How did you get your training?

How did you learn pro detailing?

  • School

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Self-taught

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Detail Shop

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Car Dealership

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    0
6

602rwtq

New member
It seems there's 4 ways of "going pro":



1. Attend a school (RightLook, TotalPros, Detail King, Detailing Success, etc.).

2. Self-taught: trial and error, research online, etc.

3. Work at a car dealership.

4. Work at a detail shop.



Where did the pros here get their training?
 
This is a good idea, but another category would be helpful.



5. I learned from Jeff Suggs youtube videos.



I would vote if that option was available.
 
2 ---> 3 ----> 5. 5 being, once I knew the basics, I figured out from what I already knew and what I learned what was really hack level, what was quality and what I needed to get better at.
 
This forum has got to be hands down for products and write ups on them. I have learned so much from that.



I have had some collision certificate training/more so refinishing, and keep in touch with instructors, however the guide is only within yourself. So that being said I am and will always be learning.

I try to understand some chemical reactions, types of automobile finishes, and material makeup
 
21 years ago when I was 16 I had a project truck and did my first paint job on it. It came out ok but had some orange peel so I decided to teach myself how to wetsand and compound. Then after that I had many other projects and friend's projects and did more wetsanding/compounding and got pretty good at it. Played around with this type of work and some light detailing till about 6 years ago when I found this website and then seriously got into it and then decided to open a mobile business 5 years ago, and now have a shop.

Playing around on my own stuff with that old rotary and 3M compound taught me all the things NOT to do, I burned through the paint on more than one occasion and got real good at it with all the mistakes I made. But at least it was my own stuff and doing as a hobby, I just got more and more into it until I decided to finally go pro.
 
Originally started with what my Dad taught me and grabbed a book to read up - that was pretty much all there was back then. As the internet came around I used it to continue to learn and improve. Attended several training courses such as Prep-execellence with Ketch in Cincinnati, the ICA convention in Vegas/San Antonio several times etc and some additional training in Michigan and Alberta for additional skills. You NEVER stop learning!
 
[You NEVER stop learning!] Car dealership, but then they had detailer's that were real tradesmen (not the hacks that are employed at some)



Knowledge unshared is Experience wasted...

 
Mostly self-taught, now I use Autopia to stay ahead of the curve.



Read a few books on detailing but they were all really basic and hopelessly outdated.
 
Interesting. I expected at least half of the pros to have learned in a detail shop, but apparently the material online is so good these days that you can jump in, self-taught.



Just 10 years ago you bought a buffer, compound, and polish from a local store read the manual, then proceeded to obliterate your car's paint.



With sites like autopia and online video, you can polish like a pro in an afternoon.
 
602rwtq said:
Interesting. I expected at least half of the pros to have learned in a detail shop, but apparently the material online is so good these days that you can jump in, self-taught.



Just 10 years ago you bought a buffer, compound, and polish from a local store read the manual, then proceeded to obliterate your car's paint.



With sites like autopia and online video, you can polish like a pro in an afternoon.
Click to expand...



Okay, I ran this poll across 4 different detailing forums. The results:



training_nourl.png




The full article on car detailing training.
 
*Started as a new car porter at a Pontiac Dealer

*Worked as a painter's help

*Worked at a volume detail shop for a couple years, then managed it and purchased it

*I've taken atleast a dozen Auto Magic classes

*I-CAR Platinum certifed

*Autopia honed the "OCD" skillset



I really think that anyone that does this work (especially high end detailers) would benefit greatly from working in a fast paced high volume environment. It will teach you many ins and outs that cannot be self-taught w/o many years of experience. Even though you're main focus isn't over the top micro-detailing, it can teach you very valueable workflows that could help in any environment. It can give you a whole new idea of what clean is.



It would be interesting to put some of the high end detailers we have online into a high volume environment to see how they would acclimate. I'm sure it would be an equally eventful experience for a high volume person in the opposite situation as well.
 
There is a chain of car stereo shops around Portland and the one I see as I drive by has a 'detailing" sign by the road. I stopped by today and the manager starts telling me how there is no standard in this industry, so they are doing things differently from the one man operations etc...



Turns out their installers are doing the details. It was when I got to my car that a question popped into mind - who IS training them?



Welcome to Oregon. :wall
 
where is the option for howler monkeys?



ON a serious note, the internet is where i learned alot of detailing practice, then learning from bryan too. I thought i knew a good deal, then starting working with him i learned where i was being deficient.
 
I have benefited from working with others, while experimenting on my own trying to adapt science to better understand the process of chemicals, pad selection, temperature, and speed. I found that there is not a single machine, chemical or combination which will always work because not all paint jobs are the same, which in itself poses many challenges.
 
TOGWT said:
[You NEVER stop learning!] Car dealership, but then they had detailer's that were real tradesmen (not the hacks that are employed at some)



Knowledge unshared is Experience wasted...
Click to expand...



My feelings exactly. Experience and knowledge go hand in hand and both are a ongoing journey. It's hard to point to only one avenue that got me to where I am today. Starting with many over the counter products for countless years and progressing to online forums was only a beginning. I was lucky enough to attend a Meguiars Road Show w/Mike Phillips and later a get-together w/Jason Rose which inspired me to learn as much as possible from all available resources offered by the detailing world. Another debt of gratitude is due to Nick Chapman for hosting a get-together and later inviting me to tag along for a week of a priceless hands on learning experience.With all of this and my doing friends and family projects since 05, I have ventured on and now have started my own detail by appointment business. So as TOGWT stated "You NEVER stop learning".

Along these same lines I would like to mention my use of forums has progressed as well as my knowledge thru the years. I started on MOL and AG then progressed to Autopia ,Detail City and TID to name a few. I felt comfortable on MOL and AG as a newbie but intimidated here on Autopia and a few others. As my knowledge grew so did my confidence on being involved with members of these same forums.So as the famous saying goes, the more I learn the more I realize how little I really know.
 
Self taught here with lots of help from all the different forums, trial and error, and lots of friends cars being donated for me to practice on.



As others have said you never stop learning. With all the new products and tools that continue to come out its hard to stay on top of everything sometimes.
 
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