so for thoes of you who dont know, im a seventeen year old reacent highschool graduate who is in the process of making his dream come true of owning his own restoration shop.

Well i recently got hired at a very prestegious shop near me, so i came in on the first day and got set to work fixing some body damage on an 89 cavalier and it didnt go so well, i couldnt get the studgun to work right and i ended up making a mess of the bondo, it was a bad car work day, just like weve all had at points, professional and hobbiest. but at the end of the day, the shop manager came up to me and told me my work looked like Fu*king dog Sh*t and he didnt have a need for me there.

so im trying not to get discouraged, but im going back to my sketch book and plan out and create the most badass project i can think of, and build it. And when its famous and makes its way to a magazine cover, itll be called "fu*king Dog Sh*t"

what do you guys think?

 

Well, the best motivation is almost always demotivational.

i hate body work.

why dont you build your own body kit? i dont like the aftermarket XJS kits.

 

well A. i suck at fiberglass, and B. i kinda want something with massive hp and obnoxiousness to counter my smoothness of the xjs

 

hmm, im more of a sleeper myself.

i can help with the horsepower part. start with a proper motor, for instance, anything other than SBC.

 

I think you did not do so well in English class. The shop owner did you a favor. Go to school and get a degree. Do automotive work as a hobby but not for a living. I have been in this business for 27 years and would not suggest anyone go into the car business. Use your brain to make a living and save your body for hobbies.

 

wow. its a forum, not an english essay.

 

im currently enrolled in school, and i did okay in english class, thank you very much. But, this is what i want to do and I'll be damned if i let one persons disaproval of my work allow me to throw that out.

 

Calvin
Your ex boss is as fault, not you. Bodywork is THE most difficult of the automotive arts. You should not give up, rather find a proper bodyshop that will give you a proper apprenticeship and training. You can do all the mechanical stuff in your spare time. It will take about 5 years to become decent at the job, and after that you will be one of the most sought-after people in the car world.

Good luck

Greg

 

Sounds like my High School experience. My art teacher told me that "I didn't have a shred of talent and that I should take up a trade, like being a plumber". Since that time, I have become a professional artist, have received a number of "Best of Show" awards, was awarded "Artist of the Year" on the Ovation Cable Television Network, and am now a Director at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art! So, don't let your teacher knock you down at ALL! Success is the best vengeance my friend!!! Your passion will see you through to that success! Hang tight, damn the torpedos, and full speed ahead!!! We all look forward to seeing what you will do!

 

Sorry, I meant "former" boss, not teacher.

 

My thoughts exactly, what idiot employs a 17 year old straight from school, points him at a car and expects to have a proffesional result at the end of the day.

Find somwhere that will give you the training that you need.

 

Greg Edge says; "I think you did not do so well in English class. The shop owner did you a favor. Go to school and get a degree. Do automotive work as a hobby but not for a living. I have been in this business for 27 years and would not suggest anyone go into the car business. Use your brain to make a living and save your body for hobbies."

Don't you think that's a bit rough Mr. Edge? I learned a hard lesson only a few years back that I should have listened to my heart regarding how I should pursue my life's endeavors. Unfortunately, I listened to naysayers and ended up getting a degree, working my way up the corporate ladder, making a ton of money and ending up completely miserable. Just my opinion, but I think perhaps we should let this young fellow follow his heart and passions and see where it takes him. While you may have not enjoyed this path and the automotive biz hasn't worked out the way you wanted it to, it could be the absolute best and happiest path for HIM to take. Maybe Calvin D.K. will end up becoming the next Carroll Shelby, or better yet... the next Calvin D.K.!

Anyway... I'm jus sayin! Just one man's opinion.

 

After high school I went into a trade school for autobody and got my diploma. Found out afterwards I could have saved myself the money and gone to an autobody shop and asked to be an apprentice and got paid to do it!

It wasn't for me though. Working against the clock to find a good balance between except-able results for the reimbursement from insurance companies is hard. Most of the work I saw were collision repairs. It's long, hot, dirty work, but it's honest labor!

As mentioned, find a body shop and ask for apprenticeship!

 

I'm plus-or-minus on that element of the thread.

Yes, this is a car forum. Yes, having good ethics and having motivation-- independent of language skills-- matter, no doubt.

How we write and speak marks us in the eyes of others, perhaps rightly so... perhaps not.

Composing a coherent and legible paragraph is a skill that might serve one better than being able to fix a car. Or, maybe not. Or... it will at least complement that skill.

In a market with severe unemployment, presentation... counts. Dress well, speak well, write well. These could prove to be what lets one advance.

 

gramar goes out the window when im at subway typing on my smartphone in all honesty.

But what this has been making me think of is when i start my shop, im gonna make sure its not just for making money and we do things the right, but my employies arent under the pressure of some dipshit employer/manager whos only worries about his overhead.

The other thing i realized is that all these six figure cars i looked at while in there were COVERED in bondo, and even talking to the employees they say how they are constantly warrenteeing jobs. Yet this guy has the reputation of the best on the east coast

 

I understand the desire to produce exceptional work, but don't dismiss the need to worry about overhead! Let's face it, no business except governments can continue to operate in the red for long. If you have a $4000 estimate on a car, you have to subtract insurance, taxes, health insurance, wages, electric/water/heat, property/building payments, state licensure, OSHA...the list is sigificant. A well run shop will turn out cars fairly quickly and as cheaply as possible. To have an employee spend excess days on a single car will kill a biz quick!

 

i completely understand that, but it was also my first day and i hadnt even gotten aclimated to the enviornment. If i had spent a week on a day long job with a car and taken that long id understand, but i didnt do that, i was just new to a workplace, and usually it takes about a week for someone to become firmiliar and aclimate to anywhere. And i learned this from my parents who both run there own buisnesses, and my father has run companies for almost his entire carreer.

 

HI Cal, you win some,you lose some, Life is a bitch,and sometimes you meet some of them.

there is alot of GOOD advice on this thread, you are YOUNG and all of your life ahead, patience is a virtue!

sit back for a while and let things change,AND THEY WILL, before you expect a perfect world.

admirble YES,, realistic NO.

RON

 

Calvin,

I have yet another redneck fail on me, by not even staring on my XJS in 5 weeks now! One excuse, after another... Believe me, people in this business are either washed up losers, or shop owners, employing those.
So in other words, you lost nothing!

 

Damn. it shouldve had 20 coats by now