What are you bad at?

[mike72903]

Talking DIY realm here.  For me it dry walling.  Especially corners.  Mud, sand, mud, sand, mud, sand, give up, hope no one notices. Pros make it look easy.  More amazing are plasters that can apply a coat of material over an entire wall leaving a flat surface and consistent thickness. Takes years of training and experience.

[..]

Electricity is the work of the devil.

I can make a pile of sawdust out of a piece of wood.

[Rams]

According to who?

Quite sure my wife will have a much longer list than I do.

[baldo]

According to who?

Quite sure my wife will have a much longer list than I do.

Your wife must be talking to my wife.....

[Rams]

According to who?

Quite sure my wife will have a much longer list than I do.

Your wife must be talking to my wife.....

I sure hope not, it's possible your wife knows some extremely personal items about me.  
I deny all allegations!!!    

[Gryphon Rider]

Caulking.  Specifically, a neat little inside corner radius.  I guess I need to take a day and practise about a mile of it.

[The emperor has no clothes]

According to who?

Quite sure my wife will have a much longer list than I do.

Your wife must be talking to my wife.....

I sure hope not, it's possible your wife knows some extremely personal items about me.  
I deny all allegations!!!    

I think maybe our wives know each other already.

Caulking.  Specifically, a neat little inside corner radius.  I guess I need to take a day and practise about a mile of it.

You have miles of radiused walls in Canada ? 

[Alien]

Painting, I just can't do it.  Also my woodworking skills, while serviceable, are not nearly on par with my metalworking skills. 

[hubcapsc]

Stuff that involves small springs.

-Mike

[Willow]

Painting, I just can't do it.  Also my woodworking skills, while serviceable, are not nearly on par with my metalworking skills. 

Welding wood has always been a challenge.  Using a cutting torch on wood is almost impossible to do acceptably.

[hubcapsc]

Painting, I just can't do it.  Also my woodworking skills, while serviceable, are not nearly on par with my metalworking skills. 

Welding wood has always been a challenge.  Using a cutting torch on wood is almost impossible to do acceptably.

Willow thought he was wrong once, but it turns out he was mistaken!

-Mike

[Bighead]

Ciborg according to your description you mud then sand 3 times how about 3 coats of mud then sand once? Much easier that way.

[FLAVALK]

Mine's drywall as well  I HATE doing drywall.

It usually looks like a rough stucco by the time i'm done   

[mike72903]

Mine's drywall as well  I HATE doing drywall.

It usually looks like a rough stucco by the time i'm done   

We obviously both need Bighead's help.

[Valkorado]

I'm pretty bad at always riding the speed limit on my Valks.

Just discovered last weekend that I'm really bad at installing an aftermarket alternator ( ) and wrenching in general.   Gotta start somewhere!

[Patrick]

Stuff that involves small springs.

-Mike

You're not the only one. LOL.   

[Carl]

Legos. Not the big ones, the little ones that are supposed to end up looking like whatever picture is on the box. The wife would buy our son those darn things for Christmas.  I'd get about 15 min. in and have to give up.  Between my fat fingers, lousy directions, a son that was too young to be any help and the microscopic pieces I didn't stand a chance.  Somehow the wife was always able to figure it out.

Drywall was a problem too, until I convinced myself that rippled walls and radiused corners were going to be fashionable someday.

Plumbing can be a problem also.  The wife made me promise to never plumb again.  But I keep trying.  I know things are supposed to run downhill, but . . .

[Earl43P]

My biggest failing by far is cleaning up after a job.

I also tend to start additional jobs while others are not quite finished.

For example, ATM I am building a fence with a gate around the pad where my garage used to be (tornado leveled it).

I have a 6' tunnel dug to access the pipes under the in-ground pool skimmer (they leak, both fittings are under suction when pump is running) and the Valk is torn apart for a rear brake job (awaiting parts).

I did finish digging out and moving an oak stump though. That involved a strap and getting the truck stuck in mud on flat/level ground. Um, yeah the truck is still muddy.

I've been batching it for several weeks (wife is at her Mother's) so throw laundry, dishes, cooking (or eating out), mowing, beer consumption, crossword puzzles and general tomfoolery into that mix.

[Bighead]

My biggest failing by far is cleaning up after a job.

I also tend to start additional jobs while others are not quite finished.

For example, ATM I am building a fence with a gate around the pad where  :tickedoff:my garage used to be (tornado leveled it).

I have a 6' tunnel dug to access the pipes under the in-ground pool skimmer (they leak, both fittings are under suction when pump is running) and the Valk is torn apart for a rear brake job (awaiting parts).

I did finish digging out and moving an oak stump though. That involved a strap and getting the truck stuck in mud on flat/level ground. Um, yeah the truck is still muddy.

I've been batching it for several weeks (wife is at her Mother's) so throw laundry, dishes, cooking (or eating out), mowing, beer consumption, crossword puzzles and general tomfoolery into that mix.

Damnit son sounds like you got it made

[Jess from VA]

I spent 40 years in classrooms, offices and courtrooms.  As soon as I set about to do electrical, mechanical, plumbing, carpentry, small springs (beyond the simple/minded) (no training in any of that), it's always a challenge.

I did manage to tear the back end off the bike and replace a Ujoint, boot , service the rear end, orings, fix wiring, and repair a number of other little things in there.... in four days.  Every time I think of it, I'm amazed I didn't make it worse.  But I have a temper and low frustration flashpoint, which is not particularly helpful (I try to offset these by laughing at myself, regularly).

My next project is a personal pace lawnmower that lost it's cable and turned it into a really heavy push mower.  I'm telling myself that I need the extra exercise and exertion, but I'm pretty sure I'm lying to myself.  I mean, I do need the exercise, but a running mower with no drive unit is better than a pile of parts and no mower at all.

For those with drywall and other interior challenges (paint, carpet, trim), I have discovered a near miraculous solution.   It's called very low lighting.  Been working for me for over 20 years.

You've all seen the signs that advertise hourly shop rates, which go up if you watch, help or worked on it before you brought it in.  I think I was a major factor in the creation of these signs.  

[Firefighter]

Plumbing looks easy but I end up at the box store 5 times and take all day for a 30 minute job!

I do not like and have no patience for indoor construction, trim, sheetrock etc. Outdoor is fun building a shed or something, roof is too much work, painting (new) kinda ok, paint prep, oh no!

[Rams]

While I'm not particularly interested in doing drywall, I'm actually pretty good at it.   It's not really a skilled job if you have the right tools.  

What I am terrible at is painting trim.   I learned that if I screw it up enough, the wife will tell me to go out to my shop and entertain myself while she does it.    

I may be a doofus and a pain in the ass, but I wasn't born yesterday.  

[Patrick]

While I'm not particularly interested in doing drywall, I'm actually pretty good at it.   It's not really a skilled job if you have the right tools.  

What I am terrible at is painting trim.   I learned that if I screw it up enough, the wife will tell me to go out to my shop and entertain myself while she does it.    

I may be a doofus and a pain in the ass, but I wasn't born yesterday.  

I guess thats a lesson I've yet to learn. 
I can't let JoAnn even look at a paint brush. I guess she has learned that lesson, she's smarter than I am. I think I just realized that.   

[Rams]

While I'm not particularly interested in doing drywall, I'm actually pretty good at it.   It's not really a skilled job if you have the right tools.  

What I am terrible at is painting trim.   I learned that if I screw it up enough, the wife will tell me to go out to my shop and entertain myself while she does it.    

I may be a doofus and a pain in the ass, but I wasn't born yesterday.  

I guess thats a lesson I've yet to learn.  
I can't let JoAnn even look at a paint brush. I guess she has learned that lesson, she's smarter than I am. I think I just realized that.  

Hey, my shop is plenty big enough for two and more.  Next time there's a painting party, excuse yourself, tell her you're going to get something from the shop/garage.   I'll be waiting.....  

Edited:   Hey, I didn't say you would be getting it out of your shop/garage. 

[baldo]

Caulking.  Specifically, a neat little inside corner radius.  I guess I need to take a day and practise about a mile of it.

That's alot of corners....Do you think you'd end up caulking yourself into a corner? 

[solo1]

Computers and the Internet.  My son ,today, was trying to talk me through on the phone about  stopping Windows 10.  Looks simple but couldn't get it to work. I know enough to do photos and that's it. Hell, I don't even know what questions to ask to fix glitches.

Come to think of it, due to thumbs and knees that don't work right, the work for a living would no longer work for me.

Wiring, mechanics, quality control, test associate engineer, carpenter (sorta),  Xray tech, and truck driver, would all be in question.   Mentally still ok but Chris has his doubt about that as pertaining to computers.

[f6gal]

Stuff that involves small springs.

-Mike

LOL Mike, I've shot those damn carb springs across the garage too many times to count.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

I have no artistic ability, none. Being a lifetime industrial electrician/mechanic and a gunsmith, I can fix most things although I only like repairing/troubleshooting firearms and industrial equipment. I detest home remodeling and plumbing, I find it painfully tedious and boring, but I can do it. I generally refuse to work on vehicles, fork trucks and the like, even my own. I don't mind doing work on my Valk but I'd much rather ride it.

But, everything I do looks industrial, I have no artistic sense, no artistic ability. That's fine if I'm re-bluing and refinishing firearms, repairing equipment, building a wall, rebuilding a compressor or troubleshooting a weird electrical quirk or coolant leak in a machine. But, I recently stippled a grip on a carry gun and was very proud of it until my youngest son and partner looked at it and said "you really have no artistic ability do you"? Now it looks like crap to both of us! 

I think this is related to my ability to sit in a new recliner for weeks without ever noticing it's new. This is also why I'm not allowed to pick up a paint brush and couldn't honestly tell you what color any wall in our house is painted even though I told my wife her color choices were great when she painted them, and I meant it.

Along with no artistic ability goes no musical ability. Although I love music, I'm unable to play musical instruments without causing those around me to consider earplugs or suicide.

[Flask]

  Drive a Jet Ski for the first time 

  You have to throttle to turn 

[msb]

Getting down to making a decision on personal purchases. Have no problem at all making snap critical business decisions or purchases every day or advising others of a particualr direction to take when asked, but I've figuratively screwed myself into the ground on many occasions when reserching, comparing, and trying to decide which way to go, or to go at all on any type of significant purchase for myself    A prime example is with my beloved Interstate... I diddled and doddled on it for several days about 15 years ago, until my very smart and decisive bride went out and got a bank draft and kicked my a** all the way to the P.O's residence to purchase my then 2 year old beauty.

[mike72903]

Getting down to making a decision on personal purchases. Have no problem at all making snap critical business decisions or purchases every day or advising others of a particualr direction to take when asked, but I've figuratively screwed myself into the ground on many occasions when reserching, comparing, and trying to decide which way to go, or to go at all on any type of significant purchase for myself    A prime example is with my beloved Interstate... I diddled and doddled on it for several days about 15 years ago, until my very smart and decisive bride went out and got a bank draft and kicked my a** all the way to the P.O's residence to purchase my then 2 year old beauty.

i find it awkward to diddle on my Tourer and wouldn't know where to start to doodle.  Maybe the interstate is different?

[sheets]

. . . , anything that needs to be true plumb and square. My artistic impressions are best made from behind the controls of earth-moving equipment. With hand tools I do my best work with a pick & shovel. And a two-pound hammer.   

[The emperor has no clothes]

Getting down to making a decision on personal purchases. Have no problem at all making snap critical business decisions or purchases every day or advising others of a particualr direction to take when asked, but I've figuratively screwed myself into the ground on many occasions when reserching, comparing, and trying to decide which way to go, or to go at all on any type of significant purchase for myself    A prime example is with my beloved Interstate... I diddled and doddled on it for several days about 15 years ago, until my very smart and decisive bride went out and got a bank draft and kicked my a** all the way to the P.O's residence to purchase my then 2 year old beauty.

You may be a diddler and a doddler but you do know how to marry the right girl. 

[Jersey mike]

I cant' draw or sketch very well.

I too hate drywall but I can paint like a pro, when I get into it.

Electricity is the work of the devil, but I can hook black to black and white to white and know the green wire is good to support vanity lights and ceiling fans until all the other wires are hooked up.

I can't solder but I make great blobs outta the stuff.

Plumbing to me is a nightmare, I've given up on even trying.

I've never tiled anything but people say its easy. my answer to them is "ok let me practice at your house first." but it never seems to get past there.

I'm great at taking stuff apart, it's the putting it back together with nothing left over that still gets me.


also, I can't tell a joke or a story to save my life, I don't have that gift of gab...always wished I did.

I can't write to save my life either. I read some of the posts on here and wish I could write like some of you can, you guys have a true gift. My youngest daughter has been writing "short stories" since she picked up a crayon, my favorite is "The Lucky Lion" from when she was about 5, it's written on construction paper and has about 15 staples in the top left corner. I think it will hold together for a few more years.

[Bighead]

After reading much here I guess I should be proud of what I can and have done. I grew up in the country if something was broke we fixed it. Pulled and rebuilt my first car engine when I was 16 ( with dads help) then when I got married at 20 yrs old I didn't make enough money to provide ( but NEVER took a penny from anyone including the government) so I started working with a guy to make ends meet. Doing plumbing,drywall,electrical and even laying block and framing even roofing. Not that I do that anymore but can if the need arises. After a couple of years of that I said to myself,self you gotta work smarter not harder and now even though my hours are long I work for an Orthopaedic physician as a physicians assistant. ( and make a pretty Good living doing it  )I assist in surgery,in the office I take X-rays do wound care and cast. I am glad I listened to myself

[The emperor has no clothes]

You guys SUCK ! I'm not bad at ANYTHING. 

[Rams]

After reading much here I guess I should be proud of what I can and have done. I grew up in the country if something was broke we fixed it. Pulled and rebuilt my first car engine when I was 16 ( with dads help) then when I got married at 20 yrs old I didn't make enough money to provide ( but NEVER took a penny from anyone including the government) so I started working with a guy to make ends meet. Doing plumbing,drywall,electrical and even laying block and framing even roofing. Not that I do that anymore but can if the need arises. After a couple of years of that I said to myself,self you gotta work smarter not harder and now even though my hours are long I work for an Orthopaedic physician as a physicians assistant. ( and make a pretty Good living doing it  )I assist in surgery,in the office I take X-rays do wound care and cast. I am glad I listened to myself

The thread asked what we didn't do well, there's a ton of crap (according to my wife) that I don't do well, that doesn't mean, I don't do it.    Just not to her standard.    That especially applies to house work, cleaning, laundry and such things.   I can do them, I just do it to my standard (which, apparently ain't quite good enough) so, I end up out in my shop entertaining myself.   Seriously considering moving my Lazy Boy recliner and big screen TV out there. 

[The emperor has no clothes]

After reading much here I guess I should be proud of what I can and have done. I grew up in the country if something was broke we fixed it. Pulled and rebuilt my first car engine when I was 16 ( with dads help) then when I got married at 20 yrs old I didn't make enough money to provide ( but NEVER took a penny from anyone including the government) so I started working with a guy to make ends meet. Doing plumbing,drywall,electrical and even laying block and framing even roofing. Not that I do that anymore but can if the need arises. After a couple of years of that I said to myself,self you gotta work smarter not harder and now even though my hours are long I work for an Orthopaedic physician as a physicians assistant. ( and make a pretty Good living doing it  )I assist in surgery,in the office I take X-rays do wound care and cast. I am glad I listened to myself

The thread asked what we didn't do well, there's a ton of crap (according to my wife) that I don't do well, that doesn't mean, I don't do it.    Just not to her standard.    That especially applies to house work, cleaning, laundry and such things.   I can do them, I just do it to my standard (which, apparently ain't quite good enough) so, I end up out in my shop entertaining myself.   Seriously considering moving my Lazy Boy recliner and big screen TV out there. 

Don't forget a mini fridge. 

[Rams]

Don't forget a mini fridge. 
[/quote]

Oh, that's been out there since day one.   

[DavRed]

speling