What Makes a Good Model Engineer?

Having thought about it over a glass of wine, it's clear that a good model engineer will need to commit all seven deadly sins:

• looking for easier ways to do things (sloth),
• getting cross with mistakes (anger),
• showing off the model (pride),
• wanting tools you don't need (lust),
• wanting that other blokes workshop (envy),
• generally wanting more and more stuff to play with (greed),
• ignoring the budget when buying tools at shows or on the web (gluttony).

Cheers,

Dave

I would suggest:- The ability to learn from our mistakes, so that we can make them even bigger and better next time.

Having an understanding wife...

Dave ( not so silly!)

Excellent ! The glass of wine obviously had a lubricating effect.

I will attempt to be a better " sinner" in the future!

Norman

ps.

About the only thing that "makes" me do anything. these days is my wife ! ( ....and I can't remember her insisting on anything.......... however she does seem to have some secret way of influencing my actions. In 50 years or so I've not quite figured out just how she does that )

Edited By NJH on 03/07/2016 21:00:54

'About the only thing that "makes" me do anything. these days is my wife ! ( ....and I can't remember her insisting on anything.......... however she does seem to have some secret way of influencing my actions. In 50 years or so I've not quite figured out just how she does that )

The unanswerable conundrum, it's in their genes... when you've proved yourself right & other people have confirmed the same you still ask yourself... I was right, why do I feel I've committed a terrible sin...

George.

Having known model engineers such as Don Young, Martin Evans, and Jim Ewins, and many who made parts for the trade, I would say that most really clever model engineers are an odd lot. Anti-social and introvert, difficult to get to know, and in some cases with challenging home lives.

In the club environment, some great guys depending on the club, who will do everything to encourage newcommers and help out.

I hope I follow the latter category!

Cheers,

Julian

I agree that you could argue it's a positive influence regardless of whether or not you're any good at it. It's one more interesting thing you didn't do yesterday.

Michael W

I think a hard hat and good sized spanner go a long way to making a good model engineer. The pen and the plastic pocket protector go a long way too.

I think a good model engineer is one who sticks to the main project and makes regular progress, not one (like me) who get distracted by other projects, while the main thing languishes, and is in danger of becoming yet another unfinished loco.

I take it the 5 o'clock shadow and bright orange duds are non obligatory? I know you said a good sized spanner but can a lego one count too? You see i've got an old pair of record stilsons up in the loft and i've probably got a lego one also and i was wondering which of the two would be better? 

Michael W

Edited By Michael Walters on 04/07/2016 06:16:08

Slept on this one last night !

No, my reply to this question, not the last respondent's wife !

I think a lot of fun can be had substituting 'our' words into Rudyard Kiplings poem " IF".

Always ending, " then you will be a model engineer my son (or daughter)" ,

A bit of basic common sense. The ability to look at a lathe which is a very simple machine (of the type MEs use) with hardly any moving parts and understand how it works so they don't break bits.

I think it depends how you define great. It's clear that there are people with outstanding abilities and others who are exceptional communicators/teachers and a very few who combine both.

But along with most (all?) of the posts here I think what really matters is the competition we have with ourselves - to do better, to solve problems and devise solutions and enjoy the satisfaction of making things that work.

Neil

Engineers t-shirt

Determination. Like anything else you do, if you're determined to do something, you'll find a way of doing it. Lots of people seeing things I've made say, "You must have lots of patience!" but they haven't seen me, with steam coming out of my ears, jumping up and down on the bit that's just turned out wrong...

Neville Shute's quote on the cover of "Trustee from the Toolroom" :

"An engineer is someone who can make for five bob what any bloody fool can make for a quid" pretty well sums it up for me.

Bert, I want a 'T' shirt like that, where did it come from.

Amazon sell them ...

Engineer: Someone who shapes materials which we don't fully understand into shapes which we can't properly analyse to resist forces which we can't fully define without anyone noticing.

The difference between Mechanical and Civile Engineers is that mechanicals build weapons, civils build targets

Patience: " I will make one of those one day" and 20 years later there it is. Colin