How To: Learn a trade or into mechanics

Bikeanon, you have any recommendations for how to start with simple repairs and stuff? I've started commuting to work daily and biking has been great so far, but I don't know where to even start when it comes to maintenance.

Not sure if this is off-topic, but does anyone know the best place for cheap wood or metal?

It doesn't need to be area-specific If it is, New Zealand-specific advice would be nice but I do want to avoid paying heaps of money for some cheap materials. I need some plywood and some 4X2 but I'm pretty sure the local hardware stores are fucking me over.

I also need steel pipes that are about 4cm in diameter. Sage for double posting

Hey Mechanon, 36 yo office neet responding. Thanks for the pro-tips, man. It's good to know that things aren't entirely hopeless. It's remarkably easy to convince myself that I'm too old to learn new tricks. Your approach seems straightforward and logical.

Still a good thread. Just because you have no skills doesn't mean you can't learn them. Don't worry if you suck now, it took me into my 20s before I could do the simplest mechanical tasks. I couldn't even hit a nail.

Being in the military would help, but places like Boeing are always full up, not doing well, and have union problems. So I was talking about anything but one of the major companies. A&P is certainly good to have, but except for legalities, that license doesn't mean shit about what you are or are not capable to work on.

Are you b8ing me about the bike? It says BSA right on it, they have a lot of similarities to Triumph, at one point I think they were nearly identical. Since it was your pic, I thought you might know that stuff, I see you were going for grubby girls, instead. That baileyjay looking bitch had a hip to waist ratio of nearly 1 and has shitty tattoos. Doesn't make me a fag to not want hepatitis.

Stay the fuck out of the army, the likelihood of learning anything useful is almost zero.