Farming helps a lot of dirt and concrete guys here. If they weren't here competition would be pretty fierce in residential (even more so than it is I suppose).

I made a thread last year about getting into commercial. I need to try bidding a few to see what the deal is with it, a lot of people seem to enjoy it once they start.

 

Commercial work is a lot of paper work but can make good money fast if your set up for it. Ive done a ton of 6 inch pads and drives for the plant outside town that I used to have all thought the pics thread, loading docks etc.. renovated the whole plant, total of 90k sq ft of roofing. All from small repair work about 10 years ago. Lot of leg work and slow pay (45 days) but they pay and its good work

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10 years ago this week I joined and the job I was doing was sanding and refinishing some teak furniture in the shop with my dad for his ex boss. All we had going. Started working for that plant in February of 11 I think. Built a small house in 2010 and didn't build another one until 2014. Bid like 20

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One of the first things I ever learned in construction, on my first framing crew, was that there was a night-and-day difference between the foreman's attitude and persona compared to that of the framing contractor himself. The contractor was really living, going on vacations and talking about cigars, happy and alive. The foreman, not so much.

 

Personality depending lots of foreman would be f'ing miserable as contractors

I enjoyed/enjoy both roles, like the money better on the contracting side.

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Did you work for CaliMike?

 

It must have been his cousin here in MN

 

Id be miserable framing in MN too [emoji38]

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Id be miserable framing in MN too [emoji38]

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The thing is he wasn't even miserable. He called me "bud" and said good job... he was pretty average. I realized that you really need to own a business to really be living though, unless you REALLY love your job.

 

Someone better be there when I'm too old to fix my car, plumbing, roof, whatever.

I'm not haggling about paying, either.

 

"...just because Kowboy is a wuss..."

Jaws:
This wuss sold a $3,800.00 sink change today that will take his $20.00-an-hour employee a day to complete. The sink costs less than $400.00 and the ad to get the job less than that. Not bad for a college dropout wuss with a plumbing license.

Instead of engaging in 3rd-grade playground name calling, why don't you stop your laziness and start doing the difficult job of articulating a cogent rebuttal to my argument that kids today aren't lazy, but in fact are smart? Good luck.

 

Oh quit you big baby [emoji38]

Your making my point. Sounds like a kid would be smart to get into that game, no?

Or is it smarter to get 70k in loans to make 35 -50k, as is now causing a national issue of student loans these snowflakes cant pay back? Is that smart?

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So I recently got my general contractors license after years of telling myself i'd never work construction for a career. I am coming to find out that there is great money and satisfaction in construction. It just took my father to retire and his nudge for me to figure that out. So here is my point, for years i was working my butt off for a pretty weak wage. No wonder I wanted out, there are plenty of jobs out there that are nice and comfy behind a desk making 30k a year. Now as I look around at my subcontractors, i realize they are all veterans in the construction industry. Will we see a rise of new tradesmen in the coming years? As of now, it looks a little rough here in Utah. What do you think, am I not seeing the whole picture?


Also for anyone interested in giving me feedback on my website, here is the link.
www.mathewmade.com

As to the TOPIC THREAD...Not No, but Hell No. The demand for Tradesmen Never will die. Jesus was a carpenter. There will always be a demand for a tradesman. And that's OK with me. That's what I've been. And darn proud of it. #can'tbuyexperience

 

Actually, there is evidence that Jesus may have been a stonemason.

However, since he probably bathed, didn't cuss, didn't drink to excess and probably showed up to work on time, it isn't likely. 😁

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Freedom has always been high on my priority list. Construction gives you a different kind of freedom you'll never get at a desk job. That comes with both being an employee or the boss.


Mike.
___
[emoji631] [emoji631]

 

I remember when my wife's sister was pushing to go to college (yes I've been dating my wife since high school) and said just take liberal arts until you figure it out. I said you will be doing it single, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.

She started at nextel as a temp and is currently working at a medical instrument manufacturer as a manager making six figures, HS education. In my experience you get back what you put in. I would say at this point she deals with as much stress or more than I do regarding work.

 

Now, knowing how height challenged you are... I see that picture completely different.

And I also see how falling off the ladder was a huge distance.

Do your feet always reach the ground, or do you wear tall shoes?

I could go on all day...

😁

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The carpenter's union where I live is full of kids. The last few big jobs I've worked on were being run by kids. On one of them, I was taking direction from a foreman who seemed like he was only a few years out of high school. I'm 46 and it was hard to take. Anyway, someone's letting them in on the secret. Still a great life to be had if it's what you want to do and you fit in.

 

Where are you?

 

I'm in Vallejo, CA

 

Talking to a crew next to a lot for a prospect I was looking at I can see where they'd think the trades suck. 20 and 19, pretty rough fellas from west side of Skyline in Kingsland. They are getting 10 and 11 dollars an hour respectively, cash sometimes, sometimes checks from his bosses wife, sometimes late etc.. Boss is a loser ass contractor but trys to look the part. These are sons of a buddy sounds like. There dad is probably in a similar situation if they are sticking to the Skyline tradition.

Reason I took notice is those boys were working their tails off. They could be top end probably, but they likely won't be. They don't know any better and whats worse is they won't try to find better or advance. They are learning from a wanna be.

I dont need hands - if I did id of try to paoch them and I never poach. As it is I told them to call my framer, hed hire them for better pay but they'd end up with the same on the check with taxes coming out. I doubt they call.

Probably thought I was a paper builder but I could build circles around their boss, and the framer could actually teach them something and get them over a crew in a few years. Those types from chit holes anyone in this thread would tear down before we'd rent to someone end up sticking to themselves, low confidence. It sucks to see.

I dont keep up with the kingsland low end hillbilly contractors but a while back I posted I was eating lunch on a site and watching this loser contractors 4 man "crew" share a chitty nail gun and old ass skill saw doing a terrible job on a remodel. One kid was measuring sixteen inches and marking and then measure 16 inches and marking and his bud would toe nail in a stud. It would move from recoil and he'd have to reset. I finally told the guy about accumulation of error and to use a clamp if there was noticing to hook to lay out and I cut a voice for the other kid. One looked at me like I was nuts and the other like I just told him how math worked [emoji38]

Maybe 2 years ago. Late summer I saw two of those same hands were with that same contractor at the yard.

Thses types muddy the waters on good job or not.

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Here in MN school bus driver get 24$/hour. If you guys do not believe I will do photo of bus with advertising at it. That said framers are from 16$ to 35$/hour. My 2c would be maybe try framing for a few years and try to move to contractor or GC/builder role. Looking behind from age 56 and "health is most important" (true) only full blow idiot would stay for such wages in framing like employee for life. About buss drivers, back than in 2000 they made like 12$/hour. Several of my friends are school bus drivers. At same time maximum wage for framers went from 25 to 35$/hour. So math and MN weather do not add up any more here.

 

Here's why the kids don't want in the trades. Two doors down from me on a $300,000.00 waterfront remodel. I'm sure the GC thinks he's on an adequate clean-up schedule because the illegal aliens haven't complained a bit.

The kids want a clean place to $#!t. The bastards.

Worse than the GC and the illegals are his apologists that will appear following this post telling me to quit whining and to suck up these dignity destroying working conditions.

 

What a f'ing Karen [emoji38] I haven't seen anyone say they like ripe porta johns in this thread. That being said ive worked on high rise construction projects that make that look like child's play. Maybe just me but i would not trade my career for any other career, certainly not because of that. But im not a wuss, I just went across the street and dueced. Lol.

Call the builder or you just venting?

I am not ok with porta pottys being nasty either, if there is scheduled to be a lot of trades we have two on site, when I was doing plant renovation, 4.. Having worked on crews and jobsites with low and high standards I always chose the high standards when I acquired the skill set that allowed it.

Probably low end and low teired subs here who don't have enough pull in their own market to call the Gc and tell him to get that chit cleaned up pronto. Chit happens, if it does its a phone call away to fix it. Jbar (our services) responded to tipped over porta potties (by hood rat rich kids, this is a two million dollar house) within a couple hours 4 times this year. Spotless

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I'm with you. I put locks on my bucks and only my crew or the ones I give permission to use them.

Ours stay spotless.

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How much remember in 80ties working in Germany at big projects dixy was at minimum always half full of business and sometime so much that almost my thing touch business when I would sit down. So it is better situation in USA. I do not complain about it. But I would like to be capable buy Ferrari from my self employment work and 1M house. It didn't happened so far.

 

My thing touches when its empty.

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Until I read this I thought I might be weird or something.

 

Enough, Kowboy. If you don't like how the moderators operate here, you are free to go elsewhere. When you own the site, you can dictate behavior.

You don't own the site.

 

Perhaps we can provide him with an all expense paid vacation....

 

No need for that. He can't take some ribbing. Not the first we've seen

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Doesn't deserve the "Mr"...

Obviously he dont have much time on a real job site...

Fictional writer, wish he'd go hang at readers digest or something...

 

Yeah it is him. However I think he figured out will never be so good looking like myself hence he off itself. I'm not guilty he is ugly mofo.

 

Yeah it is him. However I think he figured out will never be so good looking like myself hence he off itself. I'm not guilty he is ugly mofo.

[emoji38] John could hold his own

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John's stories were something else. Funny as ****. Sure was a grumpy old bastard though. He'd get nasty with people quick like and in a hurry. Seen him say some things that might have gotten him to dentures a little faster if it was in person.

I liked him.

 

Seen him say some things that might have gotten him to dentures a little faster if it was in person

Or put somebody else in dentures quick

Mike

 

Just met my nieces fiance is 23, has 2 years erecting steel buildings, 2 years on the pipeline welding and has been welding panels for the wall for Gibraltar for a year. Certified in every type of welding you can be. With 10 hrs a week overtime and a 7k dollar production bonus he will make about 68k this year, and has health insurance. He owes 35k on a little house hes fixed up and 3 acres. Just bought her a nice rock and gave her a nice budget for her wedding.

I think her moms probably pretty happy....

After a whiskey on rocks for me and a rum and coke for the young fella this last weekend Id guess he will be running a doing steel erections for himself in the next few years.... turns out he has a new uncle with some connections in construction. Just needs to set aside a bit of capital.

His brother has a degree he owes 45k on and makes less than her fiance and he's 6 years older. He also can't fix a car, remodel a house, or make extra scratch building deer stands and feeders in his barn.

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