Opinions please. . .

[Kakg]

Not to rain on anyone's parade here, but my experience with getting high level smiths to help out my guild goes like this:

I'm sorry, I don't understand what your point is.

We're all saying that we would help any guildie that needed combines done to aid his own armour or the guild but wouldn't do combines for someone who was doing it just for profit unless we worked out a deal.

You're saying you farmed large chunks of stuff and handed them to your guild smiths so that they could make up high quality armour for the rest of the guild.

I'm not trying to pick holes in your post, I just really don't understand the reasoning for your comment "rain on anyone's parade" as you don't appear to be disagreeing with anything that has been said so far. Can you clarify.

[Unidin]

It wasn't his guilds smiths. It was other guild's smiths helping him out. Help like this is extra rare in my experience.

[Kakg]

It wasn't his guilds smiths. It was other guild's smiths helping him out. Help like this is extra rare in my experience.

Ah, got you, cheers.

Yes I'd agree, very rare. But they were still trying to help out even though in this case it was for another guild, rather than for profit.

In my experience tradeskillers are not a mercenary bunch. We really do like to help out. In my case I'm perfectly happy to do two combines of wind metal bow cams for free if it's for Aid Grimmel. But if a person were to hand me a stack of parts I'd get suspicious. We like to help, just don't like being taken for a free ride.

[Silound]

The only two things I do for ousiders basically is Human BD cultral and Leatherfoot bags. Bags sell for 500p per slot on Prexus, and I generally charge something like 50 plat per slot when I do combines. If I provide materials, the price goes up accordingly via market value of supplies. I never charge for failed combines. Guildies I do for free.

I had somaone ask me to make them around 20 bags once, they flat asked me if they provided the materials what kind of cut did I want for making them when they sold the bags. Hearing that 500p per bag was all I charged, they were solidly amazed, appearently every other tailor wanted half the profit value. I both like and dislike people who over charge for combines. I dislike the reputation it gives tradeskillers, but I like the fact that people are readily willing to go with the lowest bidder when they know about it, thus giving me much more than just the occasional business.

[Xorithra L`Amante]

I have a somewhat strange situation going on for me, but I wanted to add my input anyway.

Working my way up to 1750 just because (5 out of 7 so far!) since I don't plan on joining any guilds that would get me the flags for the AG quest. I enjoy being guildless, but I have a group of friends that I hang out with all the time. If they requested me to do combines for them, I do it. Since I group with them all the time and I'm the only tradeskiller out of them and I can't bring myself to sell gems for splits or components and such... they don't mind that I keep them (less mule management for them!).

If they need tradeskill items (say for the Solstice quest) that require gems or they need spells, I just dig into the vault and make it for them, no charge. I'd even spend a couple hours running around gathering the materials from vendors for the combines (or logging on my enchanter). Only time I would charge would be if it was something too far fetched (say they wanted me to make a whole set of cultural armor, I'd ask them to farm the tempers and pay for the BDs, but would ignore the cost for mithril and such).

If they were to give me things to combine, even if it were for profit, I'd do it because money = upgrades = happy friends. The only time I would hesitate if, and only if, it were something I was selling myself... but being good friends, they wouldn't request it so it would never happen~

I'd do free final combines, one or two tries even if the first one succeeds, for strangers. (Thing that bugs me about trying to help strangers... someone /shout Need GM Soandso!, I stop doing what I'm about to do (specially if it requires zoning out) and ask them what can I do you for?, and after two minutes of silence, tell them that I assume they've gotten a reply already and they say "Yes, many". Grr. Common courtsey, shout that you're taken care of or something!)

Once I actually join the 1750 club, I think I'd jump at doing any combine just so I feel like I haven't wasted all that time and effort on a one time deal. Since I don't have a guild, I don't get requests too often. I think what I'm getting at, if you haven't fallen asleep yet, is that I don't really do tradeskills for profit, but for fun.

[Kudikai]

I've posted my policy on my guild's message boards and I keep it simple....

I do free combines as long as they bring the components.
The product must be for personal use, not for resale.
If the item is to be sold in the future, I ask they offer it to someone within the guild at cost. (obviously not enforced, but my policy is often followed)

Beyond asking the person to read my policy, I don't inquire into the results. That which I don't know, I can't get upset about.

[Maisie]

I like that policy, I think < if you dont mind> i will adopt it as my own. It is my basic unwritten one, but I think it writing would be good

[Trepan]

I do anything for guildies for free - we're small enough and know each other well enough that any profit that comes their way will be shared with the guild through spending the cash on spells to outfit themselves, or better armor for the tank so that HE can stay alive, or weapons to help make the bad guys dead faster, etc.

Not being mercenary, I've failed to set my donation limits up front ahead of time with non guildies - 2p for making something with a 230 trivial will siphon off your love of your fellow man pretty quickly. Once you've already taken their stuff and done the combine, you can't disassemble it and give it all back to them after being insulted - its a tough situation and one I would recommend everyone avoid. Set your fee up front.

I've since begun sharing the concept of "I would, but that would be undercutting my fellow tradeskillers. Look, X has one for sale over there for a quite reasonable price."

Members of the cartel (those who supplied me with tradeskill components at reasonable rates or frequent and repeat business) get combines for free - but those are the people who understand how much work skilling up was and throw hefty donations at me anyway.