How and how much to pay a good tinter?

August 10, 2007

Hello all, I am an old school tinter ( when you had to cut your own film ). I tinted for about 7 years but that was in the early/mid 90's. I am now looking to open a shop and am looking for info on how tinters are generally paid these days. In my day, I was paid by the sq. ft by one shop and flat rate per car by another shop I worked for. Either way, I basically made 30 - 35 bucks for a 4 door car.

My question is - is there a standard way today that tinters are paid and about how much does a tinter make per car? Also, has the widespread use of the plotter made any difference in the how much a shop pays it's tinters?

One more question concerning film. When I was tinting, we had a lot of problems with LLumar film, but, it seems to be the most widely used now. Can someone give me some input on some decent quality brands and their relative cost?

Apreciate any help! Thank You

August 10, 2007

:dunno to the board,

Pay all depends on your area, and exp of the tinter, aroud about average would be about 30 - 35% of the ticket, as far as films, EVERYONE on here has their own "favorite" brand, I myself use Madico and Huper Optik, there are alot on here who use LLumar, and like it, others like Johnsons, Solar Gard, Sun Gard, Global, 3M, Hanita, in other words what I'm trying to say is get ahold of a few different mfg. and have em send you some samples out, and find a film you and your installers like working with, and has good customer service.

I personally don't use a plotter, everything I do is hand cut, that works for me as I do alot of mobile work, others use a plotter and love it, if you don't have to lay out the money for a plotter when just opening up, I wouldn't but that's JMO.

Hope that helps answer your questions.

August 10, 2007

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

Has llumar solved quality issues that I used to see and how is it priced compared to some other brands?

Ryker · August 10, 2007

not sure about "the old days" perhaps it was the low end film? I haven't been using Llumar for but a year. I love it. I don't think you could go wrong with it.

Price is on the higher end, but check the pricing on film and you will see that there is only a few percent difference in the pricing. I don't mind the extra cost as I cut my time down by an equivalent amount for any given tint job... time is money after all.

TintWizard · August 10, 2007

Aut film wise, I've tried differnt brands through the yrs ..some I liked, a couple of brands I wouldn't install if the film was given to me for free.

Flatglass wise, our family has stuck with Llumar for over 20 yrs never straying from it and have never been disappointed with it as jobs we've done yrs ago still are holding strong :beach

August 12, 2007

Hello all, I am an old school tinter ( when you had to cut your own film ). I tinted for about 7 years but that was in the early/mid 90's. I am now looking to open a shop and am looking for info on how tinters are generally paid these days. In my day, I was paid by the sq. ft by one shop and flat rate per car by another shop I worked for. Either way, I basically made 30 - 35 bucks for a 4 door car.
My question is - is there a standard way today that tinters are paid and about how much does a tinter make per car? Also, has the widespread use of the plotter made any difference in the how much a shop pays it's tinters?

One more question concerning film. When I was tinting, we had a lot of problems with LLumar film, but, it seems to be the most widely used now. Can someone give me some input on some decent quality brands and their relative cost?

Apreciate any help! Thank You

Not much has REALLY changed in the shop mgmt. end. Pay them commission, use good film, and realize that EVERYBODY has a bad batch now and again, LLumar is pretty consistent in quality, Most everyone else has changed formulas, tried to re-invent the wheel, and it's come back to bite 'em. Alot of NEW film companies have cropped up, and IMHO they don't have the track record of longevity some of the older players have. Of course some of the old reliable players are no longer reliable, just old!

My guys (Back when I had a crew) were making between between 55 and 70 per car at 30% commission. If you can tint, stay with you doing the tint until the business gets to the point that you can't handle the work flow by yourself. Hiring a GOOD, reliable tinter is next to impossible. There are reasons that a good tinter is unemployed.

A plotter is only good for one thing IMHO. Selling pre-cut kits to those who would otherwise walk over price. I have started selling them. Let 'em try it for themselves. Most of the time they come back with thier tail between thier legs.

As far as good brands now, LLumar is good, SunTek, SunGard, Hanita, are all good car films as well.

Oh yeah............ :beer to the board. Stick around, It gets REALLY interesting 'round here!

TINT · August 12, 2007

Hello all, I am an old school tinter ( when you had to cut your own film ).

:beer :beer :poke

you will get 10 tinters and they will give you 10 different answers about window film manufacturers.

just depends on your preference, what you can afford. etc etc :beer

August 14, 2007

been with LLumar for 21 yrs

blade · August 14, 2007

the adventurous type huh? :tantrum

Johnnytint · August 14, 2007

My question is - is there a standard way today that tinters are paid and about how much does a tinter make per car?

1/3 is the going rate for seasoned tinter and by seasoned I mean you can feel confident that it wont come back in 2 weeks. guys that work for less tend to have issues. I have found that some guys prefer salary ($XXXX/week) but the 'you work you get paid you dont work you dont get paid' system seems to work for everyone involved

When I was tinting, we had a lot of problems with LLumar film, but, it seems to be the most widely used now. Can someone give me some input on some decent quality brands and their relative cost?

I have found they all suck in one category or another. some shrink better, some scratch easier, some the adhesive stick better some are 'Clearer' than others. Stick with one of the top guys LLumar Madico solargard suntek and you be alright