Career Mirror -- by Mark Sproxton

Leaning over to look into the engine of a van, the mechanic stands straight and shakes his head. Called to the back to help a mechanic-in-training make a repair to part of the steering system, the experienced tradesman delivers the bad news. He's seen the problem before and explains the best way to make good of a bad situation. Walking back to the front of the shop he smiles knowingly.

"They can put some things in very hard spots to get at," explains Brent, a service writer at Kirkham Automotive Ltd. "Some of that stuff is really horrible." Getting called to the back to help new and learning automotive service technicians is a regular part of his day. With 30 years experience as a mechanic, Brent has had to overcome his share of hard-to-repair vehicles. "It's the tricky things that you run into," he said.

As a service writer/service technician, Brent has to know the automotive repair process inside and out. He must prepare work orders for each vehicle, schedule and assign the mechanical work to the appropriate people, order supplies and help solve problems other mechanics encounter. "They call me a floater," Brent said. "They call me to the back quite a bit. Usually I'm in there getting my hands dirty."

Giving mechanical things a hands-on look has long been a hobby of Brent's. "As a kid I liked tinkering with stuff," he said. "My dad bought me a motorcycle when I was 13 and I liked to tinker on it." That eventually lead him to work as a motorcycle mechanic for years before switching to cars, which he says are obviously different but run on similar principles. For his experience with motorcycles, Brent only had to apprentice for two years before receiving his automotive service technician certification. To become a certified AST, people must apprentice for four years, which means working a specified number of hours each year and attending school classes for eight weeks a year.

Apprentices are required to purchase their own tools, which can add up to tens of thousands of dollars. But Brent said buying tools from a department store with lifetime warranties will work just fine and keep costs down. Of course he has had the benefit of time to add to his collection. "My tool box is worth about $50,000. The box (itself) is worth $10,000 with nothing in it. A lot of guys say that's a huge investment. You don't have to buy top of the line equipment."

Working from about 7 a.m. to 5 p.m five days a week, Brent has plenty of opportunities to use his tools and solve all kinds of mechanical problems. It is dealing with customers, however, that provide the best and worst of the work, he said. "It's neat when you get your customer base and you know the customer even though you don't see them that often. On the other side, when someone's on our case you have to diffuse them and get down to the problem."

At Kirkham Automotive the mechanics provide service work and send out any major engine or transmission work to mechanics at specialized shops elsewhere. Some mechanics work entirely in areas such as rebuilding engines, repairing or replacing transmissions, reinstalling brakes etc. All mechanics face similar conditions of heavy, dirty and sometimes dangerous work. "Hot parts are hard to work with," Brent said. "(And) there are sharp edges. If you slip you can get some nasty gashes." Many shops, including Kirkham, use electronic tools to talk to a vehicle's computer systems and help mechanics determine the problems.

Those who enjoy tinkering with mechanical things typically make the best service technicians, according to Brent. "A lot of guys have a lot upstairs but let them use their hands and they can't do it. A lot of these tinkerers are pretty good." Anyone considering the trade and looking for an apprenticeship should keep their eyes open for shops that are clean and have lots of new equipment. "If you go into a shops that's dirty and gloomy, you probably don't want to start there," he said. Wages for a certified automotive service technician will range from $17 to $23 per hour or more. "I like my trade (but) there's not a lot of people getting into this trade anymore. If you look at all the cars out there... there can't be a shortage."