So what's your story? How did you get into pro-detailing?

T

the walrus

New member
Hey dudes-

There was a recent post on "why detailing". I'm kinda interested in the how.



For me, I'm a car guy, home mechanic and aspiring weekend/hobby detailer with a 9-5 that pays the bills. I've always enjoyed trying to get a car as clean as possible. I tried to get into detailing when I was younger and I worked at a body shop and a dealership but always had other work to do. So now 10 years into my telecom career I'm finally getting into machine polishing and learning about all the different products, tools and techniques. It's amazing what you guys can do!



What's your success story, how did you get into it and how did you get to where you are today? What do you like most about it?



Keep up the great work.



Justin
 
I grew up with a motor head father who had been doing body work since he was 16. I had always enjoyed washing his cars as a kid and never expected money for it. I just liked how they looked after being all clean up and waxed. Durring middle school my parents bought a new house and we had a 30' x 40' building in the back that my father started doing body work out of. At about age 14 I started wet sanding and buffing cars for him as well as preping the interiors for delivery. At 16 he got me a job at a local high volume shop. I worked there for several years before moving onto managing a few other shops. Eventually I got burnt out and went back to school in 1999. Ever since then I have been detailing on the side.



Here is my first car...bought it at 16 and then repainted it my junior year of high school. ;)



prelude.jpg






Rasky
 
My grandfather always had cars and my uncle restored various vehicles from the late 40's to early 70's. I got hooked just from watching them work and from being around the shows they put them in.



I restored my father's first vehicle, an '83 F-150, and drove it as my first vehicle.



I learned early that to get anything done correctly, good enough to meet your own standards, you had to do it yourself. So, I did everything myself. I learned detailing, mechanics, paint and body so I could do everything myself.





However, detailing was more fun for me so I took more of a liking to it. I have reaserched and tested from then until now on hundreds of products, and will continue to do so into the future. I love detailing vehicles.
 
In 1990 I bought my first truck a 1985-86 Nissan Hardbody. I was fresh out of highschool. When I bought the truck it was oxidized and had no shine. After polishing and waxing it by hand I saw the difference and I was hooked. For the next 14 years I just maintened my own cars until around 2004 when I worked on my first clinet car. Made some money and figured it was an enjoyable side job. I'm still detailing on the side which keeps me pretty busy on the weekends but I do enjoy every moment.
 
old friend did it and did a crappy job and got paid well - :bat:bat:cry:



i got into it, learned the right way to do things, get paid well, and do a great job! :spot:spot:nana::nana:
 
Like most, started with OCD on keeping the first car clean... went from Meg's 3 step from Autozone, to Meg's 3 step from ads.com, etc. etc... I turned to machine polishing when I bought my 328 a few years back (jet black 98 :sign !!!) and got good at it... people just started coming in, and they still are... :up
 
Worked at a volume shop to get through college the first time around. Hated the pay but loved the work. Got sick and tired of being an Design engineer for GM decided to make a business out of detailing under my own terms now and I get paid more than double on average in a year than I ever made as a design engineer and I actually love doing this...
 
for me i grew up in an auction town where detail shops are on every block literally i think at this point there is like 25 or so in a town of ten thousand people. i seen everycar going threw my town on a transporter truck and to be honest i got sick of these things as they rolled down the street i lived on making all kinds of noise. when i got out of the service i needed a job till i got a chance to get a degree. well here i am 11 years working on my own and enjoying it everday!
 
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