Saga of the week....

[rgramjet]

I should have learned my lesson with the foundation guy.... went with the low bidder on the drywall for my home. The guy seemed good, checked references, walked through a house he had done recently....everything checked out.

As soon as we had an agreement, he started hounding me for the deposit. I gave him a partial deposit with the understanding that Id give him the rest after he provided me with an insurance certificate.

In the meantime, he is supposed to hang and finish 3 walls and a ceiling in an "existing" part of the house, about 12x26. Took his hangers an 8 hour day just to hang the ceiling and thats with a joint knife clicking on about 75% of the screwheads. We started this ordeal 2 weeks ago and he has given me every excuse in the book for their not showing up on my job. Everything from one of his employees falling off a ladder to his cousin getting in a car accident. Today one of his hangers had to go pay a traffic ticket....blah blah blah...

What are my options? At this point, Ive given the guy the benefit of the doubt more times than he deserves. The other day he told me he used to be a cocaine addict but has been clean for about 10 years. Red flag city!

He lives in VA, I live in MD. Can I put a lein on his property in order to get my deposit back minus the time and materials he's already purchased?

Thanks for reading my ramble. If you couldnt tell, Im pissed!

[Cole]

How much did you give him?

I think you are kinda screwed on this, bud.

Low Bidder = Shitty Work

Come on buddy, you know that.

What I would do is hire someone to finish the work and forget about the deposit. Assuming it wasnt half or more.

[TnAndy]

Yeah.....you're screwed.

I ran the last ones off a rental house I was building.

Smoking dope, hung a sheet backwards ( brown paper out....no kidding ), mixed up a 5 gal bucket of EZ Sand 45 minute set stuff, and let most of it get hard in the bucket, cut a 4x12 sheet twice wrong for an angled cut, and were going to cut it the third time until I stepped in and marked it for them...my material, they didn't care....couldn't screw a row of screws in across a 4' sheet without missing 2-3.....unbelievable.....I finally walked around gather up their tools and benches and setting them outside......they looked at me with a question, and I said....."Just helping you boys load up.....you're fired"

Next house it was the carpet layer....from a local carpet house I'd bought carpet off several times in the past. Brought his kids to the job, 6 year old kid standing at the top of the stairs flinging scraps down the stairs, 8-9 year old outside jumping in mud puddles and running back thru the house....... I find HIM upstairs, where he miss cut a long seam in a hall and was patching it as I came in...."won't do bud" "oh, I can make it so you won't see it" "won't do bud" " but, but, but"......"OK....get out of my house"......"but, but, but" and some more backtalk.........Finally I said "Buddy, you have 2 minutes to collect your crap, your wife and your kids, and get OUT OF MY HOUSE, because that is how long it's gonna take me to go out to my truck and get my Smith and Wesson......and if you're still here when I get back, you are NOT gonna like what comes next......was there any part of THAT you didn't understand ? "

He left. I called the carpet place and told them to send new carpet and somebody that knew what they were doing to lay it.....I was ripping up everything already in the house and piling it in the driveway.


Amazes me what passes for workmanship these days. Lot of people out there that flat don't give a crap.

[rgramjet]

Cole, I checked references twice and even did a site visit.....what else can a brothah do?

TNAndy, havent gotten to the smith & wesson point yet...the model 66 is always ready though!

[TnAndy]

OH....you got one of those 66's too ? Mine's the hammerless, stainless steel model in .357...whatcha got?

What I keep in the truck, though, is my old model 59 9mm.....I like the 15 shot capacity.


Hey....be careful there.....I see where you live in the Peoples Commonwealth of Maryland and they ain't all that gun friendly up there.......one of the places I'd move if I was a crook.......ahahahahahaaaaa

[rgramjet]

You are 100% right on about the peoples republic of MD. I only pack on special occasions. Its amazing how much the citizens of this state rely on the police to protect their families. Its a nice concept when the police are within a mile from ones house. Its a different story when the police are 1/2 hour or more away, especially when someones trying to break into your house.

My 66 is a snub nose, I believe its a 2.5" barrell with adjustable sights. I like having a hammer just in case I ever have to (God forbid) ask some punk if he "feels lucky". Ive also got the pre-ban Glock 17 which has the 18 rd mags and the Sig 228 which is my favorite.

There is nothing as deterring as the sound of racking one into an 870 just as the sucker is coming into your house.

Hydra-shoks? or Silvertips?

[TnAndy]

Hydra-shoks in the 9mm ( My "carry" gun is a Glock 19)
and 3" 00Buck in the Mossberg 500 behind the door.

You're absolutely right about the racking sound.....if that alone doesn't stop someone, you really ARE dealing with a nut or druggie.....shoot.

What's your "Homeland Defense Rifle" ? ( Called assault weapons by those of little knowledge...ahahahaha)

Mine is a Colt AR-15 bull barrel, and a Reminton 700 in 30.06 with a 3x9 50mm Baush Lomb for the need to "reach out(to 500yds) and touch someone" comes along.

:)

[rgramjet]

I just bought a Winchester Model 70 Featherweight in .30-06 with the Leupold 3-9. The gun is sweet, accurate but man does it thump ya! I think it weighs less than 8 lbs...

I dont have any hi-cap rifles.....yet!

I shot my buddys Weatherby .30-378 double secret sniper rifle last spring. The gun had the recoil compensator which made the 8 people on either side of me at the range visibly jump from the muzzle blast. Ive never put 3 in a 1" bull at 200 before. The recoil felt like a .243....downright comfortable! Without the compensator, he says the rifle is just about unshootable. Id love one of those but $5k might be hard to justify with wifey.