Cut and Drop | An Industry Within an Industry
Before the late 2010s there were very few different types of seamless gutter, nearly everything besides K-style was made in sections on a sheet metal brake or a slip wheel. When the new machines started coming out with newer profiles the industry didn’t accept the preces very well, despite the minor changes to the designs, the alternative profile machines were 50%-400% more expensive than their K-style siblings. The gutter industry had ballooned a decade earlier when a new roll former gutter machine design hit the market weighing significantly less, running faster and costing way less than it’s predecessor. Many of the companies across the market, who’s existence was predicated on the lower cost of entry, refused the cost of integrating the new machinery.
Despite that, a small demand had started to grow around these profiles, particularly with the Half Round profile. This machine was around 400% more expensive than a K-style machine, twice as big and heavy, and a bit moody to keep working well.
Here in East Texas, no different than other places around the country, installers needed this profile but no one was interested in spending that much capital on a niche machine. That’s when a retired Vietnam vet here in Tyler invested a bit of money into a half round machine and a trailer and started contacting all the gutter companies offering a Cut and Drop service. He would charge a small fee per foot run through his machine to show up at your jobsite, and run your material to length and then leave. He wasn’t the first to think of it, but he was the first here in East Texas, and to this day is still seen out and about from time to time.
All over the country this type of thing started happening and getting bigger.
Today, cut and drop service has expanded all the way to some material suppliers having small fleets of cut and drop rigs. In East Texas, The Gutter Guy is the main source of cut and drop service with our 11+ different profiles we supply the niche styles to many of the other gutter installation companies in the region. This arrangement allows the niche products to make their way into the market, and allows companies that can’t cover the investment to still offer a large product list.
At The Gutter Guy, we make it a point to invest regularly in new machinery and advancements, and then make those products available to the rest of the industry.
Currently Available:
5” K
6” K
6” K Embossed
7” K
5” Straight Face
6” Straight Face
5” Box
6” Box
5” Ribbed Box
6” Ribbed Box
6” Half Round
