Have a knack for building things, an interest in constructing models, or enjoy tinkering with machines? Then the practical guide <i>Model Making, Including Workshop Practice, Design and Construction of Models: A Practical Treatise for the Amateur and Professional Mechanic</i> should be a part of your book collection. Raymond Yates was the editor of <i>Everyday Engineering Magazine</i>, a perfect position from which to give advice and instruction.<br><br>This guide is for people who like to build and engineer everything from models, cranes, guns, boats, trains, engines and a host of other things that require model-making. As Yates points out on the very first page, model-making is really "model engineering - engineering in miniature." That's why the book is equally useful for hobbyists and professionals and anyone with skill sets in between. <br><br>The first chapter describes everything you would need to set up a perfect workshop, from lighting and heating to the essential pieces of equipment. Subsequent early chapters are devoted to specific skills - such as lathe work, drilling, soldering, working with steel, abrasives, pattern-making and electroplating. The drawings accompanying this section really amplify the instructions, as Yates shows the reader what a good lathe looks like compared to a damaged one, for example.<br>The next chapters deal with different engines, including a side-crank steam engine, and twin and single-cylinder engines. Mechanics and aspiring mechanics will really enjoy the drawings and explanation of how these machines work. Model trains enthusiasts will get a lot of information from these chapters as well.<br>The book then covers flash steam plants and their uses in model airplanes, followed by steam turbines and boilers, submarines, cranes, hoists, gyroscopes, tanks and guns. These chapters contain everything a hobbyist would want to know to create accurate and working model trains, related machines and general scenes. Yates explains that each model works if it is made precisely to the specifications outlined in the book.<br><br>There are 300 drawings and photographs of the models and machines in the text. The book's strength is explaining how to do certain tasks and how to make certain things in specific, easy to understand terms with accompanying photos and drawings. For example, the drawing of a properly completed model boiler both teaches the reader how a real boiler works and how a properly constructed model should look after it is complete.<br><br><i>Model Making, Including Workshop Practice, Design and Construction of Models: A Practical Treatise for the Amateur and Professional Mechanic</i> is a must-read if you enjoy model-making, engineering, mechanical instruments, design and for general interest.