Moaner

[cliffed]

i know I'm a old git,but here's one for you,been quite cold lately,got some youngsters working with us,nice & warm in the offices,when it's brekkie time,I always sit in my van,especially if it's cold outside.The lads also sit in their van,but switches the engine on,to get warm.
Me,I put on another layer of clothes,so...the vans are on tracker so they know what's happening,back at the yard,does anyone care.
In my day we just wouldn't do that,wasting diesel etc.
Last year in 30°heat,a lad sat in his van,I went over to him & said why have you got the engine running,wound down his window,I've got the air conditioning on,am I mad to get frustrated ha ha

 

[Pete999]

i know I'm a old git,but here's one for you,been quite cold lately,got some youngsters working with us,nice & warm in the offices,when it's brekkie time,I always sit in my van,especially if it's cold outside.The lads also sit in their van,but switches the engine on,to get warm.
Me,I put on another layer of clothes,so...the vans are on tracker so they know what's happening,back at the yard,does anyone care.
In my day we just wouldn't do that,wasting diesel etc.
Last year in 30°heat,a lad sat in his van,I went over to him & said why have you got the engine running,wound down his window,I've got the air conditioning on,am I mad to get frustrated ha ha

Jeez, how many vans do you need for one site? in my day 1 van blokes crammed in the back making up pendants, and it was a Mini van Out of interest cliffed what time is "brekkie"?

 

[cliffed]

Yeah same here,I do remember,no heater,no spare wheel,no jack,no radio,didn't have much did we,35p @ hr,oh I say !!!

 

[Pete999]

Yeah same here,I do remember,no heater,no spare wheel,no jack,no radio,didn't have much did we,35p @ hr,oh I say !!!

Happy days eh?

 

[cliffed]

Yep,helluva lot of respect for the old timers then,even though most were only wire men.Never late to be picked up,no stopping on the way to work for food & drink.

 

[cliffed]

Yep,helluva lot of respect for the old timers then,even though most were only wire men.Never late to be picked up,no stopping on the way to work for food & drink.

Brekkie is 10.00am to 10.15 am,can't open my flask in that time

 

[Pete999]

Brekkie is 10.00am to 10.15 am,can't open my flask in that time

10 am tea break then, as it was

 

[Midwest]

I recall we used to sit round an electric 4 bar fire in the site hut, which doubled up as a sandwich toaster. But it was murder when you went back onto the freezing site. That vid of the Japanese monkeys in the hot springs winter time, always reminded me of that.

 

[Pete999]

When I was nearly out of my time I was working with an Electrician on a housing site, first job in the morning was to look for oil drum and off cuts of timber, at about 09:45 get a fire going in the drum, after knocking air holes in it to toast or butties, remember no doors or windows int these houses yet, like you say difficult to get up after all that comfort.

 

[cliffed]

I bet,bolster & hammer chopping out boxes,hitting ones cold knuckles.
Kids got it so easy now & they still moan bout that job.
I now say I'll do the chopping,you do the wiring,they soon change their minds.

 

[cliffed]

When I was nearly out of my time I was working with an Electrician on a housing site, first job in the morning was to look for oil drum and off cuts of timber, at about 09:45 get a fire going in the drum, after knocking air holes in it to toast or butties, remember no doors or windows int these houses yet, like you say difficult to get up after all that comfort.

Definitely brrr....

 

[telectrix]

Yeah same here,I do remember,no heater,no spare wheel,no jack,no radio,didn't have much did we,35p @ hr,oh I say !!!

what a moaner. a bloody van??? luxury. we had to go to work on pushbikes. tea break sitting on an upturned beer crate covered with the plasterers' droppings, kettle filled from the cauldon canal, stench of the slaughterhouse down the road flavouring our sarnies.

 

[cliffed]

Nice.....

 

[Pete999]

I bet,bolster & hammer chopping out boxes,hitting ones cold knuckles.
Kids got it so easy now & they still moan bout that job.
I now say I'll do the chopping,you do the wiring,they soon change their minds.

Going home bleeding knuckles, freezing cold, sud this for a game of Soldiers, get up in the morning, same thing. Now they have bolsters with guards, gloves to protect their little soft hands. Sorry.

 

[Pete999]

what a moaner. a bloody van??? luxury. we had to go to work on pushbikes. tea break sitting on an upturned beer crate covered with the plasterers' droppings, kettle filled from the cauldon canal, stench of the slaughterhouse down the road flavouring our sarnies.

Aye things were tough in our days Tel,

 

[cliffed]

Yeah,& designer clothing,looking like they just come out of a catalogue page,afraid of using the portaloo ha ha

 

[westward10]

Bring back the donkey jacket.

 

[Midwest]

Yankee screwdriver and rawplug jumper.

By ‘eck, we had it tough! Ya tell the kids of today, and they won't believe ya.

 

[cliffed]

Memory lane,pendants with those horrible loose connections you had to push up into a groove,awful

 

[Pete999]

Fingers to numb to put the plug in the hole, bits of Breeze block down yer shirt, snow on the joists, drilling hole in the joists with hand auger, mind you saved on Gym fees

 

[westward10]

Bringing tears to me eyes Pete take me back.

 

[7029 dave]

I remember on site, on the new builds in winter, we used to stand round the bomb fire made. HS would have a field day.

 

[telectrix]

bomb??? who said bomb???

 

[cliffed]

Drink of oxo & bovril crisps,boiled egg sarnies,heaven.
£8 a week,& still living it up,Friday Saturday clubbing it & Sunday getting over it.

 

[telectrix]

£8 a week??? we had to pay the gaffer a tenner a week just for the pleasure of working with him.

 

[Dave OCD]

I may be a bit younger than you guys [not that much though] but your posts bring back memories of freezing sites, great times when you think back though. And there were none of those ridiculously large 'site radios' blasting away either. And I'm sure cooperation between trades was much better back then, only this week I went back to 2nd fix a high spec shed which is to be a home office with flush sockets, a fancy electric rad and downlights etc. I'd fitted metal boxes and noggins all spot on for height and depth etc. Along came the shed blokes to do the ply lining and they took out all the boxes and brought the cables through 15mm holes drilled in the ply because 'they had nothing to cut the box holes out with' ffs....

 

[freddo]

Our current apprentice is a nightmare, no motivation, no practical ability at all, complains all the time. I had to show him how to switch on an old MK 13a socket the other day because he couldn't switch it on. Spends most of the time checking his hair in the mirror....

And I'm sure cooperation between trades was much better back then, only this week I went back to 2nd fix a high spec shed which is to be a home office with flush sockets, a fancy electric rad and downlights etc. I'd fitted metal boxes and noggins all spot on for height and depth etc. Along came the shed blokes to do the ply lining and they took out all the boxes and brought the cables through 15mm holes drilled in the ply because 'they had nothing to cut the box holes out with' ffs....

I know what you mean, we did out a load of houses, the boarders were so crap they couldn't cut the holes for the boxes in the right place, all they had to do was knee the board and cut around the mark!! So they'd cut a hole in their board, undo the box fixing screws and then rest the box in the hole in the new position! They soon stopped that ---- when they found the holes in the board had been enlarged with our hammers so the boxes could be put back where they should have been...

I can't find the photos, but here is some more stupidity that is becoming more and more common.

View attachment 35284

 

[cliffed]

Agree,also only one radio,& whatever station is was on that was the one you listened to,nowadays it can be radio 1,2... heart fm etc all at the same time,come back Radio Luxembourg 208

 

[cliffed]

Out current apprentice is a nightmare, no motivation, no practical ability at all, complains all the time. I had to show him how to switch on an old MK 13a socket the other day because he couldn't switch it on. Spends most of the time checking his hair in the mirror....

I know what you mean, we did out a load of houses, the boarders were so crap they couldn't cut the holes for the boxes in the right place, all they had to do was knee the board and cut around the mark!! So they'd cut a hole in their board, undo the box fixing screws and then rest the box in the hole in the new position! They soon stopped that **** when they found the holes in the board had been enlarged with our hammers so the boxes could be put back where they should have been...

I can't find the photos, but here is some more stupidity that is becoming more and more common.

View attachment 35284

Can't believe it can you

 

[telectrix]

Agree,also only one radio,& whatever station is was on that was the one you listened to,nowadays it can be radio 1,2... heart fm etc all at the same time,come back Radio Luxembourg 208

or caroline.

 

[westward10]

Caroline Flack for me

 

[sparkdog]

Still not got a heater in my old van. A waft of hot breath and that's it.

 

[Pete999]

I remember on site, on the new builds in winter, we used to stand round the bomb fire made. HS would have a field day.

Bomb fire? you mean bonfire 7/029 I hope

 

[7029 dave]

Bomb fire? you mean bonfire 7/029 I hope

Yeah ha ha. will edit ta Pete.

 

[Pete999]

I may be a bit younger than you guys [not that much though] but your posts bring back memories of freezing sites, great times when you think back though. And there were none of those ridiculously large 'site radios' blasting away either. And I'm sure cooperation between trades was much better back then, only this week I went back to 2nd fix a high spec shed which is to be a home office with flush sockets, a fancy electric rad and downlights etc. I'd fitted metal boxes and noggins all spot on for height and depth etc. Along came the shed blokes to do the ply lining and they took out all the boxes and brought the cables through 15mm holes drilled in the ply because 'they had nothing to cut the box holes out with' ffs....

Site kin radios wtf are they?

 

[Dave OCD]

You must know Pete ?

 

[Pete999]

You must know Pete ?

If you mean Transistor radios then yes, also are you on about those DeWalt jobbies? I know what they are honest just trying to be controversial, didn't work did it?

 

[Dave OCD]

Yeah they're everywhere Pete, annoying when you're concentrating with plenty to get done and some numpty turns up with one, they seen unable to have them at a reasonable volume.

 

[telectrix]

especially when the buggers are tuned into radio1. the worst garbage imaginable. fit for pre-pubescent teenage girls only.

 

[Dave OCD]

Precisely Tel, that seems to be a popular choice amongst the cretins.

 

[Doomed]

Sorry, but hate site radios. I AM Mr Grumpy.

 

[LankyWill]

Nothing worse than fault finding on a new build and some wood butcher has his radio on max volume(radio 1). I turn it off and tell him its staying until my brain can actually comprehend the abortion that is drylinig. Simplest job on site and still they manage to screw cables and mash boxes so the lugs are facked....HOW

 

[GMES]

Bring back the donkey jacket.

Giz a job I can do that.
Name the programme without Google

 

[uksrevivor]

Boys from the black stuff and not googled lol Yosher Hughes if I remember right

 

[uksrevivor]

Bring back the donkey jacket.

I still have one and still wear it warm as toast in it although the plastic shoulder pads are a bit worse for wear now LOL

 

[westward10]

I still have one and still wear it warm as toast in it although the plastic shoulder pads are a bit worse for wear now LOL

Stunk like an old donkey when they were wet, I acquired one with BEA on the vinyl bit at the back, my mates dad used to work over at Heathrow and I don't know how this is relevant but he had a Sherpa van, probably a smuggler.

 

[westward10]

Giz a job I can do that.
Name the programme without Google

Probably topical with the recent threads on fast track qualifications, "giz a job I can do that"

 

[David M]

Times have changed that's for sure, things were tough back in those days.

But the pace of life has increased now - No time for breaks, pestering customers from mobile phones, everything has to be done yesterday, lower quality items... the list goes on. This game is still a tough one just in a different way these days.
I long for the times when I can get to site @ 8 have a brew and a chat, start work, knock off at 10 for breakfast, start back work15 mins later, knock off again at 1 for lunch, read the paper, start back work half hour later, collect tools up at 4:45 off site at 5, straight home for tea, sit and relax in front of the tv...

These days its up at 5ish on site for 7 latest, work straight through till 6 ish, may fit in ten mins for a quick sandwich. All this time phone never stops, chasing orders, fixing problems... home for 7 straight on computer doing paper work, tea @ 9, TV for half hour, quick shower, bed and then start over for another day... till Sunday where I might get a couple of hours free time when I finally switch my mobile off!

Oh The joys of running your own business!

 

[Deleted member 93172]

Buckle clipping in the cold was finger numbing, holding those little pins and hoping you don't hit your finger whilst doing it, I can recall the pain as I type.

 

[Pete999]

Buckle clipping in the cold was finger numbing, holding those little pins and hoping you don't hit your finger whilst doing it, I can recall the pain as I type.

Ohhh Yeah remember it well