Machine shop pricing

Living in the bay area for my newest project car I've noticed the pricing for machine work seems to be out of line for what I recall paying but inline for the expectations of the area I live in. I'm in the final stages myself but my friend is currently begining his Big turbo SR build and is gathering info

I've gathered some average pricing for reputable machine shops in my area and have some to compare to people in other areas. I'm debating if it would be cost worthy for my friend to ship his block somewhere to have the work done or just suck it up and do it here. All pricing is for a 4 cyl SR20VE aluminum long block. 

Line hone for main studs and set main bearing clearances-650-700. This is high in comparison to prior build in WA by almost double 

Installing valve springs and retainers 400-450 (I already did this myself for him but wanted the numbers for comparisons sake)

Resurface block and head. 160-185 for each surface.  

Balance rotating assembly 450-600

Hot tank block and head-150-200 each I already did this myself with a home brew setup but again for comparison.

Deglaze bores- 30-40 per cyl. Again I do my own deglazing but I don't know what that normally goes for since I always DIY.

Lower block assembly (pistons,rings,rods)-1500-2000. Again I own all my own bore guages and vernier mics so I would do his engine assembly. Does this sound about right?

Machine 11mm head studs to 1/2 -600-750. 

Obviously some of these are already taken care of but for data's sake I figured I'd include them. It's been forever since I've had extensive machine work done so my memory of pricing is fuzzy and I'm trying to make sure my friend gets his money's worth. 

Obviously prices have gone up on everything over the years and different regions have different COLs and regulations but does any of this stuff seem out of line price wise or is it fine? 

Rather pay more for quality work all things considered.

Many years ago I shipped a VW 020 transmission from So. Cal. to BSI Racing in Florida. Shipping there and back and paying for a rebuild was cheaper than buying a rebuild and less than half the price of getting it done locally.  Shipping is expensive, but it is a drop in the bucket compared to Bay area labor rates.  I would vote for shipping to a known specialty shop as being an economical option.

Those prices are in outer space IMO... and engine machining was my profession for 8 years. 

It may be just that that's the cost of making a living in the area but I'm going to be dropping off a V8 block for bake/blast/tumble, magneflux, line hone with studs, Bore .068, torque plate hone, square deck, and install cam bearings. All of which will be around 800 here in MN. 10 Years ago I'd do all that and shoot paint on it for $740 and that was making decent money....

Line hone with studs is a 2hr job if you milk the crap out of it....They charging $325+/hr??? I expect any 4cyl job (or V8 for that matter) to be under 1hr...That's chase the threads, debur the main saddles and check for flat, cut caps (or granite block sand if all 5 are one piece), debur caps (edges and holes), install studs, install caps, cycle studs/nuts 3 times (as recommended by fastener manufacture), and hone to spec.. Done right the hone is a quick job of less than .005 to be removed...even less if the caps are sanded and not ground.

I don't have any idea of relative costs, but the bay area is one of the most expensive areas of the country.  Also, shipping large, heavy items like engine blocks or cylinder heads won't be cheap so you need to weigh the total costs against that.

Given the general cost of living in the SF Bay Area and the cost of commercial real estate there, I can't say that I'm hugely surprised that the cost for machine shop work is considerably higher than in other parts of the country.

If I were the OP, I'd have a look in Stockton or other large towns in the Central Valley to see if the price difference is worth schlepping the components there.

Price list for the shop local to me with the best reputation. 

Same Shop, LS price list. 

2-3x what I am used to here out on the east coast with a few good shops nearby that are always busy and can charge a bit of a premium.

In reply to ChrisLS8 (Forum Supporter) :

Yes those prices are way high for the value they provide. But you live in a state and city  where people have to pay millions of dollars if they want to live inside some kind of solid structure. How else are they going to get the $$$

Commercial real estate prices are crazy here.

Residential real estate prices are crazy here. 

Salaries are crazy expensive here.

IMHO you need to be billing $200 hour per hour to make a living here (Gilroy). In the Bay Area proper you probably need to bill more than that. 
 

I'd find a specialty shop and ship it out.

I had a Corvair with a bunch of work orders in the paperwork ,

my favorite was $600 to flycut  a pair of Corvair 140hp  heads, 

This was in the SF Bay area  and 10 years ago !

BoxheadTim (Forum Supporter) said:

Given the general cost of living in the SF Bay Area and the cost of commercial real estate there, I can't say that I'm hugely surprised that the cost for machine shop work is considerably higher than in other parts of the country.

If I were the OP, I'd have a look in Stockton or other large towns in the Central Valley to see if the price difference is worth schlepping the components there.

My first thought as well was check in Sacramento. 

CAinCA said:

Commercial real estate prices are crazy here.

Residential real estate prices are crazy here. 

Salaries are crazy expensive here.

IMHO you need to be billing $200 hour per hour to make a living here (Gilroy). In the Bay Area proper you probably need to bill more than that. 
 

I'd find a specialty shop and ship it out.

This explains my new neighbors...They moved from California to MN. Said their home burned down in the 2019 fires. Despite the large insurance pay out it was impossible for them to buy anything that fit their family of 5. Rent was going to bankrupt them within a year (two gainfully employed at good paying job adults) so they packed what they had left before they ended up homeless and moved here. Say they are way happier and better off here and have no idea why they bothered with California to start with because of a "high paying job".

In reply to z31maniac :

Good point, and maybe Gilroy/Salinas as well. I mainly thought of the Stockton/Manteca/Modesto area because that was the "quickest" to get to from the places in Silly Valley that I usually work(ed) at, and those are at the Southern end - like Sunnyvale, Los Gatos and San Jose.

If the OP is at the Northern end of the Bay it might also be worth checking Santa Rosa and the general area around it.

californiamilleghia said:

I had a Corvair with a bunch of work orders in the paperwork ,

my favorite was $600 to flycut  a pair of Corvair 140hp  heads, 

This was in the SF Bay area  and 10 years ago !

Were they actually fly cut or was it a different operation.  Corvair combustion chambers are in a bore in the cylinder head and the cylinders seal against the face of the bore.   Cleaning up the head to cylinder seal requires a special setup with a boring bar.  Fly cutting wouldn't really do anything.

In reply to asphalt_gundam :

I've had that discussion a few times with candidates when I was working for a company that was at Lake Tahoe. "But in the Bay Area they're paying 50% more than you're willing to offer".

Yes, but the cost of living down there at that time was over 100% more...

Of course with 'VID, a whole bunch of people moved from the Bay Area to Tahoe, so that's not true anymore.

APEowner said:

californiamilleghia said:

I had a Corvair with a bunch of work orders in the paperwork ,

my favorite was $600 to flycut  a pair of Corvair 140hp  heads, 

This was in the SF Bay area  and 10 years ago !

Were they actually fly cut or was it a different operation.  Corvair combustion chambers are in a bore in the cylinder head and the cylinders seal against the face of the bore.   Cleaning up the head to cylinder seal requires a special setup with a boring bar.  Fly cutting wouldn't really do anything.

We always called it "fly cut"   ,machining the mating surface where the cylinder top edge seals.

If their overhead is higher than the rates make sense. For the record those rates are much higher than my local shops.

Jesus.  I think I paid $500-600 for everything I needed for the rebuild of my truck's engine.

Thanks for all the input. I figured the pricing was out of line. Shipping isnt too bad if you do it right. It usually costs me about 150 bucks to ship a heavy FWD 6 speed transmission across the country in a small wooden crate. 

The block and misc parts would be less than half that just weighing them in my head real quick. Gonna start looking for some quality shops in the Midwest or even east coast