Why have some British men lost their DIY skills?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.express.co...e-now-hopeless-at-DIY

It cannot be because they haven't the time, since they enjoy more leisure time than in the past.

Then perhaps it is because they are more affluent and can afford to pay others to do the job?

Or maybe in this day of equality, men are far too busy doing the cleaning and the ironing etc? (TITC remark honest)

Or could the reason be the same of why today's children have also lost the skills once held by the children of yesterday?

[anotheoldgit]

jno

I am talking school kids here, not young adults.

[jno]

your original question was about "British men" - my answer was that jno jnr, who's a man, has far more DIY skills than his parents rather than the other way round. He was pretty handy as a schoolkid too... this is just a guess, but I think all the building of houses he used to do with Lego may have had something to do with inspiring him. (This is all by way of a pastime; his job is nothing to do with building or DIY.)

[jno]

it's true, Trim, you never know when a dibbler might blow up in your face. Rigorous health and safety precaustions must be taken.

[LoftyLottie]

AOG. My Dad wasn't lazy. He worked hard at his job, putting in extra time for no extra money and ended up as a senior manager and director in a very large well known engineering concern. He worked himself up from a very junior position. He was rarely home before 8.00 each evening and often worked at weekends.

He simply was no good at DIY or inclined to learn.

[LoftyLottie]

My son is the most hard working person that I know, to be honest. He has a full time responsible job which takes him into the evenings and then goes home at evenings to spend time renovating his house, with skills acquired not from school but from his own learning and practice.

No way do today's young men enjoy more leisure time than in the past.

You can't categorise people.

[ChuckFickens]

It was installed into me, and my brother, from a very young age that it's possible to do anything if you put your mind to it and I had the good fortune to grow up in an environment where the equipment to do or make pretty much anything was readily to hand. My fathers stock answer to most stuff was "try and do it yourself, if you get stuck I'll come and point you in the right direction"

I never made myself my "own trolley using a set of pram wheels, with no other tools than a saw, a hammer and a red-hot poker for a drill?" but I did make myself a go kart using off cuts of angle iron, an angle grinder, a welder, a lathe and a blow torch if that counts :)... I was also happily stripping down and rebuilding motorbikes at the age of about 12/13. I'm also currently helping my father to build two of these from scratch...
http://www.stationroa...94/images/2994-aa.jpg

My nephew (16) probably wouldn't know which end of a screwdriver to hold if you handed him one :(

[Zeuhl]

<<Seems like some of you had very lazy Dads. >>

Old Git

it's a pity your dad (assuming you knew him - after all, your user name is 'Git') didn't teach you not to be so rude about other people's parents when you know nothing about them.
.

[emmie]

I can do DIY, asking the other half was like pulling teeth, painful and not worth the effort

[barb1314]

Me too. I love DIY. The only thing I'm scared of is electricity. My Dad did a small amount,but like many other Dads worked extremely hard to provide for his family so had no time or energy. My Mum,who also worked full time, did a lot so I've learned from her. My OH won't even change a lightbulb but he's a brilliant chef so we've kind of got role reversal here. The drill is all mine :-)

[karenmac60]

My dad was never a huge DIY fan, he did what he needed to but that was it. He certainly wasn't lazy either, he worked hard as a teacher and is still remembered very fondly by former pupils today. When he wasn't at work he was too busy spending time with my sister and I and teaching us far more important things than how to make a bow and arrow out of a twig. And it didn't matter that he didn't teach me those things - I do all the DIY in my house, mr mac has health issues which make it difficult for him and before we married I had to be self sufficient so I learned how to do whatever I had to.
I think you need to take off the rose tinted spectacles now and then AOG.

[Old_Geezer]

I think much of it is a realisation that if you costed in your own time and effort and stress from it, unless you enjoy the satisfaction of achieving a job well done, it hold little justification. Although I think everyone ought to have a minimum of such skills. Many see it easier to put more hours into a job they are skilled at, to earn the money to pay the professional to make a mess of the job for them. And if you parents set that sort of example you have little incentive to do otherwise.

Besides if your woman doesn't know you have such skills you don't get so pestered to do things all the time.

[Old_Geezer]

I'm a huge DIY fan. Anyone ask me to do anything, I reply, "Do it yourself".

[emmie]

I don't remember anyone doing DIY in our old house, i think wallpaper was put up, and then left for the next 50 years, or so it seemed. You couldn't go in great grans parlour, no idea why, everything was lovely, but no one used it, seems strange now.
As to making a go kart, what a doddle, old pram wheels, an orange box, and some strings, with a piece of wood across, nailed in place, string round the steering wheel
and off you went. or Tie two old metal skates together and place Dandy or Beano hard backed annual on said skates, and off you went. . seems totally mad now, but heavens what fun.

[shaneystar2]

My Dad was very good with wood :) He loved wood .But as for wallpapering etc my Mother did all that .She was a dab hand with a paste brush .
My brothers are all brilliant at mending and fixing things .One of them has practically rebuilt his house.He's forever hammering and nailing .Mind you they were apprenticed to trades when there were proper apprenticeships back in the year dot .
My husband doesn't know one end of a screwdriver from another .I do things like changing plugs etc. and used to do all the decorating .But I can't these days unfortunately .
The offspring are also very good at all things practical .Thank goodness :)

[TTG]

My Dad learnt from Grandad and the knowledge was passed onto my brothers and me. I enjoy it and if it saves money, so much the better. I think it's down to a lot of people wanting things done immediately and don't have the patience for diy.

[Manwithnoname]

I get your point AOG.
People from a past generation were allowed to be more resourceful & hands on than todays generation.
But as its been pointed out the H&S brigade & their crusade have diluted these skills to the point of paranoia.

A hot poker instead of a drill & brace. no more coal fires, but yes my father used that skill when making the cross peice for my trolley, which consisted of pram wheels from the local tip .

[anotheoldgit]

em10

/// As to making a go kart, what a doddle, old pram wheels, an orange box, and some strings, with a piece of wood across, nailed in place, string round the steering wheel and off you went ///

Interesting em, but can't understand about the steering wheel, the one's I made didn't have such a thing.

It had a long piece of wood to which the axle of the pram wheels was attached, this in turn was attached to the body of the trolley by a bolt connecting the two, hence the need for the red-hot poker to burn an hole through for the bolt.

The front wheel axel then swivelled around this centre bolt, creating the steering mechanism, all that was needed then was a strong pierce of string attached to either end of the axle to operate the steering.