To go along with some of the above comments about mechanics having to have a certain skillset and how most people don't possess that skill, I have come to the conclusion that it can be a double-edged sword. Yes, it's nice to have the knowledge but at times it seems like you can never be left alone as someone always wants something and they can't accept when you tell them that your personal stuff and family's stuff comes first. I don't want to sound ungrateful because I am very grateful to have the skillset that I have and also a never-ending list of people that want me to do work for them. I would like to think that comes from a lifetime of treating people well and doing good work, but it can be a pain in the *** at times. Where I don't have my business any longer or commit to others as I have a full-time job, I make it very clear that I do this on the side and more importantly "my stuff and my son's stuff comes first, period. No exceptions". Most people that I have done work for completely understand and support that. However, there are some that still feel the need to call me to complain that I am taking too long to get to their ****. I just had a guy today that I finally had to tell that it may be better if he takes it somewhere else because it will be at least a couple of months before I can get to him. He said he will wait because he doesn't trust anyone else but he's really upset about having to wait so long.
When talking about tools, I also hear all too often that "if I had all of the tools that you have, I could do that too." That gets really old after a while because people just assume the tools make the mechanic. They also don't realize that there are plenty of guys with tens and tens of thousands of dollars worth of tools that just can't seem to do decent work. To some it's about having the tools more so than actually using them to turn out quality work. I liken it to the old saying "all hat and no cattle".
It's that way with knowledge as well. I heard a saying many, many years ago that was impactful to me. It was "knowledge itself is of no value, it is the use of knowledge that makes it valuable." I have tried to live my life through that perspective because I have known a lot of people in my life that were book smart and could tell you how to do something but had no common sense or couldn't get it to their hands. They could read it and explain it but couldn't do it.
I have also noticed over the years that there are different levels of mechanics, as not all mechanics are created equal. Maybe there have always been those different degrees of mechanics and I'm just realizing it over the past few years with social media or YouTube showcasing more. Now I don't claim to know everything and I make mistakes at times as I'm sure we all do. Part of being a good mechanic I feel is accepting those mistakes and being sure not to make them a second time. A mistake can be a good learning opportunity, albeit sometimes an expensive one.
What I have a hard time accepting is all of the hack work I see these days from so called "professional mechanics". It really does nothing to help our industry and surely doesn't promote confidence in our field.
While my son and I were removing his dash last night I shared with him that there was a guy I watched on YouTube removing a dash and he was more focused on seeing how fast he could remove it vs. how good of a job he was doing. There are two hard to reach screws at the center of the HVAC suitcase on the WJ model that connect a duct to the main body for the rear heat. This duct is held by two small #4 screws that thread into molded in plastic bosses or standoffs coming off the bottom of the molded case. The guy I had watched grabbed the duct and yanked it out of from under the dash. He mentioned that there were two screws under the dash, and they will more than likely be hard to get out and sometimes break the molded boss so "you may as well just break them off when removing it because they'll probably break anyways".
Holy ****. You may as well break them off because they'll probably break anyways? Really? That's what we have digressed to as automotive mechanics? Now I will be the first to admit, that there have been times when I have broken a clip or tab off of a plastic trim piece. But in those few occasions, I generally will go out of my way to replace the part or mix up some epoxy and resecure the tab and I sure as hell don't break them on purpose because "they'll probably break anyways". That makes absolutely no sense to me. And what bothered me more were the numerous comments about what a great "technician" he is and how awesome his work is. What the hell am I missing in this picture? Would they feel the same way if it were their car he just yanked the duct out of and broke the plastic?
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