Pro tip: the parts guy in Reno sold me on counter work after I swore I'd never leave the shop floor
I spent 9 months turning wrenches at a diesel shop outside Reno and always thought the counter guys had the easy, boring job. Then my back went out and they parked me at the parts desk for two weeks, and I noticed the guy next to me was making $26 an hour plus spiffs on every alternator and brake kit he moved. He knew which fleet accounts paid net 30 and which ones stiffed you, and he kept a little notebook of every truck that came in low on DEF. The phone rang maybe 15 times a day and half of it was just looking up a part number, but he said he cleared $61k last year without ever crawling under a hood. I always figured the desk was where they put you when you couldn't hack it, and now I'm honestly not sure who had it better. Anybody here made the switch from the floor to the counter, and did you regret it?