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bigdom86
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PostPosted: 14:51 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Learning a trade Reply with quote

Hi All

Always wanted to learn a trade as this will always be in demand and would be useful to have the skills, could also do extra odd jobs here and there as know quite a few people in construction.

I am edging towards electrician or gas engineer as I have a background in science (biochemistry) so think I would quite enjoy the technical side of things.

was recommended a place in crawley called trade skills 4u, just need to see if I could do the course over weekends for a year.

I am 32 now so wondering if I am too old now to re-train into a new career as if I really enjoy it I may try and go self-employed in a trade.

Any input on pros/cons of each trade or things to steer clear of or shall I just steer clear full-stop? Laughing
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DrSnoosnoo
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PostPosted: 15:05 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rather than stuff you need to have to keep your qualifications up to date with; electrician / gas etc. Why not something like plastering? Plasterers can earn a decent wedge and while there are the high up plasterer types with the certs and the trade recognition etc, a good plasterer doesn't need them and has no insurance requirements?
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M.C
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PostPosted: 15:12 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

DrSnoosnoo wrote:
Why not something like plastering?

Is it difficult? Sorry if that's a stupid question but I have zero DIY skills and always thought well some lad has probably been doing it since 16, who probably already can't compete with with some Eastern European who has been doing it since the age of 6 Smile
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 17:28 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you plan to stay in the UK, learn the necessary skills to run a food bank? Razz
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DrSnoosnoo
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PostPosted: 18:00 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

M.C wrote:
Is it difficult? Sorry if that's a stupid question but I have zero DIY skills and always thought well some lad has probably been doing it since 16, who probably already can't compete with with some Eastern European who has been doing it since the age of 6 Smile


It's definitely a skill. I know a few and it takes some practice to get good and a good plasterer can make a wall look like a mirror. I'm sure you can learn it by watching and trying, that's how people learn at colleges, they have walls that they plaster and are taught the tekkers etc.

I'd love to learn it, purely because my house needs plastering but I'm Northern and tight, and cheap plasterers are generally cheap because they're shit.
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grr666
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PostPosted: 18:11 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

DrSnoosnoo wrote:
Why not something like plastering?

Takes a physical toll though after years of doing it. Wrist, elbow and shoulder injuries are common and then you can't
work. Respiratory problems from ALWAYS being in either damp or dusty environments are common too. You end up lop
sided over many years on the trowel as you will naturally work favouring your dominant side. Make no mistake, it's proper
hard graft too amongst the cold and the wet. You'll know what I mean the first time you skim a large ceiling. Laughing Also,
to be competitive, you'll need to learn to be pretty fast on the trowel without sacrificing quality of finish and get to that
standard pretty quickly if you want to earn well. One of my best friends is a plasterer, he's fully apprenticeship trained
not one of these bods that's done a 7 week course. And I'd rather pay him when I need a spread than learn how to do it
myself, and have mediocre results when I do.
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Freddyfruitba...
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PostPosted: 18:49 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

M.C wrote:
DrSnoosnoo wrote:
Why not something like plastering?

Is it difficult? Sorry if that's a stupid question but I have zero DIY skills

Wot grrr said.
I don't think it's so much difficult as knowing how to do it, if you get what I mean. Personally, I count myself as reasonably DIY-literate in that I have no problem with any big plumbing or electrical jobs, but being able to plaster to even a half-way decent standard has always eluded me. I reckon you need to work alongside someone who can do it properly, so you get continuous feedback and learn what went wrong each time you screw up; something I've never had the opportunity to do.
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iooi
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PostPosted: 21:57 - 08 Jan 2019    Post subject: Re: Learning a trade Reply with quote

bigdom86 wrote:


was recommended a place in crawley called trade skills 4u,



Why the hell do people think naming a company that offers skills based courses in that style is good marketing.....

Still one born every minute....
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DrSnoosnoo
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PostPosted: 10:42 - 09 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

grr666 wrote:
Takes a physical toll though after years of doing it. Wrist, elbow and shoulder injuries are common and then you can't
work. Respiratory problems from ALWAYS being in either damp or dusty environments are common too. You end up lop
sided over many years on the trowel as you will naturally work favouring your dominant side. Make no mistake, it's proper
hard graft too amongst the cold and the wet. You'll know what I mean the first time you skim a large ceiling. Laughing Also,
to be competitive, you'll need to learn to be pretty fast on the trowel without sacrificing quality of finish and get to that
standard pretty quickly if you want to earn well. One of my best friends is a plasterer, he's fully apprenticeship trained
not one of these bods that's done a 7 week course. And I'd rather pay him when I need a spread than learn how to do it
myself, and have mediocre results when I do.


And I don't disagree, I know some very good, time served plasterers and my mother's ex partner was/is a lecturer, worked with the WCofPlaisterers in the art form.

I thought of the OP talking of the extra jobs on the side so not a full time profession. So dirty mouldy lungs might not be as big a worry for him.

My plasterer of choice is about 6 ft 7, prefers ceilings, and he can spread a wall in about 3 passes of his trowel. He can reach everywhere!
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Diggs
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PostPosted: 10:55 - 09 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

My plasterer of choice is a 5'6" bloke in his 50s called Brian. He plasters in shorts and sandals to northern soul...
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mentalboy
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PostPosted: 04:14 - 10 Jan 2019    Post subject: Re: Learning a trade Reply with quote

bigdom86 wrote:


I am 32 now so wondering if I am too old now to re-train into a new career as if I really enjoy it I may try and go self-employed in a trade.

Any input on pros/cons of each trade or things to steer clear of or shall I just steer clear full-stop? Laughing


Never too old to become a sparky, most of them have a toolkit that would fit in the average sized lunchbox and it's one of the few construction trades a nine stone weakling can manage.
Setting up as self employed is simple enough but do you have the kind of social network/ contacts that can get you off the ground and keep you in work for long enough to build up a healthy reputation/ customer list? Referrals used to be everything in the trades but now any oick can sign up to 'I can does building.com' and gullible twats are easily parted from their money, which makes setting up slightly easier nowadays.
If you do a course make sure that it includes Part P ( or whatever the modern equivalent is) if you plan to go self employed - hopefully the certification side of things has settled down a bit as I seem to recall the regs changing every five minutes when I was building in the UK.
One of my younger brothers switched from a good job in electro-mechanical engineering to going self employed as a sparky just before he turned 40. Never short of work, although he's morphed into general construction and put on a large roof at Christmas. He's a lot happier now out of the rat race BUT our family have always dabbled in construction alongside our day jobs, some folks just aren't suited to managing their time and working in all conditions.
You can, presumably, always go back to the daily grind if you find you're not cut out for working for yourself.
No idea about gas engineers, but to echo others I wouldn't touch plastering, or any other wet trade, with a barge pole, unless you're built like a gorilla and have a penchant for shitty working conditions.
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WD Forte
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PostPosted: 03:37 - 12 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've had a go at most things but plastering is a skill thats always stumped me.

Trades for U sounds like dodgy bullshit to me, tread carefully.
Since leaving the navy, one of my lads has done a few courses with companies who had shiny brochures and
promises of a bright future but none led to meaningful employment.
He did get certificates, but ultimately it left him out of pocket and somewhat frustrated.

I'd suggest something electrical/electronic as it can develop into many other fields.
With respect to plasterers, the upgrade options seem limited
and ahem 'imported labour' may be flooding the market
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M.C
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PostPosted: 14:47 - 12 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

WD Forte wrote:
Trades for U sounds like dodgy bullshit to me, tread carefully.
Since leaving the navy, one of my lads has done a few courses with companies who had shiny brochures and
promises of a bright future but none led to meaningful employment.
He did get certificates, but ultimately it left him out of pocket and somewhat frustrated.

That was my impression, employers want experience, anyone can complete a shite course and with education/training in general there are lots of people with 'qualifications', so you aren't getting ahead by being yet another person with a piece of paper.
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chris-red
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PostPosted: 17:18 - 14 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Judging by the quotes I've been getting I wished I'd trained as a Brickie, £400-500 a day they seem to want...
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andyscooter
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PostPosted: 18:35 - 14 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

chris-red wrote:
Judging by the quotes I've been getting I wished I'd trained as a Brickie, £400-500 a day they seem to want...



i know one who has done it since he was 14 and is excellent

works for 150 a shift
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steve the grease
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PostPosted: 19:31 - 14 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

I suppose I'm an engineer. I studied engineering at college and did an old fashioned apprenticeship. I hated working in a factory and so I left and I have been working in the motor trade , mostly , ever since. Although I have worked in building for a year or two, doing mostly plumbing and electrics ( it's not that hard lets face it there is only 3 different coloured wires or 2 pipes , H+C or flow and return)



IF ...............I had my time again, for sure I would train in a skill where the skill was in my hands and head. For example , nursing or osteopathy, physiotherapy, counselling . With skills like that you can travel anywhere in the world and someone else provides the infrastructure, a hospital or treatment room .

An electrician isn't so bad a 50kg bag of tools and testers will see you set up. As a mechanic I have approximately 3 tonnes of tools
( seriously) . When did you see a plumber who didn't have a massive big van , down on the springs with a hundred boxes of brass and copper fittings and pipes..

Also bear in mind that as you get older working in an unheated environment becomes very tiring . In my experience a lot of tradesmen are running on empty by the time they are 50 odd, with still fifteen more years to a pension.

Just a thought .........
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mentalboy
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PostPosted: 02:19 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

steve the grease wrote:


An electrician isn't so bad a 50kg bag of tools and testers will see you set up.

Also bear in mind that as you get older working in an unheated environment becomes very tiring . In my experience a lot of tradesmen are running on empty by the time they are 50 odd, with still fifteen more years to a pension.

Just a thought .........


50kg?? I wasn't joking earlier when I said the average sparks tools would fit in a lunch box - the buggers are always borrowing odds and sods because two screwdrivers, a pair of strippers and a cordless drill aren't usually enough to finish the job!!

Heated outdoor environment is also a tad tiring!!! 50 and I know exactly what you mean - arthritic fingers, dodgy wrists, iffy elbows, stiff neck, back pain, mullered hips, buggered knees, torn Achilles tendon. In fact, the only thing that isn't fucked is my cock. Sad
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c_dug
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PostPosted: 10:02 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Proper construction sites are miserable places in my experience, despite the allure of good money, it's not something I'd willingly go into, I've done the odd day/week here and there, enough to know it isn't for me.

Maintenance and engineering trades in my eyes are a much nicer option, I was an electro-mechanical maintenance technician for a few years before moving into an office based role managing the same work. The same satisfaction of working with your hands and your head, but usually as an employee rather than self employed. Often tools are provided, workshop/van provided, parts and materials provided, you just do the fixing.

That doesn't work so well on a self employed or part time basis, but there seems to be more and more demand for general handyman type work these days, which I'd say is the nearest self employed equivalent. Fewer and fewer people can turn a screwdriver well enough to assemble furniture or change a light switch it seems. Their loss could be your gain.
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Ribenapigeon
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PostPosted: 14:46 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

I wish i had done a trade. When i left school though it was during the massive unemployment of the early eaighties and the trades were dead so it wasnr attractive.

I always thought being able to cut hair was a good way you can always earn wherever you are in the world. That, and pick-pocket skills of course.
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M.C
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PostPosted: 15:24 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ribenapigeon wrote:
I wish i had done a trade.

I wish I hadn't.
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Evil Hans
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PostPosted: 17:37 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Re: Learning a trade Reply with quote

iooi wrote:
bigdom86 wrote:


was recommended a place in crawley called trade skills 4u,



Why the hell do people think naming a company that offers skills based courses in that style is good marketing.....

Still one born every minute....


At least they resisted the temptation to spell Skills with a Z ...
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Ribenapigeon
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PostPosted: 20:18 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had the chance to go and train at york cathedral Masonry workshop when i was sixteen. I didn't have a clue how to move awsy from home though so never did it. Ive always regretted not doing it.
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J4mes
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PostPosted: 21:02 - 15 Feb 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ribenapigeon wrote:
I had the chance to go and train at york cathedral Masonry workshop when i was sixteen. I didn't have a clue how to move awsy from home though so never did it. Ive always regretted not doing it.


One of my wife's uncles is a stone Mason specialising in churches in Germany. Fuck me he makes some money. I've never seen precision and attention to detail like it, and it transfers to everything he does.
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