BY MATT SKOUFALOS
Jordan Schneider has always enjoyed working on machines. As a kid, it was bicycles, with his brother and a few friends; when they got their driver licenses, their focus turned to cars. Schneider’s labor didn’t come without its rewards, either: buying a vehicle and improving it also meant he could flip it for a profit.
“I worked part-time through college, and always drove something that needed a little bit of work,” Schneider said. “Over the years, it evolved into anything with an engine or wheels that people were getting rid of. Picking up a free lawnmower on the side of the road turned into friends and coworkers giving me snowblowers and lawnmowers. I learned how to make repairs, and clean and disassemble things.”
As he became father to his son, eight-year-old Jack, and daughters Madison (5) and Maleah (3), Schneider began including them in his repair jobs, and sharing the results with friends on Facebook. After a while, he started an Instagram account called “Schneider and Son,” modeled after the 1970s Redd Fox sitcom “Sanford and Son,” that featured videos of the reclamation projects Schneider tackled with his kids. As the audience grew, Schneider’s efforts led to a YouTube channel that now has some 4,000 subscribers.
“A former coworker gave me a Honda Odyssey that they were getting rid of,” he said. “Somewhere along the way, I fumbled into old ATVs, quads and three-wheelers; anything somewhat vintage. That spiraled into buying more projects.”
Schneider said his videos include tips and steps for the do-it-yourself (DIY) crowd, with an emphasis on small engines and fun. Neither he nor his children take themselves too seriously, and he feels good about helping educate his viewers while he entertains them. Sometimes the end results are sold off for funds to seed the next project; in other instances, Schneider is happy to hand off a working appliance like a lawnmower to someone who needs one. He described “an aspect of gratitude that goes into all this,” and the joy it brings him to get broken things working again.
“There’s been times where I feel really blessed by people who’ve given us different things,” Schneider said. “If I got a lawnmower for free, and somebody’s looking for one, I’ll pay it forward. It’s a fun little side hobby, more just for the journey, the story, and the experience of doing it together, and doing our videos.”
Currently, the family is in the process of fixing up an old Chevrolet truck; naturally, the soundtrack for garage work in Michigan is Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, and Schneider is happy to pay homage to the musician in his videos. He also enjoys a helping hand from family when it’s available.
“I always wanted to be like my brother, who is two years younger, because he could fix anything,” Schneider said. “He is an inspiration to me. He went to school for high-performance race engine machining, learned how to build race engines, and now he’s a machinist at MSU making parts for particle accelerators. We get a chance to work on things together, and it’s really fun.”
Schneider equally enjoys producing videos that feature his son’s work. He’s proud to leverage the opportunity of his own knowhow into teaching his children skills that they can lean on for the rest of their lives.
“When my son comes along on the buying and selling adventures, he’s getting a chance to learn life skills – negotiation, people skills, the exchange of value – and he’s becoming more entrepreneurial in the process,” Schneider said. “He’s learning hands-on things, and he’s learning business skills.
“We try to make it fun,” he said. “If we sell the item that we’re looking to sell, maybe we’ll get Slurpees or a chocolate milk. I’m trying to encourage them to enjoy the experience.”
Working in the garage together also doubles as family time with his kids, and Schneider believes that all three eventually will show some interest in repairing things.
“Sometimes they act more interested than other times, but it’s a good opportunity for them to do something together as a family, no matter what we’re doing,” he said. “We’re giving them an opportunity to see if they like to be hands-on. My youngest tends to be the one who will come over and hang out with me; right now it’s, ‘What’s dad working on today?’ ”
Schneider credits the downtime of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown with inspiring people to rediscover hobbies like automotive repair and the joy of working on simple machines. It feels like a bygone skill set that is nonetheless invaluable. His advice for repair novices is to start with online research and then build up hands-on experience slowly; he hopes his work will facilitate others trying to gain confidence in their abilities as well.
“I tackled projects that I didn’t think I could because I was encouraged to do this,” Schneider said. “Growing up, the people who were in my family and my network encouraged DIY fixes. It’ll be a skill that’s less and less common, to be able to work on things yourself, as we go more towards electric vehicles. And then it’ll be more of a hobby. But there’s always a need for this.”
When they’re not wrenching on cars, the Schneiders enjoy sports, travel, camping, participating in their church community, and spending time with their large extended family. Jack has some years before he’s ready to hit the road as a driver himself, but Jordan still holds out hope of flying out West or down South to buy an older car or truck to work on fixing together.
Find “Schneider and Son,” online at YouTube: @schneiderandson
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3EnCMGIwSqLUSlaYILlgxQ
Instagram: @schneiderandson
https://www.instagram.com/schneiderandson/?hl=en
