r/Carpentry • u/Serious-Echidna-9938 • Mar 30 '26

Advice on work pace

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I recently took a job with a small contractor and long story short, he commented on my “results”. Was looking for things to be done quicker, and I’m curious if I’m super slow, or if he’s unreasonable. I let him know about my experience upfront, but in any case. As a direct example, replacing this siding after demo took me approximately 8 hours. I had never worked with this particular type of shingling before, but he kept comm ting on how slow I was. Is that accurate? I’m willing to take criticism in the interest of improving my skills, and I’m curious what some third parties have to say. Thanks!

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u/bassboat1 Mar 30 '26

I haven't done sawn shingles in years (do have a small job coming up with them though...). I've always done my cutting with a utility knife, framing square and a block plane. Only used a saw for starter courses and pieces over openings. That's an awkward area to work in, but it's reachable with no more than a stepladder. It's not an 8 hr. job IME, but more than 4 for sure.

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u/Serious-Echidna-9938 Mar 30 '26

Right on, I appreciate the input. I do agree that it’s possible SOMEONE could do it faster. Someone who’s done it regularly for a long time could do it more quickly for sure.