Anyone work in an autobody shop?

[Rootar]

im gonna try and get a job at this local body shop called troy's and i was wondering whats it like? like what do you do? i wanna learn more stuff bout painting and prep work and i think id like the job. But if anyone does work in one could you tell me am i going towards sumthin good thatd i like. i dont mind working at all, i have been doing electrical with my dad all past summer so that doesnt bother me. im jsut trying to get an after school job and one that will go into the summer and be more "fun" than pulling wire, running condoit, and wireing up lights and pannels. troy is a cool guy and is jsut moving into a bigger building so he is prolly gonna be looking for sum extra help around there so im going to talk to him monday see if he needs a good extra person to do all the little stuff and let him and the guys there get caught up. (they are already backed up over 2 months in advance). So what do yall think? are body shops cool places to work?

on the plus side i could have access to good stuff for painting four wheeler parts with

[Mxjunkie]

I just started a full time job at one, you mainy tape cars, clean the shop, sand, bondo, take cars apart, paint -once you learn. Its not too hard but you get really dirty!

I started about one week ago and I sanded a truck from the doors back, fixed a couple dents and bondo, then painted it and it was out in 2 days. I made 100 dollars in those two days and I just started.

[bulkdriverlp]

body shops usually pay on commission basis, so if theres no work you dont get paid. its real dirty and dusty, youll be caughing up flem balls from the paint stuff you inhale. taking apart cars is not fun to me but you will learn a lot about em thou.

[Fender Bender]

Originally posted by Mxjunkie69
bondo

And you work in a body shop?!

[Aceman]

So if you had a couple of little dings in your fender you'd want them to replace the entire fender? I think not. Pop the dings out as best you can and smear a little body filler on. Good as new. Bondo isn't bad unless it's caked on, a little here and there isn't a big deal.

[Stevie-D]

i worked at a body shop for a while. at first it's hard, but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty easy to get stuff done. i enjoy collision repair, on new vehicles. restorations are cool to do to, but they are a pain in the butt sometimes to get them stripped down. a lot of times parts aren't available for them so you end up making them yourself.
it is a fun job though. make sure you wear a dust mask whenever sanding body filler or fiberstrand. the bondo can get into your lungs and harden. if you've ever inhaled fiberglass dust, you know how painful that can be. same with safety glasses/goggles/welding masks. they all can save you a heck of a lot of pain.
never weld without a helmet. i was making a divider for my toolbox, and not using the mask since i was just tacking it together. my face got burnt bright red from it, my eyelids got burnt and crispy, and my eyes hurt like heck for a few days. then i had to deal with looking like an idiot while my face peeled:p



it is a good job, and you learn a lot. learning how to paint properly is a good idea too

[Fender Bender]

Umm, Bondo sucks dude.

[Rootar]

yea my dad talked to troy's business partner and he said he really needed some help casue he was swamped with cars and some people are out alot. so im going over to his shop tomorrow mourning before lunch see if i can get a job. Bobby Mc gwire (troy's partner) said he needed some good help and if i went over there he prolly start me this week.

[JUSTINcredible]

I took some auto body in high school and it wasnt my thing at all... but if it is something you dont mind doing and you can find a good shop to work for it can be good money.

I highly doubt there would ever be a time when your not busy... people get in fender benders and accidents every day. One of the shops in town here has a lot in the back with atleast 8 cars waiting to get fixed.

[ShiftFMX]

Originally posted by Fender Bender
Umm, Bondo sucks dude.

Good 'ol Pick hammer and a File ;)