[tlcpokertables]

Hey all! Took a break from making tables and decided to make something from the scraps! I upholstered the lid with black marine grade faux leather. What price tag would you put on this?....Just Curious.

 

[DesertRatTom]

$225 with plywood front. $500 with book matched panels on front and sides.

 

[tlcpokertables]

$225 with plywood front. $500 with book matched panels on front and sides.

Thank you, sir! I appreciate the input!

 

[Nickp]

Very nice storage trunk...but...

If you do a search on storage trunks you will see many, maybe too many, in the under $200 range. Some look "expensive" for just over $200. See example... https://www.wayfair.com/keyword.php?keyword=Harrison+Wood+Storage+Bench&class_id=

I'm thinking that folks will compare yours to the ones they would see on line and might pass yours up. They might look at features, color, trim, feet, etc...

So, while I'm sure you put in some good quality work into yours, it might not be appreciated as much as it deserves.

So many more people have gotten used to shopping on line and prices are pretty low...

Take a search for "storage trunks" and see what you think...

 

[Cherryville Chuck]

I think there are some other considerations you should look at between what you made and what is commonly available. Yours is very solid and the construction techniques are very solid so yours will take abuse and still be around in 50 years. Will the others? Are the other ones particle board with ultra thin veneer? Make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.

One thing that I think would improve yours is to stain the inside of the chest too. To me it looks unfinished because of that.

 

[Herb Stoops]

Great looking chest. I wish everyone who has people remove their shoes to enter had one so they had something to sit on when they leave to put their shoes back on. And a place to store the shoes once removed.

Good job. Makes a matching bench for the poker players to sit while waiting for a player to drop out, too.
Herb

 

[Bstrom]

I think there are some other considerations you should look at between what you made and what is commonly available. Yours is very solid and the construction techniques are very solid so yours will take abuse and still be around in 50 years. Will the others? Are the other ones particle board with ultra thin veneer? Make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.

One thing that I think would improve yours is to stain the inside of the chest too. To me it looks unfinished because of that.

I agree with Chuck - yours is a cut above the mainstream but needs a few finishing touches - not only stain the inside but pull that sticker and hide those screw heads - maybe add a creative/decorative touch as well - then you'll have something worth paying 'more' for...

 

[tlcpokertables]

I agree with Chuck - yours is a cut above the mainstream but needs a few finishing touches - not only stain the inside but pull that sticker and hide those screw heads - maybe add a creative/decorative touch as well - then you'll have something worth paying 'more' for...

Hi Brian,
Agreed on all points! I made this piece out of scraps in my shop, and just wanted to gauge its value in case I made another one (since my scraps are somewhat consistent). I made this for a friend of mine, and his son is using it as a toy chest. I didn't finish the interior because I knew it was going to get some abuse. Next time I will finish the inside and maybe even get some decorative handles for the sides.

Thanks for the input!!

 

[jody495]

Nice work. I built 3 toy boxes a few years ago. The one thing I would recommend is to use torsion box hinges from Rockler. They keep the lids from slamming shut and hurting someone. I would say it’s worth between $300 to $400 range, but the big box stores have flooded us with junk.

 

[MEBCWD]

It is hard to compete with the import items because their material costs are low even for decent quality materials and of course their labor costs remain very low. When shipped there are so many on the ship that cost per piece is really low. A lot of the construction of these items use the quickest, easiest joinery so they are not the quality product that you would try to build in your shop.

As most of you know a lot of the materials we are using now are imported so we pay for the material(some of it is subpar) plus overseas shipping cost, plus the shipping cost from the port of entry to a distributor. Then we pay shipping from the distributor to the local big box store. I hate to say it but I have bought US-produced materials and they were higher than the imported material but I do need to point out I had to purchase the US produced material because the quality of the available import material was not good enough to use for the high-end project I was building. This is something to consider when pricing a quote for a customer.

Remember woodworkers producing items in their home shop for sale want to produce the best item they can with the equipment they can afford. They want the customer to be satisfied with their purchase and often work with the customer to produce a one of a kind item just for them. We deal with most of these customers face to face so we want them to have a positive experience when working with us where the overseas manufacturer really doesn't care as long as they can sell their inferior products to anyone that has money to spend.

 

[Nickp]

Mike...you said it a whole lot better than I did...:smile:

It is hard to compete with the import items because their material costs are low even for decent quality materials and of course their labor costs remain very low. When shipped there are so many on the ship that cost per piece is really low. A lot of the construction of these items use the quickest, easiest joinery so they are not the quality product that you would try to build in your shop.

As most of you know a lot of the materials we are using now are imported so we pay for the material(some of it is subpar) plus overseas shipping cost, plus the shipping cost from the port of entry to a distributor. Then we pay shipping from the distributor to the local big box store. I hate to say it but I have bought US-produced materials and they were higher than the imported material but I do need to point out I had to purchase the US produced material because the quality of the available import material was not good enough to use for the high-end project I was building. This is something to consider when pricing a quote for a customer.

Remember woodworkers producing items in their home shop for sale want to produce the best item they can with the equipment they can afford. They want the customer to be satisfied with their purchase and often work with the customer to produce a one of a kind item just for them. We deal with most of these customers face to face so we want them to have a positive experience when working with us where the overseas manufacturer really doesn't care as long as they can sell their inferior products to anyone that has money to spend.

 

[papasombre]

Holy smoke, Frank.
Do you call that scrap?
I can't imagine your raw material.

 

[Herb Stoops]

Holy smoke, Frank.
Do you call that scrap?
I can't imagine your raw material.

It's the same stuff, if it comes from the poker tables he has shown, Top Shelf pieces of furniture.
Herb