As an ex mechanic many years ago, we would remove brake drums and blow them out with an airline, eat and go to the toilet with oily dirty hands, lie on cold wet floors, wasn’t until years later they tell you of the dangers to your health like testicular cancer, asbestosis, dermatitis,hemaeroids arthritis,etc, etc.
We share the same work experiences , but it's just how it was back then . For the good or bad of it all we just got on with our lives and got the job done . 🇦🇺
The automotive trade in general is very testy im in spare parts doing it 20+ years and have all the same issues as you mentioned. i think alot of issues come from society in general everyone wants ever thing free and yesterday.
58 here, been painting since the 80s, feel same as you. If I ever was let go from current place. I would be done. 20 years same shop. Plenty of ups and downs. Tired
I had to get out because of my body hurt to much to continue running nonstop all day 5 days a week. When I quit painting cars I started refinishing furniture and finishing kitchen cabinets. I use the same tools and skills but at a much slower pace.
I was over the industry entirely, & left for a few years happily doing my own thing. 14 interest rate rises in a row a few years ago has sucked me back into working full time again. Good at what I do, but can’t stand the ego’s, the greed & the corruption. Can feel your pain.
Definitely right there gun man it's so taxing on the body and soul . You hit the nail on the head this industry make a person grumpy at times and is never ending . 🎉
In my dealings with body shops, the paint always seemed fine, it was mostly final assembly that irked me. When bumpers don't have the correct gap to the fenders (important with trucks that have frame/body movement) and missing fasteners leaving important parts just resting on the inner fenders, it just gives me the opinion that the shop has a "no f*s given" attitude that they'll just throw it together and punt it out the door and move on. For some people a vehicle is an appliance to get them from A to B and they don't care too much as long as it works, then there's others that expect that some care and pride was done to repair the vehicle as close to original as possible (and practical.) Best one (well, worst) I had was after t-boning a van, my truck went in for repair, after several weeks, I picked up the truck, All the plastic garbage from the header panel was thrown in my service topper instead of them using their own dumpster. The chef's kiss was the hood latched terribly, a few visits for "adjustments" didn't resolve anything. I was changing the engine oil and thought I'd see what I could do myself to fix the latch, a few minutes of examination and I realized they never pulled the radiator support back out, even though it was listed on the insurance claim. A call to the shop manager had him in denial, "there's no way they didn't fix the rad support" so I paid him a visit, he played all CSI investigator trying to pretend out all the physics of where it was bent and it needs straightening. Needless to say I will never use that shop again.
I recently got my van back from a small insurance repair and your jaw would hit the floor if you saw how terrible the job is. Passenger side sill below the door on a new Hiace. Didn't paint the underside and left a line of large drips all along the edge. The second day I drove it I got up to 100kph on the freeway and all the front under tray came off and got destroyed under the wheel. It's currently held together with zip clips and string. 😳
Awesome post sir. Almost 30 years in and made a move away from pinnacle of the trade in a luxury Standox shop, now trying to decide if I continue on in the real world. Great insight and points made. Thanx
I am SO glad I retired 2 years ago from being a PPG certified Automotive Refinisher for 46 years!!!! I hated the last 10 years of the job , due to politics at the shop , asshole bosses and employees !!! And before OSHA I breathed a shit ton of nasty chemicals because no one in our industry cared about our health! I am pretty healthy thank god , and now play golf every day and be out in the fresh air and enjoy my life !!!!!!!!!!! Most all the guys I started the industry with 46 years ago are dead ! Plantar Fasciitis was real bad the last 3 years of my career , PAINFUL shit !!!!!!!!!!!!!
yep, i retired from panel beating as far as working for some one at 50, now i'm happy to wander around enjoying doing wildlife photography as a hobby and to restore a couple of classic cars for myself now and then. for me injury wise as a panel beater its been the vibrating machines......(leave it!!!) like DA and air files, loads of door skins that taken a toll on my arm and shoulder joints, for sure the cold in the winters (london uk) are pretty crappy when you get older, around 30 i got pneumonia because i went to work when i had a bad cold, it just happened to go the wrong way and it effected me for several years after final straw was i got sciatica, not necessarily from work but old age ish, it was so bad it was every day and if i sneezed it would send pain down backs of both legs pretty much nothing would help but after my mom died and i took a few months to sort out her house etc i never went back that was around 7 years ago, now being able to take it easy my sciatica is 90% not an issue which is one of the major benefits loved the trade even if some of the time it was crap work and crap weather, 50% of the time i was working in a north london taxi bodyshop, pay wasnt that great but the work colleagues and customers (taxi drivers) were the best, great fun miss the buggering about and crazy times but very happy now also
I had some bad luck, working with some very big egos. Guys that would call them selves Top Guns. However when it came to show time, they weren't the ones going home with the trophies. The guys that took the prises were usually top blokes that would bend over backwards to help out at any stage. Met one person that had " trained with Jon Kosmoski " and was in a position of promoting a new product for a world wide paint company. He spent about half an hour telling us all about his new Iwata's that he'd been gifted at some top trade show. We took him into the spray booth where a fully striped out Western Star truck was waiting for colour, and just watched the colour drain from his face as he made excuse after excuse...
So glad someone made a video lke this ! Was in the trade for roughly 8years ! Dnt miss the politics ,pushing bosses! Wanting more and more work done ! Shitty customers ! I do miss painting somedays ! I personally believe every painter should have a prep guy no matter how big or small the shop ! To help with the work load ! And also to float around etc
Time off is the big thing . I’m the worst person in my workplace to tell people they need time off but yet I won’t take any . Only taking a week now in the sun to get away from it all and before the winter gets proper cold . Take holidays lads , the world won’t stop and your body will thank you for it !
I have been painting for 21 years and i remain humble and never get cocky because there is always somebody better and i dont care who the best painter is cause its not imo a craft you ever truely master with the thin margins were all delt with as painters. Just let people have there thunder and move on cause there are too many legends in there own minds in this trade👍
Yeah I got out of it for a few years , I got suck of the mindless smash repair work ... tried a few other things and ended up doing industrial painting , it's far more technical most of the time , but very rewarding . I also do resto work of a weekend , some of the industrial products are game changers for resto work! 👍
I am not a pro but I do enough auto work (and a bit of body work) to realize how physically hard it is. The general public doesn't get this. Body work dust, paint fumes, isocyanates, etc... are very bad for your health! Wear your PPE!
What’s up mate. I suffer from eczema. The chemicals make it much worse. Gloves too. I don’t miss hydrocortisoning my hands down every smoko and night. Also being relied upon but only getting new boots every 12 months (if that!!) People are toxic too, and bring their dramas with them to work. Racism, toxic masculinity, alcohol and substance abuse. But I do miss the camaraderie, socialising, Friday arvo beers.
Almost 20 years in and I still like the job but I'm definitely growing less tolerant of the common, negative personality types this trade seems to be riddled with.
This video sums up my work environment 🤣🤣🤣 Im 18 years in the automotive industry, Yea this industry can test your patients at times. I honestly can't stand people who nit pick your work and call you a hack because you missed a wire hanging down behind the grill but then they let a lot of cars out the door with poor quality checks. Im in the same boat as you, I am at the point where if anything happens with where i work then i will probably look at other avenues for work in a more back friendly job
Would you make RU-vid videos of painting a house or delivering packages?🤣🤣🤣 you said in a previous video you basically couldn’t see life without the gunman🤣🤣🤣 All the things you brought up are on point!!
Kool vid man. Yea some work shops can be toxic as. Iv bin a mechanic longer then i ever was a painter, but same thing automotive trades can be annoying and awesome depending where you work. Yep once im over cars I'd get into house maintenance. Help out people that can't do shit them selves 😅
I have neck problem, half had sometimes feels numb, because when you sanding you time looking down a lot. The second problem is carpel tunnel syndrome. And new stuff that happens, the root of the nail has little cut and my gloves were damaged. Some of the chemicals got in to it. now probably i will lost my nail and were big chance according Doc, the nail could not grow back or partaly grow back
Hey Gunman A Big Greeze from Patrick from Switzerland🇨🇭 Im a Big Fan from your Works. Im self Car Painter since 30Jears. just don't listen with yor Videos. Danks Gunman
Been in the trade since 87 in .y time we had to do all aspects from start to finish now days it's the painters it's the beaters or fitters You learn to let times and BS others roll off ya back those guys don't last as for toxic paints use you ppe because no one Gona be there when you die from the paint
Hey Gunman. I am in the same situation. 30 years n the trade and thinking if I have to leave the shop I am working in now will I continue? Don't think so.
I have been in the trade for about 10 years now , i still like it but its no longer a challenge it feels more like a grind to me , but saying that the last 2 years have hit me hard mostly mental , seeing my burnt out father wasting before me , a struggling social life i am trying to get it back on the rails , and a to big work load painting about 35 cars per week with masking where we used to do 25 , it just starts to feels like a grind , and i am getting more and more angry at everything
@@J27M yeah i am looking at other options i am also a volunteer fire fighter so if a permanent position opens up i will aply for it , its also high stress but more rest 24 hours shift 48 hours off , and if i feel like it i can still go and paint cars on my days off
Are you in a position to tell us which insurance companies are the biggest pricks to do work for? Don't name them, you'll get yourself sued and unemployed but I hear one mob that have really amusing ads are the worst at screwing shops down on price.
Make sure everyone takes all their vacation time. There is a reason why no one wants to work at these places. Flat rate is a joke and new people just don't want to deal with it along with 150k in tools. Everyone has to have thick skin to work in a shop, but because it's a shop you don't have to take all the bs. There is little to no ventilation in most shops but yet the companies will be on you about health concerns while all there stuff is broken. No one cares about your health when you're not at work all they want to know when will you be back.
I still love the trade but people and their BS, lower back injuries and sky rocketing prices have me looking at retiring. It's been a good run, I've been in and out since the early 80's and have been wide open for the last 8. Boss, I'm tired.
@@keithholtsclaw2604 I'm tired of the trade too. I'm still plodding along but I could do with a decent break. But life's just getting so much more expensive, who can afford to have time off?
Been in the trade for about 15 years , just because i like process , but other than that its really shitty industry, very low pay for hassle, all expierience is worth like as much as noobie helper in construction or even worse
If your boss was to see this video and hear that you are happy working there and with the complimentary comments you made, he would be very appreciative having you as an employee.
It sounds like you work for a place that highly respects your skills and likely the business is not run in too much of a corporate way with meaningless team building activities etc. A few years back I had a tree fall on a brand new car and Capital Smart repairs got the job to re-skin the roof panel. The actual repair seemed good, following oem procedure, but the paint was a total disaster and it took 3 re-works to make it right. The minor original paint issues were made worse when being corrected 2 and 3 times and it wasn't fixed until the head office got involved and had a 20yr+ veteran painter get personally involved to correct everything over a week period. But along the whole way (until caving in) all they wanted to do was argue about obvious flaws you could easily see and feel. Pricks!
