re: Millennial dads have pathetic DIY skills compared to baby boomers

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My take is that the Boomers and the Millenials are pretty similar overall, and part of this is that neither group cares much about machines or engineering.

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millenials graduate with engineering degrees at a higer rate than any generation

Well baby boomers kinda had to learn that stuff bc their fathers were dying killing nazis.

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Anybody who can’t change a tire or open a fricking jar can’t be an actual grown man.

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Agreed, and I’m not a particularly handy man. But there are some basic things a male should know how to do like changing a tire or changing the oil in a vehicle.

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Read it again. I just said that I’m doing all of those things myself, but there are plenty of things that I can do that I’d rather pay somebody to do.

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Again, I agree. I’m not about to do something that I don’t really know how to do when it could cause expensive problems if I frick it up. That kind of stuff is better left to professionals.

But like building a deer stand or something like that, I’ve got basic carpentry skills enough to do something along those lines.

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How do people not know how to change a tire? I’ve never understood this.

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A few years ago I had to change my coworkers tire on our way back from lunch. He had absolutely no idea how to even get started. It was a quiet ride back to the office. He was so embarrassed

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I'm Gen X and I'm much better at fixing things than my dad or my kids.

My take is that the Boomers and the Millenials are pretty similar overall, and part of this is that neither group cares much about machines or engineering
Music festivals? Saving the world? Sure, Boomers and Millenials go for that stuff.

Fixing the water heater? No, not really.

Things like cars, guns, stereo equipment, etc. are great sources of joy to me, but the appeal seems lost on my kids and my parents. Probably goes in cycles or something

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There’s something about late 70’s and early 80s kids that I felt like get left in no man’s land. I fix 90% of the stuff around my house and have never once called in a handyman/plumber except for metal pipe work. I helped a young 20 year old guy change his tire recently and he had no idea what he was doing. Didn’t have the faintest.

That being said I completely get technology and understand 90% of what the kids are getting at these days. I don’t identify with their hypersensitive culture but I at least understand it.

I will readily admit to this. I am nowhere near as handy or mechanically inclined as my dad. The guy can fix stuff I am clueless about. That said, I earn now at 31 what took him until his late 50s to earn, accounting for inflation. It definitely bothers me that I'm not as competent, but I think about how much more formal education was emphasized for me over my first 18 years and I realize that it's just a trade off.

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There’s something about late 70’s and early 80s kids that I felt like get left in no man’s land. I fix 90% of the stuff around my house and have never once called in a handyman/plumber except for metal pipe work. I helped a young 20 year old guy change his tire recently and he had no idea what he was doing. Didn’t have the faintest. That being said I completely get technology and understand 90% of what the kids are getting at these days. I don’t identify with their hypersensitive culture but I at least understand it.

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Early 80’s kid checking in here

This sums it up well. We understand both sides of this conundrum and can thrive in either group

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millenials graduate with engineering degrees at a higer rate than any generation

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That's good, but a degree does not impart the motivation or even 100% of the skills to do maintenance work. In a pinch, I'll bump the starter against a breaker bar to loosen a crankshaft bolt, mount a tire with starter fluid, etc.- this isn't engineer work, it's technician work.

Actually, my Boomer dad couldn't fix crap. He was smart as shite but had no DIY skills.....except for whipping my arse.

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Like... jack up car, loosen nuts, remove/replace tire, tighten nuts in star pattern, lower car. How can anybody not understand this concept?

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Indeed.

It's probably because that's not how you do it. Loosening the lug nuts comes before you lift the car. Tightening the nuts comes after you lower the car.