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A Day on the Job
By ELLEN MOSES Q: What kind of hours do you work? I work from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Q: How long have you been doing this? About 17 years. I started right out of high school. I've been working here about 21/2 years. Q: How did you get interested in this? I watched somebody tint my mom's car, and felt as though it was pretty easy to do. I got a car I wasn't too proud of, and I tinted it myself. I ended up getting a job at a local tint shop and got some experience there. Q: What kind of training do you need to install window film? I'm pretty much self-taught. The local (film) distributors offer some training now. Back when I started, they didn't offer any kind of training whatsoever. Q: What do you do, exactly? I basically cut the film on the outside of the (car) windows and do a method called heat shrinking if the window has a curvature to it, and apply it to the inside of the windows. The other people here go over the vehicles when we're done. They wipe the cars down and inspect them. I try to do the cars as fast as I can. Q: How long does it take you? Typically this Firebird right here would take me about 40 minutes to do. If they needed a sun strip on the windshield, then maybe another 10 minutes. Q: Which vehicle windows are most often tinted? Usually the back and side windows. Occasionally we'll do a sun strip on the top of the windshield. Never anything on the whole windshield. Q: What are the important tools of your trade? I would say the squeegee and sharp razor blades. You want to make sure you have a sharp razor, that's pretty important. And I use Bounty paper towels for wiping, because it's lint-free. Q: Can you walk me through the tinting process? What I typically would do is wipe down the window, get all the dirt off of it. The film goes on the inside, but everything is cut on the outside. I spray the window down with a little bit of soap and water on the doors, lay the film on the outside, and cut it to the shape of the window. Q: How does the film stick to the window? Basically it's like a high quality sticker that's transparent. We'll wet the film down with a baby shampoo and water solution, slide the film on the window and then use typically a squeegee to move it around and get the water out. Q: How many cars do you do on a typical day? With the economy the way it is right now, not enough. It's slowed noticeably since car sales are down. On a busy day I can do 10 cars a day, but the way it is now, I'm doing five or six cars a day. Q: What do you like best about this kind of work? Working at this place, we do a lot of high-end vehicles; you know like Mercedes, Jaguars and BMWs. I'd have to say the most satisfying thing is doing expensive cars and making them look nice. I get to see a lot of new vehicles, because we do new cars for quite a few of the local dealerships. Q: What's the most expensive car you ever worked on? A Ferrari Testarossa. But that was back when I first started. Now, I would say, in the last year, a twin turbo Porsche, and an S-500 Mercedes. I don't get to drive them, but I do get to check them out. Q: What is your least favorite thing about the job? Removing old film, and doing old cars that are dirty. We have to scrape it (old film) off with a razor blade, but I usually don't have to do that. Q: What kind of traits make a good window film installer? Patience. Lots of patience. Hand eye coordination and a desire to not damage any vehicles. I've seen so many cars come in here that other shops have done, where glass has been scratched, or rubber seals have been cut with razor blades. Q: What should a quality window-tint job look like? You want to have nice edges and no light gaps. Light gaps are a big deal with the way some installers cut the film out. They'll cut it short and you'll have a gap where light comes through and is noticeable. We micro edge, which is putting the film right to the edge of the window. No creases, no dirt and you want to squeeze out all the water. If you don't squeegee all the water out it can present a problem. Q: How much money do you make? I get a commission, per job. A decent installer could make $30,000 a year; a high-end installer could make up to $60,000. I don't know too many installers who make $60,000 though. What do you average in a week? Q: It varies. I work straight commission, no salary. So when we're slow, it affects us. I'd say average is about $1,000 a week. That's a decent week. Q: What would your dream job be? I would have to say my dream job would be working for a World Grand Prix motorcycle team. Just to be involved with it. I race dirt bikes, and I have a street bike. It's a passion that I love.
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