FlyBoy - I agree with what you've said and that is what I always attempt to do. For example, I applied at a cabinet shop once that was advertising for people with no experience.
So I tried to explain to the guy why I could this work and he just didn't care. Didn't really matter because it was a crap job anyway, but still. I didn't try to convince him that I was a good model builder. I tried to explain to him what skills I had that would transfer over.
He went on to say, "We don't do that here. We slap formica on press board and ship it out." Sounds like quality wasn't something he really cared about. I should have said, I'm a crappy model builder, but I can build 10 a week.