Finally new wheels....

D Walker

Member
Messages
9,827
In my expierience try and get a quote without letting them see your property, ask for price and then ask for an installation cost. I have a mate who slides his scale dependant on house/area!!
 

iainw

Member
Messages
3,386
In my expierience try and get a quote without letting them see your property, ask for price and then ask for an installation cost. I have a mate who slides his scale dependant on house/area!!

Agree with you both. I did get two quotes which were similar. the £5000 one was the most 'economical' as they called it. For a ******* piece of wood to block off your drive...
What the tradesman don't seem to realise is, people with big houses tend to have big houses as they have some common sense and don't like being ripped off. I know how much semi skilled workers earn a day, and how much materials cost. They sometimes just take the ****.

Yours is nice John - not surprised you didn't move it based on those costs. There are much better things to spend it on involving a trident.
 

Ewan

Member
Messages
6,756
If getting wooden gates, go for proper hard wood, not a treated and painted soft wood. Treated soft wood will last about 10 years (and need frequent repaints) whereas hard wood looks great just left alone and will last far longer. More expensive up front, but cheaper in the long run. £5k sounds cheap to me, but of course it all depends on the size of the gates, the automation, etc.

Back to the thread...

These certainly are nice wheels, but I have to say, I'm perfectly happy with 20 inch Neptunes on a GTS. And thank you for the winter tyres. I've not seem them yet, but Tim assures me that they're spot on. He'll bring them to my office on Monday so I see them then.
 

JonW

Member
Messages
3,259
These certainly are nice wheels, but I have to say, I'm perfectly happy with 20 inch Neptunes on a GTS. And thank you for the winter tyres. I've not seem them yet, but Tim assures me that they're spot on. He'll bring them to my office on Monday so I see them then.

Thanks Ewan - I agree that Neptunes are lovely, but for some reason I fancied a change.

I hope you're happy with the tyres, and it was nice to meet Tim earlier. I also have to say that I'm very impressed by your double sided business card, and especially the side with the glossy writing. Very nice indeed...
 

iainw

Member
Messages
3,386
Thanks Ewan - I agree that Neptunes are lovely, but for some reason I fancied a change.

I hope you're happy with the tyres, and it was nice to meet Tim earlier. I also have to say that I'm very impressed by your double sided business card, and especially the side with the glossy writing. Very nice indeed...

The Strad Wheels are really nice, but its incremental. The additional 1000s spend add up and before you know it you could be in a Strad! The GTS is great as it is VFM wise. I really liked my black neptunes with contrast calipers - but I would be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to buy MAFs strad wheels when he had them.

Thanks for the Advice Ewan. I know you are right. The 5k was for entry level soft wood, with a basic intercom, and was from a well priced local supplier. I know wrought iron and video / wifi intercom is the way to go. Just isn't as fun as spending money on Italian Metal.
 

JonW

Member
Messages
3,259
The Strad Wheels are really nice, but its incremental. The additional 1000s spend add up and before you know it you could be in a Strad! The GTS is great as it is VFM wise. I really liked my black neptunes with contrast calipers - but I would be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to buy MAFs strad wheels when he had them.

Thanks for the Advice Ewan. I know you are right. The 5k was for entry level soft wood, with a basic intercom, and was from a well priced local supplier. I know wrought iron and video / wifi intercom is the way to go. Just isn't as fun as spending money on Italian Metal.

Ian - one of the issues with wrought iron is you can see through it. One of the plus points on my gate is that no one on the outside of it can see what we are doing on the inside. Depending on how long your drive is, and whether you want to wash the car on the drive in your underpants, it might be worth thinking about!
 

Ewan

Member
Messages
6,756
10 years ago I went down the soft wood route, so that I could spend the extra on Italian exotica. How I regret that decision now! Not only do I need to replace all three sets of gates (we have an in-and-out front driveway horseshoe, plus another drive), but that Italian exotic needs constant upkeep as well. A lose lose situation!

My advice, pay a pot of money on really good gates. It'll stop you buying another car, and stop you needing to do it all again a decade on.

Alternatively, take a brave pill. Forget the gates and buy a rusty Merak as a beautiful but fragile fixer-up opportunity!
 

RobinL

Member
Messages
456
I paid 2k for the gate and 3k for installation of motors, rails, keeps, access, wired in etc and looks very similar indeed

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