$600 a week would barely pay me bills... My last fly away job I was invocing over $6000 a week..
Not that I get good work like that often though... Friends of mine were on a job last year. $130p/h $800p/w lafha plus a few other perks.. and they spent 6 hours of their shift for the first few weeks playing cards.. while still getting paid.!!!

Never too old to change trades bud...
Mechanics is a great skill to have, but a horrid job to have to do day in day out...
I wont to change trades.. a freind not long ago changed from a chippy to a sparky and he's 30 somehing...