have the necessary current cash flow to cover your wages + parts for a couple of months?

Sounds to me like the buyers are already completely screwed, and you are their only hope. They don't have $350K in value, that junk pile is basically worthless as it stands. Therefore you can set this up as a zero risk prospect for you. As has already been said, you invoice time weekly, and down tools if they don't pay. If you have real concerns about their cash flow, put them on cash up front.

Take no formal responsiblity for the project management, but they have to source any parts necessary that you spec, and if they bauk, you walk.

If they play along, and you get this junk pile working for them, there should be a lucrative service contract out of it.

Or you wait, and buy the whole line from the bankrupcy auction for cents on the dollar, and set up you own factory

At the moment i am desperate for money, not for work. I invested everything ( as i usually do ) on the machines i have built and decided not to sell them, so i am in a bit of a pickle, but not nearly desperate enough to go that route.

Tommy, you are one of the most generous persons with your time and expertise. Please set up a Patreon acount, and let the community start paying you for your help.