kbrown it all depends upon your employer and the current projects he might have. Townhouses/condos will not strain you too much. Especially "low rise townhouses" as you stated you will be starting with, no real difference from residential there....if it is three stories or less.

Just show up on time and do what the foreman tells you to do...yes the new guys end up doing all the dirty jobs...but they also end up doing all the mindless rote jobs that involve no real effort just mind numbing repetition.

Also I have to disagree with some of the comments made above, as a leadman it is my job to train you to do the job I need you to do. I will show you how to bend conduit and teach you the basic "rules of thumb" for doing it. I will teach you phaseing and explain the conductor color codeing we use. If you ask me any kind of semi-intelligent question I will take a few minutes to try to answer/explain it to you.

Yeah you don't know jack about the trade, but then again neither did I in 1981...doesn't mean I have to lord it over you or have fun at your expense now. I came up in the trade in that atmosphere and if it wasn't for a couple of guys who actually tried to help I wouldn't be here now. Don't let the previous answers discourage you, we aren't all like that. But make no mistake that it is hard (very hard sometimes) work and that you need a fairly good I.Q. to excell at it.