Can you make a living in this field anymore?

[caphair]

I've been a long time hobbyist and admirer of fixing electronics to the best of my ability and with the helpful advice of the contributors of this forum.

Recently I left my job in the field of general labor/warehouse work and I've been considering getting into electronics as a "profession" but I don't see much of any jobs out there.

Mostly assembly/soldering positions nothing on the component repair level. Is this a dying field? I mean it seems people are quick to buy new these days as oppose to getting something fixed that's not a cell phone screen.

Curious what everyone here does for work if it's in the field and any advice on pursuing it. Thanks!

[desert-rat]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

I don't think someone could make a living repairing consumer electronics today. Maybe some industrial electronics.

[rhomanski]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Aviation is still viable. Some has gone to strictly card replacement in boxes but there is still some component level. Or you can get an A&P license and hire in with an airline, then get into avionics. How does $70,000 a year sound?

[fzabkar]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Medical electronics would be another good one.

IMO one of the best fields to get into is data recovery. There are NO entry requirements. Just hang out your shingle and go for it. Removing a shorted diode can earn you $100 if you call it a Diode Removal or a Drive Repair, but it can get you $1000 if you call it a Data Recovery. Believe me, there are some real dopes making a good living out of DR. Any decent technician in this forum would run rings around most of those guys.

[dmill89]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

I'll echo what everyone else said. Consumer electronics repair is pretty much dead (sure there still is some market but it is too small to make a living on, except possibly if you're in a major city and don't have much competition), most electronics have become so cheap that people will simply replace rather than repair (even if it costs them more since it is less of a "hassle").

Specialty electronics (industrial, medical, aviation, military, automotive, data recovery, etc.) is where the money is these days. Focus on markets where it isn't cheap and easy to replace the products (in the case of DR the drive might not be valuable, but the data is).

[caphair]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Data recovery like in computers or more? I haven't seen any jobs for that in my area. Is this more of a small business field?

[fzabkar]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Data recovery like in computers or more? I haven't seen any jobs for that in my area. Is this more of a small business field?

Read the HDD Guru and HDD Oracle forums. That should give you an idea of what is involved.

[rhomanski]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

I'd like to have the job of one of the three guys in powered wigs sitting in front of the Speaker of the House of Commons. Those guys just sit there and listen to the jackasses bray. I don't know what there job description is. Clerk maybe?

[rhomanski]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

That should read "Powdered wigs". I guess you could put led's in them and power them.

[TechGeek]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Haha!!

[JMcFarlandet]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

There is good money in the o&g fields as well when it comes to electronic technicians, but you are going to have to wait for the price of oil to come up a bit and be willing to work long hours

[crni]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

+1 for biomedical equipment repair.
Solid work field for one repair tech, with strong emphasis on electronics, but with just enough mechanics to make things interesting.

Always a big plus: knowing that your good work keeps people alive

[juliadream]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

+1 for biomedical equipment repair.
Solid work field for one repair tech, with strong emphasis on electronics, but with just enough mechanics to make things interesting.

Always a big plus: knowing that your good work keeps people alive

Unfortunately .. the entry level qualifications they require pretty much bars even those of us with decades of proven skill.. They want university muppets with no practical these days.. In my day that wasn't a viable option cos we needed to get out there earning so we could eat !!!

I'm just about making a living.. mostly through recycle, repair and sell.. dirt cheap...nothing in the way of customer repairs.. it's industrial/commercial and some large scale stuff for local businesses.. otherwise.. nope.. the investment required will never come back.. even those scam phone shops have all vanished.. has anybody noticed?.. I did.. I worked in one for a while.. closed 2 years ago.. no business.. It's cheaper to buy a used (whatever) than it is to pay somebody to repair it.. with a couple of notable exceptions.. and unless you made a fortune in the $70 profit on a phone screen days.. you ain't gonna have enough cash in hand to buy the impossible to source parts you will need to fix anything...

Undertaker.. now there's a growing trade.. people always need undertakers

[caphair]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Unfortunately .. the entry level qualifications they require pretty much bars even those of us with decades of proven skill.. They want university muppets with no practical these days.. In my day that wasn't a viable option cos we needed to get out there earning so we could eat !!!

I'm just about making a living.. mostly through recycle, repair and sell.. dirt cheap...nothing in the way of customer repairs.. it's industrial/commercial and some large scale stuff for local businesses.. otherwise.. nope.. the investment required will never come back.. even those scam phone shops have all vanished.. has anybody noticed?.. I did.. I worked in one for a while.. closed 2 years ago.. no business.. It's cheaper to buy a used (whatever) than it is to pay somebody to repair it.. with a couple of notable exceptions.. and unless you made a fortune in the $70 profit on a phone screen days.. you ain't gonna have enough cash in hand to buy the impossible to source parts you will need to fix anything...

Undertaker.. now there's a growing trade.. people always need undertakers

How do you get into recycling products for local businesses? I'm currently buying random broken electronics off Craigslist/eBay fixing and reselling. I'm not breaking the bank by any means but it has kept me a float while I continue my search for a full time job. Ironically people buy working used products for more than the cost to just have the similar item repaired. Very interesting how people operate in that sense.

Most electronics jobs I see are for manufacturing and the pay to start is $1-2 dollars over minimum wage! Doesn't make sense as the requirements range from smd/wave soldering. I'd imagine that takes some skill yet the pay is less than what a dominos pizza delivery person would make.

Any other well paying jobs in the field? I see PC tech positions but I just can't get enthusiastic about that type of work for some reason. Always preferred the hardware/component side of repair

[ozzy214]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

I don't do a lot of low level repairs other than caps. I mainly diagnose and change boards. Cheaper.

But I realyl dont repair anything for consumer. My skills feed my online store. I buy a lot of auctions and broken tech. Take the time to figure out whats broke or good.

And then flip online.

I sell anything from computer tech, to tv parts, to auto parts.

My skills re entirely self taught through google fu and asking questions here.

I have gotten to the point I can fix most anything electronic newer as it is pretty much toss the board and replace. Just like working on a car, part is bad, you change it out.

Only thing I really cant fix is old stuff like ham radios and such,.

But it all feeds my online store to insure stuff i'm listing is good.

I make a decent livign right out of my living room. But iot is very time intensive and expensive with cost of materials,shipping, etc.

I guess you can say Im a junk yard..LOL! But the skills to repair has fed me many many years now and learning new things everyday!

[caphair]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

@ozzy214 where do you purchase all these items? Do you sell on eBay?

[ozzy214]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

@ozzy214 where do you purchase all these items? Do you sell on eBay?

Have ads out online and buy locally. Mainly craigslist and such. Plus I cruise yard sales and local auctions. Find stuff in the trash literally in the trash!

Some of the most memorable scores was I found 2 ham radios int he trash. Flipped online for 100 with free shipping as broken, untested fort parts or repair. Guy was tickled pnk, said he had them working in a hour.

Another time found a game cube in a trash can, flipped online for 75. Nothign wrong with it, was working fine.

And the most memorable was a box of sex toys. Found in trash, nice hmm...collection I guess.LOL! Sold it in auction for 1000 usd to some guy in california..LMAO~!!

I have my hands in so many pots stirring, I cant even decide sometimes which direction to go in.

Also I still pull scrap after all these years and that feeds the store with appliance parts.

Also if I get really slow or bored, I will buy lots of broken laptops off of ebay, and either fix/ part out back on ebay!

Also keep a eye on craigslist for stuff that is cheap, but profitable for resale.

I pretty much do anything, but it is not for the lazy or faint of heart.

Last example, I just drove to Harrisburg, pa about 6 hours round trip from my house. Bought a lawn tractor for myself. I was going to fix for myself, but was shot and beyond repair. So I parted online....got like 6 bills for it in parts.

So thats where most of my inventory comes from...

Ps. My philosophy is this. I'm disabled and pretty much retired. McDonalds pays 200 usd a week if your lucky. If I find just one or two tvs I can make that in a day selling parts. And then relax when I'm not feeling good or body is not cooperating!

[caphair]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

Nice I do the same just not on such a grand scale. I hate eBay fees but it's really the only medium that gives you access to bunch of customers.

I'm curious if local businesses would be interested in a repair man for electronics they use and break. Not sure how I'd go about finding that.

[vinceroger69]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

im undecided with selling on ebay at the minute, with ebay/paypal fees about 13.4 % then the inserction add fees etc then the high postage costs, i usually then go for signed for proof of postage as well so buyers cant say they havnt received my item i find it hard to make a profit.

[ozzy214]

Re: Can you make a living in this field anymore?

im undecided with selling on ebay at the minute, with ebay/paypal fees about 13.4 % then the inserction add fees etc then the high postage costs, i usually then go for signed for proof of postage as well so buyers cant say they havnt received my item i find it hard to make a profit.

With any business there is some loss. Don't pay for insurance or signed postage unless over 100usd. Instead stick a couple bucks in a jar. That's your insurance fund. Now if something is lost or broken, you still have some cash in your hand not in the big boys pocket.

Also if tracking shows it is delivered and buyer pulls a not received claim , most likely eBay will side with u. That is under a 100...over 100 have sig.

The one or two damaged items in the mail just refund and forget about it. Plus usps priority is currently offering 50 free insurance anyway.

eBay does not like sellers arguing with buyers and opening cases, so it's best to refund and move on.

Personally I can't stand eBay, but it is the only venue I have to sell my goods. Plus they sell three x as high as locally. So I just pay the fees and forget about it.