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Oct. 9, 2008 12:50 p.m. ClemSparks UltraDork

egnorant wrote:

I deliver pizza to fill the financial gaps and love it. I was a full time restaurant manager for a LONG time and just got tired of the 65 hour weeks.

I'll have to look into it, I admit it sounds like something I'd like, if not for the personal safety aspect of it. In reality, crime is pretty low here...but enough of it I hear about is against delivery drivers that It makes me wary.

I have a couple of fellow drivers that always come to me to fix their cars. $20 and a barbeque sandwich get new front brake pads (they pay for the parts).

My time is worth more to me than those rates ;). This is something I could do, though (but again...winter's coming on and I don't really think I'll be making many benjamins n' BBQs at 10 degrees F...remember, I have no indoor space to wrench).

You might examine how you spend your money too. The single largest increase in available money involved me getting out of debt.

Bruce

So I'm confused about what you would perceive my motivation to earn extra money would be if NOT to get out of debt.

Clem
Oct. 9, 2008 1:14 p.m. AngryCorvair Dork

dang, that whole "no indoor work space" kills my idea of flipping beaters. i've found that there's not a lot of difference between a $500 and a $1500 car in a lot of people's mind.

$500 car plus $100 in rotors and pads plus 4 hours of detailing = flip for $1500. sometimes need to grab a $200 set of tires from craigslist to do the deal. as-is, where-is, with no warranty either expressed or implied. don't give anyone directions to your house. instead, meet them at the local police station.
Oct. 9, 2008 2:35 p.m. ClemSparks UltraDork

I have done that before...however scrap prices have made $500 cars harder and harder to find. I still pick up the gems when I can...but they're fewer and farther between than 3-5 years ago.

It's amazing how a non-functional door will bring a car from a reasonable and usefull possession to zero value in many peoples' eyes ;).

Clem
Oct. 9, 2008 5:34 p.m. Schmidlap New Reader

Clem, I'm in kind of the same boat as you. I was an ME for 10 years, then decided to go back to school full time and have found myself with a lot more free time than I thought I would have, so I'm looking for a part time job to keep from going too far into debt. Going from an engineer's salary to a $7.50/hr job is keeping me from taking my job search too seriously, but like SVRex suggested, I may have picked up some good paying work helping out a local design company crank out 3D models and drawings when they get overloaded. They've mentioned that a couple of the businesses they work with have trouble finding temporary design help too, so this could lead to other work for me as well, and maybe give me enough spare cash to finally get my Datsun running now that I have the spare time to fix it.

Are there any small manufacturers, welding/fab shops or machine shops in your area? Quite often they need drawings made up but don't have someone to do it so they make do with quick sketches that inevitably get lost after the first few parts are made, or they get poorly done drawings from customers and can point you towards them. If you have access to a CAD system (alibre can be had for pretty cheap), this could be a good source of money. Just give them a call, explain that you're looking to pick up some extra work and see if they need help.

www.eng-tips.com has a good forum "starting and running your own engineering business" that will be able to give you a lot of advice about how to charge people, if you'll need additional insurance (doubtful if you're just documenting their designs), how to find customers, etc.

Good luck, Bob
Oct. 9, 2008 8:12 p.m. ManofFewWords New Reader

Pick up a job plowing snow. Your mechanical ability will be a plus when equipment breaks.
Oct. 10, 2008 8:56 a.m. SoloSonett Reader

this thread reminds of .. Many decades ago ... in the days of disco... I was wrenching for a livin' and I heard from a VERY distant step, three times removed aunt... who needed her Dadge Dart repaired.. just oil and brakes... nothing big.

Relatives bugged me to do the work for her "at home in your spare time " LOL Like a grease monkey trying to become a semi pro drag racer .. and stll drink and chase.... cooters... has any time!

Finally I gave in. Brought an invoice home from work. Charged her time and a half for Sunday labor and gave her parts at my cost.

Listening to the family later , one would think I raper her ..dry.

Moral: Send family off to your buddies garage.
Oct. 10, 2008 9:37 a.m. John Brown UltimaDork

Man Law Section 31 line 4: The only family you do work for is your father in law and you can't charge him.

(Yes I made it up but it sounds correct)
Oct. 10, 2008 10:27 a.m. SoloSonett Reader

John Brown wrote:

Man Law Section 31 line 4: The only family you do work for is your father in law and you can't charge him.

(Yes I made it up but it sounds correct)

Yep, sounds about right to me. Especially if he's got something of worth to leave after he's gone!
Oct. 11, 2008 1:36 a.m. Wally UltraDork

DILYSI Dave wrote:

Wally wrote:

He drives the train

I'd rather be the caboose.

Me Too
Oct. 24, 2008 7:02 p.m. RussellH New Reader
Very interesting ideas and suggestions
1. No one mentioned vallet parking at a nice hotel - though I'm sure competition will be a tough.
2. I heard driving limos can be lucrative.
3. Look into accounting/bookkeeping with Quickbooks etc
4. Use a tax software and charge your freinds and family.
5. Geek Squad if you're decent with the computers
6. Start a consulting business in what you already know
7. Car wash/detail it's good exercise too. If you can find help or a partner you can get it done twice as fast.
I would make a list of all the suggestions then rate them by pros and cons for e.g. while mechanical work like brakes etc sounds easy and fun for us it might become a liability issue if the person gets into an accident and blames he couldn't effectively stop after he got the brake work done. Just a thought. You won't be making millions so mitigate any risks and personal liability maybe look into an LLC if whatever you start takes off.

Do let us know what you decided on and how it goes. There's no harm in trying several of them a few even at once...goodluck.

Lastly, sorry to hear about the divorce especially if you're the one being left behind, I feel for you.

Edit: added item 7
Jan. 27, 2009 4:27 p.m. RussellH Reader

Just curious if you moved forward with any of the ideas?
Jan. 28, 2009 2:23 a.m. driver109x Reader

I worked at Dominos for about 8months. I just quit last week. It was too exhausting for me working two jobs. The tips are good. The most I made in one night was 120 on 4th of july and I've been averaging 50-60 bucks in tips. I never got mugged but at one time, while minding my own business, some idiot cut in front of me, went back to his lane, and as I attemped to pass, would cut me off again. But I just kept cool.
Jan. 28, 2009 8:12 a.m. AngryCorvair Dork

parting out wrecked crotch-rockets on eBay can make you a sh!t-ton of loot, and it can be done in the spare bedroom.

if you don't mind the smell, you can make decent money valet-parking cars at a strip joint, or perhaps working as a bar-back at same.
Jan. 28, 2009 8:19 a.m. 4cylndrfury Reader

AngryCorvair wrote:

parting out wrecked crotch-rockets on eBay can make you a sh!t-ton of loot, and it can be done in the spare bedroom.

if you don't mind the smell, you can make decent money valet-parking cars at a strip joint, or perhaps working as a bar-back at same.

+1. My roomate paid half his tuition fixing bikes for students on campus who drove scooters and bikes around. $180 bucks at the shop for a repair...he would do it for 75 if no parts are needed. was pretty fun too...old bikes in the livingroom are great when girls stopped by

Chix dig bikes
Jan. 28, 2009 8:19 a.m. ClemSparks UberDork

To Russelh:

I was ready to start delivering pizzas 2 nights and one weekend day a week, but was not "allowed" to take such a job by my ex (the one who makes it necessary for me to consider a second job). I won't whine anymore though. So, I'm back to a point where I will be looking for part time jobs. I need to read back through this thread and get up to speed.

AngryC, I take it you've done this parting of wrecked bikes. I'd be all over that. How did you source your inventory? I've got a connection that might get me a connection with the local salvage auction operation (local being the national copart chain that I can't stand).

Thanks all, Clem
Jan. 28, 2009 1:47 p.m. Mental UltraDork

http://www.ridesafely.com/

Wrecked cars and bikes, regional.

Also check your local import lots. Thos guys pick up the aftermath and quite often the person who dumped it had no interest in getting it back. Even talk to your insurance agent if they insure bikes.
Jan. 28, 2009 3:33 p.m. spitfirebill HalfDork

cwh wrote:

If you have the cojones for it, how about repo work? I did this as a kid 30 years ago, but it's way different now. I kinow it does pay quite well, and stories you can tell your grandkids!!

You beat me to it! With this economy, there is going to be a big(ger) demand.
Jan. 28, 2009 3:47 p.m. AngryCorvair Dork

Mental wrote:

http://www.ridesafely.com/

Wrecked cars and bikes, regional.

Also check your local import lots. Thos guys pick up the aftermath and quite often the person who dumped it had no interest in getting it back. Even talk to your insurance agent if they insure bikes.

and get on the local sportbike forums, and watch craigslist, and when you go look at a bike, have cash and a truck and some ratchet straps. people love cash.

i didn't part bikes, but i'm probably going to start. a good friend did, mostly race bikes but crashed street bikes too, and he cherry-picked a lot of good parts and assembled himself a killer bike for free, in addition to making a bunch of loot.
Jan. 28, 2009 3:51 p.m. ClemSparks UberDork

Hmmm...

That sounds like fun. I don't think the salvage auction route will be one I'll persue (I've been through it before and am always dissappointed with the prices). My area isn't big enough to have a huge market for wrecked bikes...but if I start looking out for them, I'll probalby have good luck.

I'm not much of a bike guy (yet), but they appeal to me bacause they take up MUCH less space than cars, and the parts are more expensive (lucrative) in my limited experience. Much easier to take care of the leftovers too. (You can't even recycle an automobile carcass in my area if you don't have a title)

Repo work could be interesting. I'll try to look into that.

Clem
Jan. 28, 2009 4:51 p.m. Grtechguy SuperDork

ClemSparks wrote: (You can't even recycle an automobile carcass in my area if you don't have a title)

cut up into 1/4's
Feb. 3, 2009 10:04 a.m. ClemSparks UberDork

A plasma cutter is a big investment ;). And sawzalls and myself don't get along well enough to become that intimate with one...

I put in a call to a company in town that is a delivery service for restaraunts that otherwise don't offer delivery. The guy didn't need help "this week" but I think I have enough of a pleasant phone-presence to get these kind of folks to keep my number on hand for a bit.

I live in a town that's equidistant from KC and STL (and thus, their international airports). There is a privately run shuttle service in town to and from the airports. I could do this (the company is interested in me) but would only be able to do it on weekends. Since I've got my kids every other weekend, I can't do it half the time, and I'll want the other weekends to get my house project underway.

I'm thinking weeknight work will be my best bet, if I can find it. Possibly a couple weekend days each month...we'll see what comes up, now that I'm casually back into the job hunt.

Clem
Feb. 3, 2009 10:16 a.m. petegossett Dork

I did the p/t Autozone gig for a couple years. It wasn't half bad. The pay was decent, I got to work with/around cars, and even got to see some really cool ones(Masaratti Merak). Yeah, there's the doofuses & idiots to deal with, and it's John-Q-Public so there's people from all walks/races/income - but that's also part of what made it fun. The key is finding a good manager who understands your availability & schedule. The manager who hired me was OK with me only being available 2-3 nights per-week, with very, very rare weekends...unfortunately, I was transferred to another store my 2nd week, & that manager wasn't as OK with it. Still, he put up with my schedule for almost 2-years before I moved out of the area.

If I get to the point of needing a 2nd job again, that's where I'll start looking, anyway.
Oct. 13, 2009 5:10 p.m. RussellH Reader

Well the 1yr anniversary of this thread recently passed so I figured I'd bring it back up. 2009 has been a tough year for a lot of people. Did anyone use any of these suggestions and if so how'd you do?

My field is computers and I keep wanting to go into the consulting business. Especially when I see people with little to no experience making loads of money in this field. I used to manage routers and unix servers when people didn't know what a website was. But my problem is marketing, it's my personal weakness - I suck at it. I'm a quiet hands-on techie type of a guy. I'll work on cars, computers, fabrication, building stuff all day long but can't say 4 words worth a damn. Well I can just not the ones that get you customers
Oct. 13, 2009 5:18 p.m. fiat22turbo UltraDork

Work with a recruiter at a contracting firm, do some junk jobs for them to get you in the door and eventually you'll begin to make a name for yourself and can move up to the heavy duty jobs. I say work with a contracting firm (and not just one) because they usually have better contacts within the companies to get the contracts, etc.

I've been out of work since April and a previous firm I worked with contacted me to work a contract with a company I used to work for because of my history with them. As they say it is important to not burn your bridges.
Oct. 13, 2009 5:55 p.m. bamalama Reader

petegossett wrote:

I did the p/t Autozone gig for a couple years. It wasn't half bad. The pay was decent, I got to work with/around cars, and even got to see some really cool ones(Masaratti Merak). Yeah, there's the doofuses & idiots to deal with, and it's John-Q-Public so there's people from all walks/races/income - but that's also part of what made it fun. The key is finding a good manager who understands your availability & schedule. The manager who hired me was OK with me only being available 2-3 nights per-week, with very, very rare weekends...unfortunately, I was transferred to another store my 2nd week, & that manager wasn't as OK with it. Still, he put up with my schedule for almost 2-years before I moved out of the area.

If I get to the point of needing a 2nd job again, that's where I'll start looking, anyway.

Every time I try to get a part time job at an auto parts store, it doesn't happen. Maybe I should pretend to be totally ignorant about cars so I'll fit in better there.

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