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Best Tools for apprentice agricultral.hgv mechanic
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28-11-2011 9:42pm#1
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Halfords pro stuff was made by one of the major tool suppliers, can't remember who though. I have a good 3/8 drive set from there
I started with lots of crap tools years ago (I'm not a mechanic, just mess with Land Rovers) but have a half decent range now. Aside from decent ratchet drives, I have umpteen different good spanners and sockets in the just the common sizes that I use all the time. One or two sets of really big spanners (20mm plus) is useful and better than trying to use adjustables. Anything unusual or really stuck I go down to my brother in law's toy shed
Finding decent imperial spanners is harder and you'll really struggle to find ratchet ones. Once you get over 14mm-9/16", metric/imperial spanners are close in size anyway. The bigger vintage shows with lots of tractor stands can be rewarding but there's also a lot of crap sold. If you are that way inclined, auctions can be a good source. If you're looking at real old stuff you'll come across other sizes like Whitworth.
Go into a big agri or commercial spares place and pick up Draper and Sealey catalogues, around a 1000 pages with loads of different quality ranges, makes ideal toilet reading
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Apprentice Mechanic wrote: »@ JohnBoy Would halfords have a big range of spanners & sockets
Not massive
It's nearly all metric and they wouldnt have massive sized stuff, but their 1/2 and 3/8 drive stuff is very nice.
I also have a halfords pro torque wrench I really like, it's got a much simpler setting system than more traditional ones.
I have had good experience with draper expert too, but not sure how long they'd survive in a professional environment, you might be better off with draper's higher end brand elora.
The thing I dont like about sealy is that a lot of their lower end stuff is just real chinese rubbish which makes me not trust them0 -
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I have heard all of jokes people play on an apprentice mechanic from my uncle is an aircraft mechanic by trade,Did anyone hear of this one before I heard in a garage I did prior getting work expericence prior getting my apprentice the boss told a lad when I didn't were anything was in the garage (who would lost his paitence over anything didn't go his way)
WHEN YOU ARE OVER THERE AT THE TOOLBOX (THE MECHANIC NAME) BRING OVER A CAN OR TWO OF PAITNENCE BEFORE DOING RESUMING THE JOB AS THE MANUAL ONLY WANTS PEOPLE WHO HAS PAITNENCE TO THE JOBI was tempted to laugh out but I didn't because it was first day 0 -
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Do you know if you can do an apprentice as marine engieer
The way the course is structured you do 4 yrs in college (Engineering Degree) followed by 9 months on a ship as a cadet (apprentice but we call them cadets)
Once you finish the 9 months and have all your training logs up to date you go to the Dept of the Marine (Think its called the Dept of Communications, energy and Natural resources now) and sit a written and oral exam. Then your a qualified 4th Engineering Officer.
After that you can work your way up to 3rd, 2nd and Chief Engineer over the next ten years. I realise that the initial training (College and 4ths exams) sounds long winded but its about the same as a normal engineering degree and the graduate work you'd do for a year after - its just the Dept of the Marine exams that are extra.
if I could I can stil attend my day release course in Omage
There is only one college in Ireland that has that course the Nautical College which is a department of CIT and is located in Ringaskiddy by the sea.
and my leaving cert wouldn't do as a entry requirment as I did LCA
What's the LCA, i never hard that term before? Its gotten more mainstream since I went there 1993-1996 but they prefer people with mechanical aptitude rather than book smarts - you'll be welding, milling, lathe work, wiring, programming cndustrial computers as part of your projects
You COULD go the old fashioned route - get a job in an engine room as a wiper (basically the ships version of a labourer on a building site) but I really, really don't advise it. You still have to sit exams in the same subjects as college but they are repeated for every level ie 4ths, 3rds, 2nds, Chiefs. Instead I got rid of them in college and only had practical topics for the 4ths, 3rds, 2nds, Chiefs - Marine Engines and General ships engineering were the two topics
how did you find it as a job?
The Good;
I loved it at the start, I never went outside the place I grew up before I went to college in Cork and even incollege never went abroad - then within 3 weeks I saw Felixstowe (UK), Le Harve (France) and Montreal (Canada). It got really intersting when I got my 4ths ticket (qualification) - that ship travelled around Europe, down to Jamica, through the Panama canal and stopped at ports all down the Pacific coast of South America before returning to Europe and starting the whole thing again.They were long trips (periods working on board) 4-5.5 months, usually 4 months and 2 weeks. Good money though. Back then as 4th I'd expect to earn £2500sterling per month that I worked onboard and as I was out of the country for more than 6 months of the year (4 months on & 2 off was the routine) I legally didn't pay income tax. That plus everything on board was so cheap meant you saved a lot of money - On a really great month that you got ashore in S.America a lot and you'd spend $500 per month - you were still saving £1800 - £2000 as there is nothing to spend money on in a ship :cool:, all your food, light heat etc are paid for. If you managed (back then) to spend £100 stg in the ships bar in ONE month the Captain would give out to you for drinking so much, things aboard were that cheap.Travel - my one regret from back then is that I didn't stay for a week or two in whatever country I left the ship, the company would still have flown me home after my holiday but I would have gotten to see Texas, Charleston, New York in N. America. Peru Brazil, Jamica in S. America. South Korea, South Africa, most of Europe. All it would have cost me is the price of the hotel.
The Bad;
Hard hard work, your expected to work 10 hrs a day, 7 days a week for 4&1/2 months. That is a lot. Most engine rooms average 35-40 Celsius = great for the waistline
and you will be called out in the middle of the night to answer alarms if something fails one night in three. Also if the ship is coming into port someone has to be in the engine room. You normally work 8-5 and then you make the extra hours your missing from the daily ten by getting up in the middle of the night to answer alarms or watching the engine when you come in and out of Port.It's intensely physical. On any ship over 2-3 yrs old when the routine maintance has built up you are constantly ripping machines apart, fixing / maintaining them and then putting them back together. If your in port its the only time the main engine stops so it HAS to be maintained then and there. - We're talking cylinder heads weighing 2.5 tons, with a single exhaust valve of 400mm diameter and a piston that has a stroke of 2.5 meters and weighs a few ton as well( and i sailed on smaller ships compared to todays stuff) Not easy to work with.Nice though i you like fixing something and get satisfaction from pressing start and seeing it run properly.The long periods away working got annoying as your mates will start to enjoy life when they get money - go on holidays, etc. You can still do that and spend a lot more on holidays then most but if your only home in Feb and March odds are no-one will want to go on holidays then. If your a home bird though its not a good job - long periods out of contact - well you can call on the satellite phone but at ~$5 a minute its bloody expensive but as a way to travel and see places its unbeatable
A family member got sick though and I gave up the sea to spend time at home. The conditions are better now, shorter trips and better communication0 -
quietsailor wrote: »Do you know if you can do an apprentice as marine engieer
The way the course is structured you do 4 yrs in college (Engineering Degree) followed by 9 months on a ship as a cadet (apprentice but we call them cadets)
Once you finish the 9 months and have all your training logs up to date you go to the Dept of the Marine (Think its called the Dept of Communications, energy and Natural resources now) and sit a written and oral exam. Then your a qualified 4th Engineering Officer.
After that you can work your way up to 3rd, 2nd and Chief Engineer over the next ten years. I realise that the initial training (College and 4ths exams) sounds long winded but its about the same as a normal engineering degree and the graduate work you'd do for a year after - its just the Dept of the Marine exams that are extra.
if I could I can stil attend my day release course in Omage
There is only one college in Ireland that has that course the Nautical College which is a department of CIT and is located in Ringaskiddy by the sea.
and my leaving cert wouldn't do as a entry requirment as I did LCA
What's the LCA, i never hard that term before? Its gotten more mainstream since I went there 1993-1996 but they prefer people with mechanical aptitude rather than book smarts - you'll be welding, milling, lathe work, wiring, programming cndustrial computers as part of your projects
You COULD go the old fashioned route - get a job in an engine room as a wiper (basically the ships version of a labourer on a building site) but I really, really don't advise it. You still have to sit exams in the same subjects as college but they are repeated for every level ie 4ths, 3rds, 2nds, Chiefs. Instead I got rid of them in college and only had practical topics for the 4ths, 3rds, 2nds, Chiefs - Marine Engines and General ships engineering were the two topics
how did you find it as a job?
The Good;
I loved it at the start, I never went outside the place I grew up before I went to college in Cork and even incollege never went abroad - then within 3 weeks I saw Felixstowe (UK), Le Harve (France) and Montreal (Canada). It got really intersting when I got my 4ths ticket (qualification) - that ship travelled around Europe, down to Jamica, through the Panama canal and stopped at ports all down the Pacific coast of South America before returning to Europe and starting the whole thing again. They were long trips (periods working on board) 4-5.5 months, usually 4 months and 2 weeks. Good money though. Back then as 4th I'd expect to earn £2500sterling per month that I worked onboard and as I was out of the country for more than 6 months of the year (4 months on & 2 off was the routine) I legally didn't pay income tax. That plus everything on board was so cheap meant you saved a lot of money - On a really great month that you got ashore in S.America a lot and you'd spend $500 per month - you were still saving £1800 - £2000 as there is nothing to spend money on in a ship :cool:, all your food, light heat etc are paid for. If you managed (back then) to spend £100 stg in the ships bar in ONE month the Captain would give out to you for drinking so much, things aboard were that cheap.Travel - my one regret from back then is that I didn't stay for a week or two in whatever country I left the ship, the company would still have flown me home after my holiday but I would have gotten to see Texas, Charleston, New York in N. America. Peru Brazil, Jamica in S. America. South Korea, South Africa, most of Europe. All it would have cost me is the price of the hotel.The Bad;
Hard hard work, your expected to work 10 hrs a day, 7 days a week for 4&1/2 months. That is a lot. Most engine rooms average 35-40 Celsius = great for the waistline and you will be called out in the middle of the night to answer alarms if something fails one night in three. Also if the ship is coming into port someone has to be in the engine room. You normally work 8-5 and then you make the extra hours your missing from the daily ten by getting up in the middle of the night to answer alarms or watching the engine when you come in and out of Port.
It's intensely physical. On any ship over 2-3 yrs old when the routine maintance has built up you are constantly ripping machines apart, fixing / maintaining them and then putting them back together. If your in port its the only time the main engine stops so it HAS to be maintained then and there. - We're talking cylinder heads weighing 2.5 tons, with a single exhaust valve of 400mm diameter and a piston that has a stroke of 2.5 meters and weighs a few ton as well( and i sailed on smaller ships compared to todays stuff) Not easy to work with.Nice though i you like fixing something and get satisfaction from pressing start and seeing it run properly.The long periods away working got annoying as your mates will start to enjoy life when they get money - go on holidays, etc. You can still do that and spend a lot more on holidays then most but if your only home in Feb and March odds are no-one will want to go on holidays then. If your a home bird though its not a good job - long periods out of contact - well you can call on the satellite phone but at ~$5 a minute its bloody expensive but as a way to travel and see places its unbeatableA family member got sick though and I gave up the sea to spend time at home. The conditions are better now, shorter trips and better communication
That was one great review about the job
LCA is other alternativate to leaving cert which you do cointinous assignments to get credits but you sit a leaving cert complety different leaving,& aslo with the LCA I enquired full time course I wasnt allowed according to the carrer advisers at the school I went to,That is why I chose an apprentice as I prefer hands-on work0 -
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Cherrs for your help your posts have been real helpful:)quietsailor wrote: »I'd say give them a ring or send an email - here is the contact details National Maritime College of Ireland.
When I was there it was an restricted application - you had to attend an interview. People from my school who had higher results in the leaving didn't get into the course where-as I did - I showed I had an interest in engineering in general -- When they asked me how to wire a plug I repled "what do you mean - there are domestic plugs, industrial plugs, 3 phase plugs" they laughed and said to get the points and I could take the course = they want people who are already interested in machinery and are exploring things even bfore you leave school.
Now that interview process is gone but they would be still interested in people with good hands.
And also everyone else 0
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