Help!! I need advice

[heezybeezy]

I need help (in more ways than one) but my biggest problem right now is getting my repairs to look good and almost disappear. I have done repairs in the past, but now that I am doing them for my own business I so want them to be perfect or at least as close as I can get. I did 3 practice ones on my own little truck tonight. 1 was just crazy, I could not get the air out no matter what I did. Same on the other two just not as bad. I was so patient with all of them and tried everything. The 2 came out ok, but I was still disappointed. They had a cloudy look to them and looked like big surface chips. What am I doing wrong? I just want to stick out above my competetion and have the best looking repairs. I quit my other job at an auto glass shop to do this and I am scared and nervous, but I know with all my heart I can do this. I will say it was a little cold in my garage, I heated up the glass, but I don't think I had it warm enough. Could the temp have played a huge part in my problem? I will let you know on these reapirs I tried drilling, not drilling, heat, no heat and I kept getting the same result. Any advice will be so appreciated. Thank you!!

[Chips be-gone]

Hazy.

First, You should have got the art down before you QUIET your job...
Second, What system (Company brand) did you use at you other glass shop. that may be the difference.
Third, was the chip dry? You said it was cloudy... It may have been you heated the glass to much.

You better get some better training.... or a better system.

[Nomad]

I think we need to know what system you are using, and what procedures were followed in the order you did them.

This doesn't take too long to get familiar with. You need a practice shield, a way to make different chips in the glass and some time to practice. Make lots of chips. Practice until the procedure becomes nearly automatic. Get some training from someone. Call around in areas where people aren't going to be threatened by your business competing with them. I know some people in Des Moines, and some here may know someone closer to you that may be able to help. The equipment manufacturer of the system you are using should have a phone help line to help guide you and figure out what you might be doing wrong.

I've quit more jobs than I like to think about, got fired a few times too. What you are comfortable doing with your life may make someone else really uncomfortable. You can be out making money in short order so don't sweat the critics. You are living your life, not them.

[GLASSTIME]

I will not say I know it all, but let me say the best way to gain the most experiance is hands on.
Depending on the brand of equipment you are utilizing depends on your results. I am still a newbie in the business myself and will always be a newbie. Why? Because I feel thereis always something
New you can and will learn. We use Delta Kits. Before our purchase we researched as much information as we possibly could.

I even had a repair done at a strip mall tent local. This helped me see the process and determine is this something I feel my company can benefit from?
Plus this will give you a better understanding of the business and may help you decide what you want to different vs. Your competition.

Whatch as many videos as possible. Talk the ears off at your distributors tech support. Build that relationship with them.

The kit we purchased, we used at least 1/2 our supplies inclosed just on practice glass. We wanted to make sure everything was done right.
We suffered our trial and error too as everyone does starting out.

You have the advantage in the industry considering you use to work for a glass shop.
Can you give us a little more information about the kit you're using?

How about heat? What are you using there? Moisture Evaporator, Hair Dryer, Vehicle Defroster.
What Brand Kit? Your Resin? Its possible the void is contaminated! Did you clean and prep the glass before you began?

Just a few and some personal suggestions. Just remember A LOT goes into creating the "Perfect" repair. I realized this by getting my hands dirty!

[heezybeezy]

Thank you for all your replies and suggestions. I used a Delta Kit EZK-2 and the Delta resin's. I cleaned the w/s real good and used my defroster to heat up the w/s, but I really don't think I had it warm enough. I will call the help line if it happens again on a nice warm day and the glass is at the proper temp. As far as perfecting this before I quit my job, as far as what I've read seasoned WSR's are still perfecting what they do. That is an ongoing process. I have done many repairs where I worked with the Delta Kit and thought they were very good, had no complaints. But now it's my business and it changes everything. Thank you all for your input and I'll call the help line and ask questions and watch my video again and again. The guys I used to work with brought me a used w/s to practice on also. It's probably something simple. Thank you!!!

[Kgobin]

I encourage you to take advantage of our hands-on training and certification course. The course will increase your self-confidence, drastically reduce the learning curve of windshield repairs, and teach you how to properly do windshield repairs with Delta Kits equipment. Once again if you have any questions please do not hesitate to PM me, email me, or you can call into Delta Kits.