DFB's Garage

[Big DaveBig Dave is verified member.]

When someone's character and judgement is flawed, like your old boss, their words are valueless. You should let this go, it can be hard to do though, especially when you may think you owe them something. They are not worthy of your respect.

 

[DFB]

Sory to hear you had a asshat or a boss for far to long.
Like you mentioned, the measure of a man has nothing to do with drinking beer and watching or having knowledge of sports, or bragging about the prior nights woman of the hour.

It sounds as though you never told your boss how you felt for all those years. I can tell you from experience that holding back from speaking your mind no matter how it will be recieved, is not healthy and will result in even more resentment.my case is family, not a boss. That will carry over into other aspects of your life.
Speaking your mind to said person or peoples even years later will help in how you feel. As i said can tell you that from experience. It will make a difference in your life to have that conversation no matter how scarry that may be to think about.

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The thing is, I bottled it up a very long time. When I started to let it out, started to speak up, it became combative. And that's AFTER having been directed (both written and spoken) to highlight issues with senior management as part of my role. And they were legitimate and not trivial things regarding safety or urgent maintenance items, it was just ignored or seen as argumentative. It got to the point where I had nothing else to contribute to the business in a what's the point type of situation.

 

[Klasse Act]

When someone's character and judgement is flawed, like your old boss, their words are valueless. You should let this go, it can be hard to do though, especially when you may think you owe them something. They are not worthy of your respect.

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[opie2]

The thing is, I bottled it up a very long time. When I started to let it out, started to speak up, it became combative. And that's AFTER having been directed (both written and spoken) to highlight issues with senior management as part of my role. And they were legitimate and not trivial things regarding safety or urgent maintenance items, it was just ignored or seen as argumentative. It got to the point where I had nothing else to contribute to the business in a what's the point type of situation.

What a shame when one losses his top tier talent due to none other than his own ignorance and unwillingness to admitt that someone else may know more than himself.

Ever think about opening up your own nursery? You seem to have a passion and wealth of knowledge for it.

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[DFB]

What a shame when one losses his top tier talent due to none other than his own ignorance and unwillingness to admitt that someone else may know more than himself.

Ever think about opening up your own nursery? You seem to have a passion and wealth of knowledge for it.

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Knowing the business, I don't want to run a retail nursery of my own. A wholesale nursery would be a better fit for me. But again, its a very tough industry to make money from.

 

[Tasmania]

The thing is, I bottled it up a very long time. When I started to let it out, started to speak up, it became combative. And that's AFTER having been directed (both written and spoken) to highlight issues with senior management as part of my role. And they were legitimate and not trivial things regarding safety or urgent maintenance items, it was just ignored or seen as argumentative. It got to the point where I had nothing else to contribute to the business in a what's the point type of situation.

Do you think these problems were hard to address due to the nursery being a "Family Run Business"

And a small town vibe?

Because I've looked over their story and how they started etc,

 

[Big DaveBig Dave is verified member.]

Do you think these problems were hard to address due to the nursery being a "Family Run Business"

And a small town vibe?

Because I've looked over their story and how they started etc,

I thought it would be good working for a small family owned and run business when I started my last job. I soon discovered those guys play favourites, rules apply to almost everyone, but not their favs, some get new equipment and offices built for them, even though it steals space and funds from areas that are desperately short on space and equipment. They wouldn't even spend $200 on a trolley for the warehouse, to save us an hour a day, nope, we can't justify that. Also wandering around trying to catch people out not working. If I could drive past with my butt out the window blasting the horn I would. Possibly the only good reason to buy a Tesla.

 

[Tasmania]

I thought it would be good working for a small family owned and run business when I started my last job. I soon discovered those guys play favourites, rules apply to almost everyone, but not their favs, some get new equipment and offices built for them, even though it steals space and funds from areas that are desperately short on space and equipment. They wouldn't even spend $200 on a trolley for the warehouse, to save us an hour a day, nope, we can't justify that. Also wandering around trying to catch people out not working. If I could drive past with my butt out the window blasting the horn I would. Possibly the only good reason to buy a Tesla.

Full Moon

 

[DFB]

Do you think these problems were hard to address due to the nursery being a "Family Run Business"

And a small town vibe?

Because I've looked over their story and how they started etc,

Oh, absolutely. In any family business, it ends up being an us vs them situation. The only ones who would dispute that are people who are the "family" in a family business.

Quite often, to keep the "peace" in the family dynamic, certain issues end up being kept quite or "tolerated", but in reality, those frustrations end up bubbling up in other ways. So when something goes wrong, which is normal and always going to happen, the responses are often magnified due to built up tension. Then there were times when certain family would continually screw up doing the same thing despite multiple approaches to deal with it. We are talking about killing plants, ie stock, from poor attention to detail. In the end, I gave up. But guess who name ends up on the monthly stock loss sheet? Yep.

My situation ended being somewhat unique. I lasted waaaay longer there than anyone else. Most would come, spent a few months to a year, then move on. It's not an easy job, there is a lot of physical work that needs to be done in all weather conditions, rail-hail-shine. I once had a casual say to me that he thought working in a nursery was going to be just selling pot plants. Ahhh................................

I ended up being the only non-family member to be given managerial duties. So, I was somewhat "family" when it suited them, but also not family when it suited them.........................as in being ridiculed for my "quirks"....................................which EVERYONE HAS.

TO BE CLEAR, in the end, I gave it as good as I got it. You bite me, I bite back......................which ended up being a chicken and egg situation, a self-fulfilling prophesy. I've always had a short temper, but I managed to suppress it at work for a long time. But in the end, I just got sick of being walked over and the temper came to the top. I am not innocent in the whole situation, no one is perfect. In the end, I just didn't have the energy to continue the fight, or being ignored.

 

[DFB]

I thought it would be good working for a small family owned and run business when I started my last job. I soon discovered those guys play favourites, rules apply to almost everyone, but not their favs, some get new equipment and offices built for them, even though it steals space and funds from areas that are desperately short on space and equipment. They wouldn't even spend $200 on a trolley for the warehouse, to save us an hour a day, nope, we can't justify that. Also wandering around trying to catch people out not working. If I could drive past with my butt out the window blasting the horn I would. Possibly the only good reason to buy a Tesla.

It's funny how family businesses like to shout from the roof tops that they are "FAMILY BUSINESS", as if its something noble or special. When in reality, it means a VERY complicated business of us vs them. To be clear, they don't set out to be like that, but I've seen it manifest in many family businesses that need to hire outside of the family. The funny thing is, I WAS the favorite...........................until I started to have an opinion, I was the only one questioning their decisions in the name of doing things better. And before anyone says well, there's your problem, well it was my role to do so, I was told to do just that. I'm a VERY literal person, I tend to take what someone says very seriously.

The time spent spying on staff to make sure they are doing something would have to one of the most idiotic displays of hypocrisy known to man. A couple of years ago, they installed "security" camera's. But one family member in particular was using it to spy on staff, even when he wasn't working. He would sit in front of his computer watching the cameras at the expense of doing something constructive. Or the three "boys" standing around sipping coffee by the counter and making small talk for the first hour of the day while everyone else was working their ass off. And god forbid if you needed to go the toilet or have a drink on a 40-degree day outside of your allocated 30min lunch break, well you were costing them money. But to then have to listen to them whinge and moan about my non-family colleague's and their inadequacies and lack of efficiency, complete and utter hypocrisy. I can only images what they were saying about me.

I once asked, pleaded, for extra hose be bought to help make the summer watering more efficient so we didn't end up having to drag hoses around the place. Those were larger 19mm hoses up to 30-metres in length, which were quite heavy when full of water. The response was an instant and definite NO. An extra $80 on a hose that would save them that in wages in less than a week. Or the time I pleaded for a weed sprayer that didn't leak. Ignored. Hydraulic hoses that were leaking of a daily used machine. Ignored. In the end, you just give up, at which point it's like, what am I doing here?

 

[DFB]

As Dave brought up a little while ago, Bunnings (think Home Depot for US readers) have joined the car care and automotive sector. I noticed a few Meguiar's products creeping onto the shelves earlier this year, but they now have an entire isle dedicated to automotive, with several shelves of that on car care. This will undoubtably shake things up a little, which I will explain shortly.


















Naturally, with only an isle to work with, they are just stocking the basics, be that lubricants and service fluids, batteries, chargers and jump starters, wiper blades, seat covers, jacks, electrical, air fresheners.....................and car care.

The question is, which of it is worth buying? On the shelves, there is a basic range of products from Meguiar's, Turtle Wax, Mothers, Armor All, Polyglaze, Oakwood, and Machanix. Let's break this down a little, starting with what to avoid.................

Don't Bother -

Let me preface this by saying that the following brands and their products will do the intended job. The sticking point is how well do they do that job? To make these products approachable for all users, ie idiot proof, the chemical formulas account for the lowest common denominator. So, you have to work harder to achieve the desired result. Most notable for me was when I compared a tar remover from Polyglaze to Carpro TarX. Where the cheap product was virtually useless, TarX melts tar before your eyes. Naturally, there is risk to that, which is not a gamble the entry level brands want to take. So, keep this in mind with my comments below.

Turtle Wax - These are all the very bottom of the TW range. Depending on how this pans out, some of the newer and admittedly decent Hybrid-Ceramic Turtle Wax stuff could end up on the shelves. But as it stands, a firm no.

Polyglaze - I know I'm a brand snob, but I just do not see why you would buy these products when much better options exist for similar money, not to mention better performing.

Machanix - Again, why buy these when better exists?

Armor All - I know I probably ruffled feathers with a post I made recently, but I'm sorry, I just don't see a single product worth buying here. If I had to pick one, it would be the blue Car Wash, which at least cleans well.

Worth A Look -

Here are a few items that caught my eye, and this is where the shake up begins........................

Oakwood - There are so many terrible leather care products on the market that are virtually useless on automotive leather/vinyl. However, I was surprised to see this brand has a separate line of for cars. My go to recommendation for leather care via an auto store has been Bowden's Leather Love and Leather Guard. But the Oakwood Leather Foam Cleaner and Leather Cream might be worth looking at. Australian made too.

Meguiar's - Again, Bunning's are only offering the entry level products, but few stand out for me. Gold Class is not my favorite shampoo, but its the best on these shelves and has always excelled at suds and slickness, and will also foam reasonably well. I'd go so far as to say this is THE best product on these shelves. But it's the price that caught my eye, $32.50 for a 1.9 Lt bottle. That same bottle a Repco and Autobarn is $47.00 and $44.99 respectively. In true Bunning's fashion, they have the buying power and ability to undercut everyone!



Secondly, I have aways liked Quick Interior Detailer. This has a nice balance between cleaning power and some very mild dressing potential. Available in the Detailer range, this consumer bottle is the one to buy as the larger size has a strange odor to it. Bunnings are asking $24.80, Repco and Autobahn want $39 and $37 respectively.



The Meguiar's microfiber is also very good, but overpriced for what it is. Even though the Bunning's prices undercut other retailers by $10 - $15, this is an expensive way to buy towels. But, if you are in a bind, they are a worthy option. If you do buy them, I would 1000% be washing them a couple of times before use, they are in effect sitting unpackaged in a dusty hardware store after all.





Mothers - I once used a lot of Mothers products, and I even have a few key products that are still in rotation. For example, their Mag & Aluminum Polish is a classic. At $6.03, the same tub will set you back $24.99 at Supercheap!

Another product that caught my eye, the Mothers Shaggy Wash Mitt is nicely priced and suitably soft and fluffy. At $12.80, it's more than half the price sold elsewhere. I'm not a fan of wash mitts, but this is far from a bad option. Again, be sure to wash before use.



Now, some of the prices I have quoted for the same products sold at Repco, Supercheap and Autobarn are relative. Quite often, those retailers have rolling discounts, often between 20 - 30%, in turn narrowing the price gap. I've been highly critical of Meguiars approach to RRP's in Australia, especially when a comparable Carpro product costs the same price, or even less. It's a no brainer in that situation. However, the Meguiar's RRP prices are purposely inflated to make the sale price seem more impressive that it really is. So, I suspect the prices that Bunning's are putting on these products are where they SHOULD have been priced all along.

The big question is, will other retailers follow? Probably not, Bunning's have the ability to name their wholesale prices, then charge whatever they like, in turn running others out of business. So, their foray into automotive is following true to type. The real question is, how far do they take it?

 

[Big DaveBig Dave is verified member.]

I haven't checked out Bunnings auto range recently, but the last time I was there the guy did say they would be expanding. I think their pricing could disrupt the others a bit. They would have to keep their standard prices lower than the others sale prices due to their price matching policy, they always boast that if you find something cheaper elsewhere, they will beat it by 10%. Looks like a decent range though, I can see people skipping Repco, SCA, and Autobarn for the basic stuff, but for actual parts you'll have to go to them.

 

[DFB]

I haven't checked out Bunnings auto range recently, but the last time I was there the guy did say they would be expanding. I think their pricing could disrupt the others a bit. They would have to keep their standard prices lower than the others sale prices due to their price matching policy, they always boast that if you find something cheaper elsewhere, they will beat it by 10%. Looks like a decent range though, I can see people skipping Repco, SCA, and Autobarn for the basic stuff, but for actual parts you'll have to go to them.

Quite often, Bunnings will have their own version of a product that is not sold elsewhere. That means a direct comparison is not possible, and therefore they don't have to beat the price by 10%. For example, Victa have a Bunning's specific range, then a separate range for their dealers. Quite often, the only difference is the colour of the deck (blue instead of grey) and model name. But that means you can't directly compare to what I dealer might be selling.

Below is a post I wrote elsewhere regarding the Bunning's effect, which will undoubtably apply to car care in the long run too.............................

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Interesting assessment of how Bunnings has impacted how we shop and how that effects the competition, and not necessarily in a positive way.

Having worked for a small family business for over 20-years, the retail landscape has changed massively over that time. Back then, there were seven different retail garden centers running in my area, eight if you count Mitre10. That number is now three, soon to be two.

Now, competition is healthy as it spurs each company in the mix to strive for success, which in turn gives consumers more choice. But certain competition has ran many, many small businesses into the ground via unfair tactics. And I'm not just talking about having a higher purchase power, rather its the result of Bunnings dictating what price they will pay for their stock, rather than the supplier charging what they need to manufacture (or grow) a product and then make money doing so.

On the plant side of the business, Bunning's would sign up wholesale growers under reasonable terms. Growers would then invest heavily into their stock output so as to provide sufficient volume to a national chain store. As time went on, Bunning's would then start dictating what they will pay in a take it or leave it proposition. With so much business tied up in a live product, a grower has little to no choice but to agree to the price, or risk going out of business. In some cases, these growers were locked into only supplying Bunning's and not allowed to sell to other retailers.

And even with those price squeezes, the green life/nursery department of Bunning's has run at a loss for a very, very long time. In other words, they use the nursery as a loss leader, the rest of the store making up the shortfall. A small business simply cannot compete against Bunnings on price, nor can they have other sides of their business pick up the slack. As a result, independent businesses shut down, or charge what's needed and then appear as if they are price gauging. It also doesn't help when Bunning's offer a 12-month warranty on plants in a no questions asked way. So a customer basically gets free plants when they neglect or show proper care.

I would often have customers tell me that they stopped buying plants at Bunning's because "they just die". To get those cheaper prices, wholesalers need to grow each plant as quick as possible. While the plant looks nice sitting in the pot, the root system hasn't kept up to the above ground material. So, when the plant is taken out of the pot, the potting mix falls from root system, which in turn makes it extremely vulnerable if not treated correctly and then "just dies". This situation is not apparent to most consumers, all they see is the huge price difference but don't understand how that price was made possible, then they get a free plant when things go wrong.

So, Bunning's stormed into town, built up a network of suppliers, then squeezed the lemon dry to get the lowest possible price before selling those products at a loss, in effect running the established competition into the ground. And to cap all this off, they set up unrealistic consumer expectations to the point where its fueled massive entitlement.

But hey, "Lowest Prices Are Just The Beginning".

 

[Big DaveBig Dave is verified member.]

Yeah, basically lower prices till you kill the competition, then raise the prices again.

 

[DFB]

Yeah, basically lower prices till you kill the competition, then raise the prices again.

Same thing is/has happened with bottom end of the car market, ie small hatchbacks under $20k. The Chinese car makers arrived at healthy discounts over competing Japanese or Korean cars, basically running them out of town. One by one, the competitors in this segment vanished, and the ones that stayed became a $30k proposition. Now, your only option for a cheap new car is one of these Chinese things, of which have been going up and up in price over the last 12 - 18 months. Australians are quite a foolish breed.

 

[DFB]

On its routine wash today, I made a start on decontaminating the Wildtrak in preparation for polishing and coating next week. This wasn't planned, but I thought I may as well get a head start, in turn getting me to the polishing step quicker.

My starting point today was thick layer of dust after some gravel road driving last week. I mixed up a batch of Touch-less at 1.5% PIR, using it as a pre-wash for the wheels and wheel arches prior to cleaning with foamed Brake Buster. Because of the dust, I decided to treat the engine bay as well, foaming with Touch-less, agitation with EZ-Detail brushes, rinsed, then lashings of Hyper Dressing.



When decontaminating, I normally apply the iron remover to dry paint as the first step, but there was so much dirt on the car that I needed to deal with that first. So, the whole vehicle was foamed with Touch-less, allowed to do its thing, then rinsed. Gyeon Iron then got sprayed onto the whole vehicle and left to dwell while I put away the wheel cleaning tools. Apart from some very faint spots on the tailgate, the vehicle had virtually no iron contamination.



With the iron remover rinsed off, NV Snow was foamed on and the contact wash completed. I then went over the car with a clay mitt and Gyeon Clay Lube. The paint was fairly smooth to begin with, only a few spots here and there benefited.



That's where the decon finished for now, but the time-consuming part is done. Prior to polishing next week, I will pre-wash with an alkaline soap, then contact wash with KCx Reactivation Shampoo to strip any remaining protection and mineral content.

 

[DFB]

The Mustang has been on "daily" duty this week, so it was next in line for attention today. And what a nice day to be outside, and on a Saturday too! I worked every Saturday and Sunday for the better part of 10-years, having the choice to enjoy the weekend is new luxury for me.

There was nothing out of the ordinary today, just my usual wash routine. The exception being the application of ADS Ghost to the Michelin PS4S tyres.



PS4S are notoriously hard to deal with, to the point where it's more a case of trying to achieve some sort of uniformity rather than outright perfection. First of all, I've found that they resist most of the dedicated tyre cleaners on the market, even with multiple rounds. That means needing to use a solvent sledgehammer to properly strip and clean the sidewalls. Then, when it comes to dressing, certain sections tend to reject the product, in turn leading to a splotchy finish. In my opinion, it's the waxy sidewall that is to blame here, initially resisting the dressing, then preventing its release come cleaning time.

SUPER ANAL DETAILING NOTE - You may be wondering why having a CLEAN tyre is so important. Well, the cleaner the sidewall, the better the dressing will be absorbed, which will therefore last longer. And with all of the dust, dirt, road grime and tyre bloom removed, trust me, a dressed tyre will look MUCH better. If you don't clean before application, all you end up is a slurry of dressing and dirt, leading to a brown appearance. I've also found a dressing will glide over a clean tyre much better.

After trying many options on PS4S, I've come to conclusion that Carpro Perl at 1:1, OG Tire Dressing and Auto Finesse Satin (their only good product) to be the best for these tyres. That is because all three are very subtle to begin with, which means they can be levelled down for a uniform finish. So, the question is, how would PS4S react to a tyre sealant such as ADS Ghost?

For the initial clean, I went to town with my strongest tyre cleaner, Carpro ReTyre. Once dried with the blower, I then went in with Tarminator, however mineral spirits will also work and is more freely available.

Using a fresh foam applicator, I applied a single layer to each tyre, allowed to soak for a few minutes, then buffed them back with a towel. Multiple layers can be applied, but I decided to see how one coat would perform.









Overall, Ghost created a nice uniform finish. What I want to see is if this sealant can provide a more stable base for something like OG Tire Dressing or ADS Tire+ going forward. Perhaps with the more resistant layer of Ghost, these tyres will be easier to dress and achieve that goldilocks uniform finish.

 

[Klasse Act]

Yeah something about Michelins and tire dressings. I've found my Pilot Sport 4s' to "accept" Ghost as a base layer but they just don't look like my g/f TAOS tires, so I'll add ADS Tire+ to "boost them up", Pure:est Tire dressing & Adam's VRT also to my tires with great results. My replacement tires will not be Michelins anyways so it's only a matter of time

Maybe I should try mineral spirits on my Pilot Sport 4s Deyon

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[Klasse Act]

Deyon, your voice carries pretty far

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[DFB]

Deyon, your voice carries pretty far

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And that cheesy grim was often on that morons face.