1436 replies to this topic

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[Chris]

[The Average Joe]

so true.... most trades guys I know are seeing huge jumps in wages if they are good. 700-1000 a day in the bay area is typical and is really applying upward pressure here.  Plenty of jobs out there if you want them as well. Thing is, you have to be willing to WORK.

 

SO many crappy tradesmen out there as well. Just wrapped up a job that was way behind schedule because the subs were... lacking. SOme were good, others...had no freaking idea what they were doing. It was actually painful to watch.  Don't know what people are going to be left with when me and my peers retire in a less than 10 years. Craftsmen are a dying breed....

[Chris]

so true.... most trades guys I know are seeing huge jumps in wages if they are good. 700-1000 a day in the bay area is typical and is really applying upward pressure here.  Plenty of jobs out there if you want them as well. Thing is, you have to be willing to WORK.

 

SO many crappy tradesmen out there as well. Just wrapped up a job that was way behind schedule because the subs were... lacking. SOme were good, others...had no freaking idea what they were doing. It was actually painful to watch.  Don't know what people are going to be left with when me and my peers retire in a less than 10 years. Craftsmen are a dying breed....

True Joe....!   So true....   Millenials now adays think every answer is in their phone...?   Weird, I have trained my boys and my one girl to be mechanical, oil changes, brake jobs (disc and drum), O2 sensor replacement, sweating copper pipe, valves, PVC piping, timers, wire a garage with multiple 120 volt outlets....  The right way, and to above code.  Testing for polarity and current to make sure the job is done right...  How to install overhead lighting.   Showed them how to repair a roof leak, 34 feet up, on the edge, new tar paper and all and how to flash the edges....  Lots of roof tar is your friend....   Spark plugs, exhaust manifold replacements, control arms, shocks, struts  (I have all the spring compressor types you could ask for).   HVAC limit switches, temp switches, HVAC solenoids, HVAC control boards, how to use a multimeter, how to use a floor jack and make sure you have at least two jack stands before you get under that beast...!  Transmission fluid changes (messy, but a needed skill), gear box oil changes and rear differentials.  How to replace pressure reducers for house water.... Mixing valves for showers, simple plumbing, natural gas valve replacements and new flexible lines........  I rarely have to pay somebody to fix anything that breaks on me.... 

 

Once I had a weird type of plumbing spring a leak on me, company out of business, no spares available on the open market.... (sheet rock nail through the pipe) so I had to call a plumber....   Only once in my life......!

 

And just recently, had a starter go out on me in this rain, this continuous rain.....   Just had it towed to the dealer to fix it............   Cost me $500 and had it back in two days.......   Coulda done it myself for $200...   but it woulda been a week before I got the part and I would be out in the cold and rain for 3 hours, on the street, doing it myself..........  Too old to be doing that now........

 

Chris  

[The Average Joe]

Yeah, I used to rebuild motors, transmissions, etc when I had a hot rod. I did my own work on my boat when I had it. I have also remodeled pretty much the whole house. My wife says there is nothing I can't fix. I tell her that is part of my "benefits package."  Still, there is a lot of stuff I don't like doing, and occasionally my cheapness/ability is not enough to overcome my lack of desire to do a project. I'm fortunate that I can pick and choose at this point in my life.  

 

I always had a curious mind on how things worked. Sadly, my kids, like most modern kids,  don't seem to have the same interest.  I have showed then how to do basic car maintenance, and they do it, but they have no interest in it. Perhaps that will all change once they have to start paying a mechanic 125 dollars an hour. Some people just have no interest in how things work, and that is fine for them. Or maybe they don't mind paying for basic stuff. Nothing wrong with that either, just not right for me.

 

As for starters, when i had my 69 charger, that 440 would go through starters like crazy. It got so bad that I started carrying a spare, and I could swap it out in about a half hour. I tried OEM, aftermarket, race specialty...none held up. I'm with you, on too old for that now, although I did save almost 1000 dollars by replacing the heater core myself in my old truck. 60 dollar part and 900 dollars labor. I just had a few beers and spent the day disassembling/reassembling the dash. Only took me 2 hours longer than what a "professional" figured for time required. 

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[2 Aces]

[Chris]

Yeah, I used to rebuild motors, transmissions, etc when I had a hot rod. I did my own work on my boat when I had it. I have also remodeled pretty much the whole house. My wife says there is nothing I can't fix. I tell her that is part of my "benefits package."  Still, there is a lot of stuff I don't like doing, and occasionally my cheapness/ability is not enough to overcome my lack of desire to do a project. I'm fortunate that I can pick and choose at this point in my life.  

 

I always had a curious mind on how things worked. Sadly, my kids, like most modern kids,  don't seem to have the same interest.  I have showed then how to do basic car maintenance, and they do it, but they have no interest in it. Perhaps that will all change once they have to start paying a mechanic 125 dollars an hour. Some people just have no interest in how things work, and that is fine for them. Or maybe they don't mind paying for basic stuff. Nothing wrong with that either, just not right for me.

 

As for starters, when i had my 69 charger, that 440 would go through starters like crazy. It got so bad that I started carrying a spare, and I could swap it out in about a half hour. I tried OEM, aftermarket, race specialty...none held up. I'm with you, on too old for that now, although I did save almost 1000 dollars by replacing the heater core myself in my old truck. 60 dollar part and 900 dollars labor. I just had a few beers and spent the day disassembling/reassembling the dash. Only took me 2 hours longer than what a "professional" figured for time required. 

We sound like one in the same...  Built 1/4 mile cars back in the day also, VW's, Fords, and a mean 56 Chevy with a 400 small block that every once and awhile break off the M-21 4 speed right behind it...   And back in the day starters were way more heavy as I recall, smaller, lighter now...   Oh, and I hate heater cores, such a pain, an all day job and now you gotta worry about the air bags taking you out, be very careful...

 

And funny, you and a 69 Charger with a 440.......?   I happen to drive the latest Charger, a 2017 Scat Pack with the 392.....   I do enjoy my drives to work....!    Unless you are in a corvette or a pumped up M3 you aint gonna catch me....!

 

Chris  

[Chris]

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