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Owned by Mark
I don't just teach you to polish metal! I teach you to build a $10k/month polishing business!
Steadfast Development Group
10 members • Free
Synthesizer
46.9k members • Free
52 contributions to The Metal Polishing Academy
2d •
We're back🔥but first, a word about the holiday we just took off.
Hope everyone got some rest (or got paid, I saw a few of you posting jobs over the weekend 👀). Before we jump back into the regular rotation, it's worth knowing what Labor Day actually is because it has everything to do with what we do in this community. A little history. Labor Day was born in the 1880s, pushed by the labor unions of the day. The Central Labor Union and the Knights of Labor held the first parade in New York City on September 5, 1882. Around 10,000 workers marched, unpaid, just to make the point that the people who actually build, forge, and finish things deserved recognition. Back then, the average worker was pulling 12-hour days, 7 days a week. Including kids in mills and factories. The unions fought for the 8-hour day, safer conditions, and fair pay. A lot of them were metalworkers, machinists, and tradesmen. Guys like us. It became a federal holiday in 1894, signed by President Grover Cleveland right after the Pullman railroad strike, a moment when the country was forced to reckon with how it treated the people doing the work. Why I'm telling you this? Those workers marched because skilled labor was being paid a fraction of what it was worth. Sound familiar? Every time you quote $200 for a job worth $800, you're doing to yourself what those factory owners did to workers 140 years ago. The lesson of Labor Day isn't "take a Monday off." It's know the value of your work and don't let anyone, including yourself, discount it. Nobody's going to march for your prices. That part's on you. That's half of what this community exists for. So here's the comeback question.... What did you do this Labor Day weekend? Rest, family, or did you polish something? And if you worked, did you charge holiday-weekend rates? 👇 Regular schedule is back. Let's have a big week. 💪
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6d •
That job from yesterday? It went for $500. Here's why.
Most people priced that job between $500 and $1000. That gap right there is the difference between a polisher who's booked out and one who's broke with a full schedule. The number wasn't about the polish. It was about who was buying and what it was worth to THEM. 3 things that let you charge the top of that range: 1. Price the outcome, not your hours. A trucking company isn't buying "6 hours of polishing." They're buying a rig that looks new at every customer site. That's marketing spend for them and marketing budgets are bigger than cleaning budgets. 2. Never give a number on the spot. "Let me look it over and get you a proper quote today" instantly makes you the professional in a market full of guys who blurt out $150. 3. Anchor high with a package. Quote the full package first (polish + sealant + maintenance plan), then let them trim down. They feel in control; you never get squeezed below your floor. This is exactly the kind of thing we go deep on every Friday. Comment "CALC" if you want the pricing formula I use to quote any job in under 5 minutes, if enough of you want it, I'll break it down next week. 👇
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8d •
Be honest what would you charge for THIS job? 🤔
No judgment, no wrong answers. I just want real numbers. Vote, then comment WHY you picked your number. Tomorrow I'm posting what this job actually went for and the one thing that determines whether a customer pays the A price or the D price. (Hint: it's not the quality of the polish.)
Poll
1 member has voted
0 likes • 6d
So let's break down what I charged for this wheel set and why. First to do that we need to know what was needed to bring this wheel back to life. Job break down: Full restoration on outside of wheel only. wheel Size 22x14 -Acid Bath. -Sand barrels to remove any pitting or scratches and allow myself a smooth consistent prepped surface. -Sand lip surface to remove slight curb rash. -3 Step Polish For me that would fall into the $100-$175 range per wheel depending on size and complexity. This specific job was $125 a wheel. All jobs get a Acid bath start, from there almost every wheel will get 600 grit on the barrels just to make my life easier and the finish that much nicer. Sand paper is cheap, don't be afraid to use a few sheets. By doing this we have a standard starting point on every job. That in return takes all the guess work out of my polishing stages. Now you know exactly what you need to get a consistent finished result from that prep point because its your process and now every project is the same start condition. What raises the price tag is whatever is needed prior to the 600grit. Are these heavily pitted wheels? Where they trashed with road salt from the winter? Is there a clear coat removal? The price is made in the prep work. You need to come up with a standard minimal process that gets you the results you're happy with. That's your baseline (for me that's $75-$125 a wheel depending on size and complexity), from there you will add per each extra prep step that's needed. What works for me is $1 a sheet 10 sheets minimum per extra grit needed down to 220 grit. So if 320 grit is needed on a $100 baseline wheel it would now be $110 a wheel baseline. If 220 grit is needed on a $100 baseline wheel it would now be $120 a wheel baseline. Anything that needs 180 grit and lower will take careful consideration to see what's need, and will be charged according to hours up to an agreed upon capped price. If this helps or you would like to see me dive deeper into pricing break downs, leave a comment below!
10d •
The $10K/Month Polishing Business
I want to hear from all the people that are turning this into a business, or side work. What's your biggest hurdle? Do you have your pricing sheet done? Do you have your sales scripts written down? How do you track what works and what doesn't? That's what I'm here to guide you with. I want to help you make money. I want to fix the problems you didn't even know where there. We will break down all your procedures, products, equipment, and marketing. Let me help you start charging $100+/hr 💰
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17d •
Utilizing this one tool will save you Time and Money!!
@Clark Norway came to me with some questions Thursday about a set of wheels he was uncertain about. With in a 2 minute conversation we were able to troubleshoot and come up with the most efficient path for him to go forward with. This one tool will save you Tens of thousands of dollars and countless hours of time. I wish it was available to me when I was in my beginning stages. Just reach out. This is what this community is about. Helping each other get one step further together. Everyone with a Premium Membership gets to reach out for a 1 on 1 call to troubleshoot your current problem. Utilize it. Bring your questions to Thursday's live call!
0 likes • 10d
@Clark Norway 💯
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@mark-chrzanowski-3157
When over a decade of defense contractor engineering experience meets a decade of metal polishing passion.
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Joined Mar 10, 2026
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