That's the thing I miss the most about construction work, I took a job in a chemical plant 26 years ago.

I work alone about 99% of the time as there really aren't that many car guys around here and few are Mopar guys.

Same.

I'll help other people with their cars at their house but I do everything myself on my car including engine and trans installation.

Strange response on a car forum. Old Mopars are supposed to bring satisfaction and joy and aren't about a better "return" if you mean financially.

Same here regarding cars. Too bad because it would be helpful and enjoyable with someone else sometimes. Had a great time a couple of times when Scratchn (Mike) made the long haul from West coast to help me out with stuff on my Power Wagon.

I do prefer to do some things by myself without any distractions. As another member mentioned, bodywork !
I've had car owners want to help on their cars and every time, I have had to go over their work. I'm not an OCD perfectionist but I do try to get the body and paint to look as good as I am capable.
Engine building? Oh yeah. A chatterbox buddy can distract you enough to make a mistake that shows up during break in or miles down the road.
Most of the time when I really appreciate the help is on some junker car where precision isn't a factor.
Lifting hoods with helpers avoids scratches.
Breaking in an engine is another time where extra eyes really helps.
I do get help from the wife for moving cars around the yard, bleeding brakes and some other medium duty tasks. She is strong enough to help lift steel hoods too!
It does come back to the guys working together though. If you've never been in the military, been on a sports team or worked alongside a bunch of like minded guys, you might not understand why I say that I really like the camaraderie. It really is a thing.
Years ago, We'd have marathon sessions doing engine swaps. In the 80s and 90s, lowered cars and mini trucks were the big thing. I was "the guy" in the neighborhood with a floor jack and jackstands so I got tapped to chop coil springs, install lowering blocks, do spring-under jobs, etc.
I rarely drink...same for most of the dudes that I hung out with. When we were focused on a project, if there was a screw up, we only had our own incompetence to blame.

Not really; since there was another posting about "mopars being someone's worst investment".
Well they're "supposed" to be satisfying, UNTIL some realize they're "over their head" wrt the work involved/money needed to finish them.
Shame, not many years ago it was very possible to have a "nice" vintage car to drive/enjoy, without going into deep-debt.
With paint prices today, and finding a good reasonable $$ shop, they've climbed to high on the "elitist ladder" for many, especially for the "younger" crowd wanting to get involved.

It is about 50/50 with me whether I get more done on my own or when friends are over. Sometimes we get things done quick and right, sometimes we get drunk and tell too many stories then the night it over and nothing got done! Both are good times though...

To be honest, I prefer to have a buddy over. I have lived with a repaired detached retina most of my life and about 5 years ago a torn one in the other eye. Both were fixed but bad floaters. Basically, my eyesight sucks. I need huge amounts of light to see stuff and it has really affected my confidence. When I walk I now find myself looking down non-stop. Some of that is due to cataract surgery with the near/far thing, but I like my car buddies and they are more knowledgeable than me. They also seem to have a lot more patience which helps me stay calmer also.

One of my buds calls it "Shop Therapy".

Local guys bring their Mopars over to my shop in the winter to work on them since I have heated floors. Beats busting their nuts off in an unheated garage at home. Last year I helped with a RR project, this winter I helped with a Dart project. I like the company and I can usually help move the projects along since I have a big stash of Mopar parts sitting on the shelf.

At the moment a guy has his Buick in my shop since it doesn't fit in the garage at his house. He comes over and works on it once a week. We chat while we work and then usually go grab some lunch.

The 2 people I would welcome their help, have their projects to handle, or are 75 miles round trip away. Hence, since 1978, I have wrenched solo.

For me, it really depends on what we may be doing as the project of the day. Some things I really need to pay undivided attention to, and other projects are more laid back. I suppose the urgency of the project moving forward in the shortest time also plays a big effect on weather I want help or not.

There are a few guys I can work well with, but those guys understand how my mind works. I do not multitask. I'm the one thing at a time guy. If I have to lay out a plan for someone else, and a plan for myself, we would tend to do whatever the other guy's part of the project is, but if they know what they need to do, then we can both get something done. If I need to help them, I tend to teach them things along the way.

My son and I have become pretty good at working together (its taken years to get to this point). He is a great welder, but just can't fully grasp the process of a custom fabrication project. When we work together, I guide him on how to make patterns, and help him lay them out on the metal to cut, then he does the cutting. Then I guide him in the metal bending process, and he will bend the metal, and is getting really good at the final metal fitting and the welding. We are gaining on making stuff pretty. We set up projects as a 2-3 day process because his time is limited, and we usually accomplish the mission in the given time. As he is gaining in experience, we find more time to talk as we work, but that talk time has to be after I have done the part I need to do, and while he does his part. He can multitask pretty well, and he knows I can't.

^^^

My friend Mike who is (was?) on here as "'THESHAKERPROJECT" is major to have come over to help. He's done some extremely nice restoration work and has experience with areas of the car that I don't. He's also a good motivator for pushing through what seems like a never-ending project to get The MoPig running again.

Another friend who I've known for decades has offered to come over to help multiple times. However, my best recollection of how he works on his own cars is he's more of a "slap it on and call it good" type of hot rodder. I know I'm not a fast wrench, but I don't wanna build build junk, either. I've yet to take him up on the offer simply cuz I can imagine a clash of personalities on how things get done.

I know a dude that puts parts on cars that came straight from the junkyard....dirt, grease and whatever else that was still on it, even the yellow marking paint the clerk puts on for warranty returns.

He is a very giving and helpful guy but can be a real sloppy guy at times.

Attention to detail are paramount to me, therefore I work alone most of the time.

I used to love working on my cars, and helping other people work on theirs. I never really had a preference as to what kind of work I wanted to do alone vs. with other people. For me, it was more of a timing thing, like "Today, I'd like to just be in the garage by myself and goof around with the car."

I think working in the collision repair side of my industry for so long, being in shops all day every day, dealing with repair problem and after repair problem, really took the fun out of the hobby for me over time. I don't really have any interest in working on cars anymore. I enjoy looking at them, and am considering buying another old car or new Challenger or Camaro, but I'm not sure I will. I miss the enjoyment the hobby used to bring me, but that hasn't proven to be enough to get me back into it like I was 10 years ago. We sold my wife's 64, my Trans Am, all of the extra parts, etc. I still have my 82 F250, but that's just a work truck, and I'm likely selling that in the spring anyway.

I'm grateful the hobby still exists, and I hope it does for a long time.

Sometimes having help in the garage becomes help drinking beer and nothing gets done. And sometimes that's OK. BUT there is no way I could have built the Filthy '56 without the help my friends offered. It waw as much fun as driving the car when done.
Here's one of my favorite build pics in the garage, My comedian "Chevy Guy" brother's Bowtie mock-up of the motor mount and the finished project. It was a blast figuring out the challenges with this gang

I'm inherently lazy. So, if I'm going to spend time doing something.... I do it once - correctly. If possible, I'll even try to future proof it if possible to prevent subsequent failure. I missed my calling as an Engineer.
I don't know what it is.... maybe because I don't have BEER at my place, people rarely come around to help. Thing is, I prefer a slight distraction be it somebody to talk to or listening to music. Occasionally, a spare set of hands is very welcome.

However, to the flip side of that.... a LOT of people call upon me to come help with their projects. I've helped one friend build 1.5 Willys trucks.... helped another friend completely disassemble a Gremlin and harvest it for parts (former V8 Gremlin but far, far too rusty to even consider any kind of restoration).

You are the only other person I have ever heard say that.