Nice concept I would like to start here

[Lozza]

TECH SHOP

[lukeb1961]

Niiice !!!

[mx250]

Just don't ask me to pay your Liability Insurance .

[trailietrash]

I'm sure that it has been tried before in Aus and was mainly geared towards the DIY car repair crowd. But I do not know why it closed up shop and faded away. 

[mx250]

The biggest competitor would be 'Foreign Order'.

You would always lose a price war with Foreign Orders .

[DR]

I'm sure that it has been tried before in Aus and was mainly geared towards the DIY car repair crowd. But I do not know why it closed up shop and faded away.  Undecided

yeah I remember that idea happening in Bris in the late 80's..they didn't seem to last long at all..I and all my mates were tappet heads at the time but I never actually heard of anyone who was remotely interested except for hiring the spray booth

[Lozza]

More geared toward people who want to learn machining

[firko]

It's been tried in Sydney at least, back in the 80s. I enquired about doing a fibreglass course but for some long forgotten reason didn't go through with it.  The Tech Shop concept is essentially a good idea but isn't it really just an American free enterprise version of a TAFE course?

[mx250]

'Back in the day' you could do Journeyman courses at T.A.F.E. For some minuscule fee like $70 or such you could do short course of a term or a year in just about any trade.  The idea was for tradesmen to top up their trade or learn new similar skills. They were used widely by people for hobby and entertainment as well. You got to use the latest and best of T.A.F.E. workshops with expert help and instruction. It pretty much stopped by the early 80's. That 'competition' is no longer there this could be a replacement for that style of course.

I think it could have merit. It would take some special circumstances like quality teachers at low rates. Tap into a bunch of retired tradesmen who would like to work out of hours say 10 -20 hours a week, who like passing on their skills and who are more motivated by doing interesting challenging adaptions of their skills rather than to turn max dollars.  Setting and exposure would be important - maybe an adjunct to a museum, auction house, storage facility or race track. Maybe tap into a supplementary income like youth work with a grant from government.

Yeah I think it has merit.

[trailietrash]

Go for it Lozza. 

I have been trying to get into a basic welding course with TAFE for more than a  year now. They wont offer the course until they have sufficient numbers to run the course but nobody applies for the course because it doesn't exist due to a perceived lack of numbers to do the course. TAFE is geared to look after the interests of teachers first and foremost and not the students. I am certain that if they placed an advertisement for the course in the local paper that there would be a flood of applicants as I know three others who want to do this course too and like me, they are unable to attend weekday courses due to work commitments.

[TeeBone]

I'm currently in my 2nd year of such a course at Sunshine TAFE campus in Melbourne. For anyone riding/restoring old bikes, I believe these courses are invaluable allowing the layman to fabricate items that will keep theses bikes running. Fees this year were around $320 with a rise tipped for next year - thanks KRudd!

[oldfart]

I'm with you TeeBone, Enrol on a Tafe course.

[EML]

Sorry yo say guys, the TAFE system is geared to make cash for the govt. I like the idea better of semi retired or retired chaps with heaps of knowledge teaching what they know to those that really want to learn.
10 yrs ago when I started my exhaust business, I went back to TAFE to brush up on my welding and get with all the new stuff-turned out to be exactly the same course I did straight out of school 20yrs before!! The only difference was the first half of the course was about work place health and safety and how not to set myself or workmates on fire-no bloody fun anymore.
Through this very network-VMX - we should be able to find both the teachers and the pupils keen enough to be involved. The Proserpine boys (up in Nth Qld) have a club that restores their old bikes and then shows and rides them and their work is impeccable, really first rate and they involve all of the club members, each doing what they do best to get the bike ready and on time. That is where I can see this going.   

[pancho]

apparently there is a movement called 'the mens shed' for all blokes interested in doing stuff like that but my perception is that not much happens except its a meeting place for blokes of all ages who happen to be at a loose end. i do recall seeing something about it on tele a while back where the group they were looking at had a lot of gear and obviously some-one to show them the ropes. i think there is one started up near me in Warragamba but i suspect its very early days yet. cheers wally

[TeeBone]

"IF" I had access to well learned gents, I'd avail myself pronto...until then, I'll be at TAFE helping out the guvmint!