Bob, Re: spindles. I'm sure Kevin is doing them at 4" or less as it is the same building codes "up here" - lol
Kevin, we've had a few side-bar conversations and I realize you are starting out part-time. I did the same. You were asking for advice/pricing and that's what I gave you according to what I would charge. Of course, every job has variables that only the person quoting can see. My price was a rough estimate for the information you provided. Whaen I was part-time, I didn't price as high as I do know as I couldn't do each job start-to-finish and I therefore priced things accordingly. Now, being full time, if I did factor in profit, I'd have been out of business in less than a month. As you know, I haven't had a free day since April 1st! (I know, lucky me!).
canada4, I can't comment on the price you got your cedar from but when I built my own 12' x 14' cedar deck with custom railings, solid skirting and picture box frame and 45 deg. decking, the materials cost me over $2,500, including the cement piers. And, I would have charged over $7,000 due to all the custom work I did on it. Pricing things at 2 times cost is a sure fire way to lose money in the market I am in. Aside from factoring in profit, I take into account my time for plans, material list, ordering material, floating MY money until the materials are on site, etc.
A couple of examples of my quotes/jobs are: 1. I recently did a solid board cedar fence with 1 ft. of custom lattice at the top of the fence and priced it at $65/ft. - the owners didn't even hesitate to sign the contract. 2. I did a 366 sq. ft. cedar deck that was 8 ft. above grade with 50+ ft. of custom railings and a set of stairs with railings on both sides - all for over $15,000 - I was able to under bid a large franchise on price and with my "customer service" during the consultation. I'm not saying all of this to brag or put down your comments, I am just trying to point out that there are a lot of variables in pricing/quoting jobs aside form just price. By the way, I've given out my share of quotes that I didn't get too. No one method is fool-proof, it's been a constant learning process for me. I'm also learning to weed out the "PIA" clients pretty good now too - now, there's an art form!!!