Hit 1,000 paint jobs at my shop last month without realizing it

I was flipping through my job logs for the end of the year and noticed job number 1,001 came in right before Christmas. That got me counting back and I realized I had personally painted my 1,000th car back in November on a silver 2018 Ford F-150. I didn't even stop to think about it at the time, just buffed it out and moved on to the next one. It kind of hit me how much time and clear coat I've gone through since I started apprenticing at this shop in Phoenix 12 years ago. Has anyone else ever tracked their total repair count and been surprised by the number?

2 comments

2 Comments

park.iris22d ago

That's a wild milestone to hit without noticing. Were any of those 1,000 jobs ones that you would go back and redo if you could, or are you pretty satisfied with your work across the board? I'm curious because when you're in the thick of it, mistakes or shitty customer cars can blend together, but looking back through logs must make you think about the ones that really stuck with you for better or worse. Like did that F-150 have any annoying details that made it a pain despite being a routine silver paint job?

park.troy22d ago

Honestly the one that really sticks out in my head was this old Dodge Neon some kid brought in. He wanted a matte black wrap job but halfway through I realized the paint underneath was peeling off in chunks like old sunburn. Had to strip the whole thing down to bare metal before I could even start. Took twice as long and I barely broke even on it. That's the kind of job you don't forget because it turns into a nightmare you didn't sign up for. Most silver F-150s are easy cash though.