Twenty five bucks an hour is a high wage for most mechanic positions. The best I ever made turning wrenches was about nineteen bucks an hour.
A lot of aircraft mechanics over the years have left aviation to work for car dealerships because the pay increase was very substantial.
The liability and oversight of mechanics is far and away more intense than that of pilots. If it sometimes seems that there are a hundred different ways to get violated as a pilot, there are a thousand as a mechanic.
The performance rules haven't changed much, but the material has; it was largely changed around 1997 or 1998, with substantial increases in quantity and content coming from the FAA. Certainly review your old tapes, but get new books and materials to study.
The basics of rivet spacing, torquing, safetying, etc, haven't changed. The requirement to know and understand current regulation is still the same, though the regulation has increased somewhat. You still need to be able to read aircraft specifications and type certificate data sheets. You still need to be able to calculate bend radius and offset when forming sheet metal, to calculate voltage drop in wire runs, and how to secure a turnbuckle. You'll likely be asked all those things and more when you do your practical test.
Be ready for the oral. Mine lasted nearly eight hours, and I was asked just about everything that the examiner could find to ask. I safetied, balanced a prop, inspected an aircraft, riveted, researched AD's, and a host of other things.
Get a good toolbox; buy quality. Fill it with quality. Matco, snapon, mac, craftsman. It costs a little more, but the warranty and the metal, workmanship, and tolerances are worth it. You can buy a lot of good tools, often new ones, on ebay. Type in craftsman, and try not to spend your entire paycheck. I still haven't learned that much control.
Get short, reversible safety wire pliers. Not standard ones. And ratcheting crimpers, not the run-of-the-mill kind. Make your first torque wrench one that comes with a calibration certificate, keep it up annually, and start with a 1/4" drive in inch pounds. Good dykes, and fill them with PRC to catch safety wire clippings. Make all your early socket purchases 1/4", not 3/8 drive or 1/2". You'll need your own differential compression tester; get the Eastern model with the built-in calibrated orfice for doing Continental engines. Stock up on clecoes and get a decent rivet gun...not a bargain brand. Sioux costs more, but it's worth it. A few others are good, too. Buy good screwdrivers; get neon-handled ones that are easily seen and not left behind in your work. Buy a dzus tool, don't ever use a screwdriver on a dzus fastener with a dished slot.
Shadow your toolboxes using foam with cutout outlines and a different color foam beneath. Tool accountability is a key to not being sued, violated, or killing someone. Put your name on your tools; engrave it. You'll get advice not to do this in case you leave a tool behind. Ignore that advice, take a close accounting of your tools, and make them identifiable. Don't get into a dispute over who owns what in a shop; have yours clearly marked, and keep track of them.
Keep the tools clean. I know many mechanics who return a dirty tool to the box; a very poor habit. Polish them and wipe them down every time. Clean PRC from rivet tools and cutting tools with MEK; keep them looking like new.
Don't wear white shirts around airplanes. Whoever thought of doing that was an idiot.
Never be afraid to say no, or to take your time. NEVER compromise your principles in maintenance. It's a slippery slope, much more so than with flying. Don't pencil whip, backdate, or elbow torque. Always use a current manual, and don't stray from the proceedures. Refuse to sign off on work if a customer or employer won't allow it done properly and to your standards.
There may be a more compelling reason to seek work as a mechanic than the pure mercenary dollars it won't bring...one you'll well understand. Having a current occupational field to flow into when the medical goes bust, or when the employer goes mammaries to the sky is as good as tin (maybe not gold, but a job is a job). Keeping current on your wrenches makes you marketable, and may be your saving grace at a time when all around you are seeking food stamps.
As a mechanic, you may still qualify for foodstamps, but at least you can spend them with a dirty hand.
