Ok guys I'm getting super nervous about next week. So I'm 19, never had a job basically cause up until I was 18 living with my parents they practically wouldn't let me get a job. Long story, abusive parents. ive been with my gf since we were 16 and I just moved in with her and her parents. Her parents love me even her dad though I always feel like shit cause they've already done so much for me. Her dad owns a big shop that has a few bays for servicing cars/trucks and then like 10 more big bays for semis/trailers they work one.
Hes been waitin on this guy to quit for about a year and always said he'd hire me on if I wanted. So now I start Monday. I have absolutely no mechanical knowledge at all. Ive never worked on a car besides replacing a battery and changing a tire and few bulbs. He knows all this and said they'll teach me.. but im so nervous about disappointing/failing cause its my gf's dad who has helped me not be homeless/live in a shitty home/fed me/etc.
Are there any good online mechanic training things I could mess with to familiarize myself with more basics? Like I don't even know names of a lot of tools outside of stuff like hammers/screwdrivers/sockets/wrenches. I had him ask me if I had used an impact before and I had no idea what it was til he told me and i felt stupid.
will you be working on the semis or the regular cars or do you know? and for my own curiosity are you getting paid or is this basically you earning your keep living with him?
youll probably need tools of your own too most shops like that have specialty tools for you but your're required to have your basics
Jackson Young
he said ill kind of float around and hell put me on easier stuff to learn when he can otherwise ill be helping work on the semis. he said the semis are actually usually easier to work on cause theyre meant to be serviced and worked on and a lot of the newer cars are more complicated and annoying so ill work my way up to that.
and yea pay is going to be $15/hr until Jan 1 then if everything is going well he'll bump me to the standard $18/hr. $15/hr is their usual training wage that people are on for 3-6 months.
I have no issue with working hard and trying to learn.. just jumping into mechanics like this feels so intimidating cause im gonna be working with a bunch of people that have been doing their jobs for 10-30 years and I havent touched hardly anything before.
Cooper Hall
i knew bothing about cars and i still dont really but i do work on semi trucks even though ive never drove or moved one
trust me air brakes are fun to change
i just started out sweeping andbthen learned how to change oil and stuff
Carson Thomas
depending where you're at that's pretty good money for 19 and no higher education and first job. Tools should give you the basics from that kit. Hopefully shop will have the rest of what you need or your coworkers will let you use their stuff while you learn.
Maybe use something like car mechanic simulator on steam. It doesnt really teach you much technical stuff but it'll teach you the names of parts on the car and you can look up stuff from there to learn more.
Find some common things and look up guides to replacing them. Like 3800 series motors intake gaskets & transmissions. 5.7 starters, rear main seal. How to replace a wheel bearing, cv shaft, brakes. Etc on youtube. Just watch videos. it wont cover the process for every vehicle but you'll have a basic understanding of what you're replacing and why.
Aiden Young
If you don't know how to do something, ASK QUESTIONS. You might feel like you're being irritating (which you probably are to some extent) but everyone would rather take a few minutes to explain or help you than have you fuck up something expensive.
If you fuck up, OWN UP TO IT IMMEDIATELY. The worst that can happen is you get fired and even that is unlikely unless you're just a complete fucking retard and constantly making expensive mistakes, and since you're GFs dad seems like a good dude I'm sure he knows you'll fuck up occasionally since you have no experience. Don't try to be clever and find some way to hide it or fix it on your own.
And I speak for everyone on this board when I say this, don't put fasteners on with an impact gun until you know without a doubt what you're doing, only use it to take them off. If it's something important, use a torque wrench.
Brayden Ross
not op but what do you mean fasteners?
the only times i use an impact if for stuff like truck lugs or axel nuts after you had a hub off
i like using a ratchet since i can feel how tight the nuts are
Angel Campbell
im in iowa and i think its good money for here yeah shop has everything basically. he said that they even have all the basics that belong to the shop but its nice to have a set of your own so that if someone else is using one of the common tools that youll have your own so you dont end up waiting around.
thanks i'll start looking up videos on youtube. Ive had like $40 in my steam account for a long time now never sure what to buy cause my computer wont run most games. I dont think it'd run the mechanic simulator game either after looking at it.
Thanks for the reassurance. Ill definitely be asking a ton of questions and I have no issues owning up to my mistakes. I just hope I can avoid constantly asking stuff like "whats what" when someone asks me to go get a basic tool or part.
Henry Smith
Dude, chill. You're gold. This is how business in America works.
Your girlfriend's dad is not retarded and he knows you don't know fuck all about working on trucks. He's literally reaching out and giving you a hard. Hell man, be happy. On top of getting a solid gig in a comfy family business, you know your girl loves you.
How do I know your girl loves you? She's talked you up enough to her parents that her Dad is not only willing to let you live under his roof, but she's talked you up enough for him to bring you into the family business and give you some direction in life so you can provide a future for his daughter.
You're not gonna fail him as long as you work hard. Pay attention. Respect the job like a job. Don't half ass it because you're in pound town with his daughter. Show up early. Stay late. Study the tools like school homework if you have to.
Like another user said, try your best not to fuck up but, if you do, don't make an excuse, say sorry and try not to let it happen again.
Like I say, he's not a retard and clearly doesn't think you are. Chill. You're learning a trade. This is a good thing. Mechanic jobs aren't going anywhere, despite what Silicon Valley wants you to believe.
Don't let him down. Relax, but don't let him down.
Evan Evans
A fastener is what you call a bolt/screw when you are a tech. If you work in manufacturing you can call it a shot. If you are my apprentice and you strip something out using an impact you get to use a brace and bit for a week.
Evan Jenkins
follow the fucking manual.
there is no procedure more documented than that of automotive repair. the service manual is your god, the service manual is your bible. if there is a step you don't understand or isn't clear about, the first thing you do is google the ever-living fuck that shit. if google fails you then, and only then, do you go and ask a more senior guy for assistance. do your due diligence before asking for help but at the same time don't just haul off and wrench something down if you are unsure. it is always better to eat some crow than to do rework.
David Gomez
do you mean a screw when you say brace and bit? im not being a smartass everyone just calls them bolts, nuts and studs
Chase Young
And also, work your ass off. Older guys like young guys who work hard and want to learn. If you've got down time, don't sit around, ask around and try to help out, it will be a good learning experience (and less risky) to work on more complicated stuff under supervision.
Liam Gray
I'm sure he's talking about all nuts/bolts/etc. IE don't impact oil drain plug, water pump bolts, valvecolver bolts,etc - stuff like that.
I actually use my $19 harbor freight impact driver for a lot of that small stuff but it doesnt put out more than like 15ft lbs and I let it off as soon as it gets resistance then tighten with a socket or torque wrench.
But that's what was referring to - get used to tightening by hand via socket and torque wrenches before you start using impacts like that. You can do them but you need to know how tight things usually are and how to appropriately use impacts for tightening (ie stopping early before it actually torques the fastener).
im in iowa too, whereabouts are you?
Angel Anderson
Also don't ask how to do the same thing like 19 fucking times.
Pay attention. If someone shows you how to do something, watch and learn. Never, never stop paying attention to what's going on around you. Learn about everything you can, even if it seems like totally useless information.
Also don't fuck up.
Austin Walker
given the situation you're in its completely normal to feel this way. I started my job at tim hortons like 2 weeks ago and what you describe is exactly the same minus the obvious stuff about your girlfriends dad.
if you told him that you know jack shit then don't worry, he knows what hes getting into with you. I'm no father but chances are he thinks you're a really good match for his daughter. He let you move in with them for Christ sake. He cares, user.
You'll do fine, I promise
Ryan Davis
I meant this, I guess it's actually just a brace. Either way I came to own one and couldn't find any other use than shaming hamfisted apprentices with it
Carson Cook
no shit remeber this: on some lug nuts right tight isnt true some gave left handed thread just look and it it says L you loosen it with the inpact like youre tightening it
ive torn one off before lol
thisnis for semis and trailers btw
Dominic Bennett
thanks all for your reassurance and confidence. He knows Im happy to work. Ive already been helping him this summer reroofing my gf's grandmother (his mom)'s house and repainting it. And we added on to his personal garage and knocked down their shed and are starting on putting up a gazebo. So ive been working a lot with him on his personal projects and he has said im a good worker/learner since I knew nothing about that stuff too.
Mechanics just seem so much more complex and he's super chill and easy to ask questions but I wont be working with him at the shop much cause he'll usually be in the office or on the road.
You all make me feel pretty good about this. Im just going to youtube some general automotive stuff to familiarize myself as best as I can before I start on Monday. about half hour up from pella. kinda in the sticks but its a nice place.
Caleb Brown
Don't get me wrong, man. Some guys there may be assholes. People are people, after all. Some will probably feel you just got the gig because you're fucking Stacy, especially if you do a good job and he starts moving you up a bit over the years. Ignore it.
Just don't be an autist. Joke with the guys. Don't go tattle-telling over trivial shit.
Jose Wilson
>Mechanics just seem so much more complex
Sort of. It's almost more embroiled in jargon than fact. There's a lot of ways to refer to the same thing/idea due to marketing/culture/manufacturer and their popularity and traction in the culture.
Just figure out how this shit works as macro concepts, since you will work on them the smaller bits will come to you.
If you are even an ounce technically savvy, this shit is fairly graspable-to-easy in comparison to other forms of technology.
Jayden Morgan
I've never worked professionally as a mechanic. There's a lot I haven't done. I'm confident enough to work on my own stuff such as replacing headgaskets, swapping motors, pulling a transmission, etc however I'll do it in about 3x the time a lot of professionals will do it. I just take it slower as its a hobby and I usually try to do things in a way that I'm not rushed.
That said - when shit has me confused or I'm learning something I always think to myself "It's mostly just nuts and bolts." Granted there's cleaning old gaskets, pressing in bearings, lubricating things correctly, torque sequences, etc.
However shit was put together and its usually meant to be able to come apart in some way.
Just is a mindset that helps me not get pissed/frustrated.
Xavier Bennett
>Just is a mindset that helps me not get pissed/frustrated.
Learning when to walk away right before you're angry enough to do something you might regret is one of the biggest hurdles.
Learning how to love the root of the frustration is the key to zen.
Adrian Brown
I actually have that exact set. Perfect to get you started. Good luck dude!
Jaxson Powell
Same here actually, will say be careful with that top part, if you let it drop a lot it wil destroy the clips holding it shut. Also the gear wrenches included are kinda fat, not a fan of the ratchets they are kinda dogshit, they can bind up at times. Also you have no 16,12 or 11mm wrench. Invest in hammers, they are used more commonly than you think.
Easton Miller
Relax, they'll probably have you do oil changes and tire rotations. Just pay attention and follow directions.
