Tools for a Mechanical Engineering Student?

[afazz]

I'll pile on the bandwagon for a good 6" caliper (I prefer dial, but most of my peers prefer Mitutoyo Digimatic) and a hard copy of the Machinery's Handbook. I'm a mechanical engineer turned production manager, and I use both all the time. The different mechanical engineering career path options are endless, but it sounds like he has some hands-on ability and will likely end up in a role that uses these tools.

I will also recommend Formula SAE or a good Baja team. These are GREAT programs, I cannot recommend them strongly enough.

 

[logical]

Slacks and maybe some dress shirts

Haters gonna hate.

People with mechanical engineering degrees do everything from wrench on equipment to design and test products and yes some ride a desk.

I've done all those and more in 31 years in the car and heavy truck business. The digital caliper is the perfect suggestion. Most any mechanical engineer needs one at some point even if, God forbid, he dresses well.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

As an engineer a dial caliper is a good idea as is a 6" flexible steel rule and small tape measure. Another idea is a tool roll with adjustable wrenches and bit driver. Tools that will fit in a desk drawer or laptop computer case and be good enough to get by.
In labs and shops access to tools is usually pretty good. It's stuff in the office and quick visit, look see situations that no-one is prepared for.

 

[jpinca]

Vintage vernier caliper or slide rule with engraving or message: "the most important tool is between your ears. "

 

[rice rocket]

Vintage vernier caliper or slide rule with engraving or message: "the most important tool is between your ears. "

You mean legs, right?

 

[GCncsuHD]

You know, thinking of this thread, 10 years later, I am working next to the engineer I did my internship under the summer of my sophomore year in college. That ******* never gave me anything.

 

[bcradio]

Haters gonna hate.

People with mechanical engineering degrees do everything from wrench on equipment to design and test products and yes some ride a desk.

I've done all those and more in 31 years in the car and heavy truck business. The digital caliper is the perfect suggestion. Most any mechanical engineer needs one at some point even if, God forbid, he dresses well.

And some people are actually realistic about what an ME will likely use in pretty much any job they go into. Even if it isn't used daily.

Caliper.... mmmm.... may or may not get used.

 

[HanShotFirst]

Mechanical engineer...

Propeller hat, pocket protector, 4" dial caliper

 

[goodysgotacuda]

Haters gonna hate.

People with mechanical engineering degrees do everything from wrench on equipment to design and test products and yes some ride a desk.

I've done all those and more in 31 years in the car and heavy truck business. The digital caliper is the perfect suggestion. Most any mechanical engineer needs one at some point even if, God forbid, he dresses well.

True, ME here and even a dress-shirt wearing chump like me can out-wrench most people here. My previous life was a BMW Master Technician [UTI grad, BMW STEP grad]. I do nerd-engineering work, part design, programming and concept development, manufacturing and testing on 65,000lb tractor-trailers [Yes, I have a Class A CDL for work too].....and I use a digital caliper rather frequently.


Now where's my propeller hat and pocket-protector?

 

[oldtools]

1 - machinery handbook
2 - micrometer: It bridge both the machining and automotive world. He can use it to measure the disc brake thickness.

 

[VoodooCLD]

Engineer here. I would have loved it if someone gave me a 6" mitutoyo digital caliper.
Even in my purely design roles i'd use them.

 

[finn]

Any measurement equipment not metric capable will likely sit unused in the back of a drawer if he intends on pursuing a career in the auto industry.

As an engineer, it is unlikely that he will personally be making hands on precision measurements on the job. That work is usually handled by support people, i.e. technicians.

It would be nice to have the equipment for personal use, though.

 

[Outlawmws]

A slide rule in a glass picture frame labeled; "in Case of Emergency Break Glass."

Seriously, Another vote for the Machinery's Handbook. The most used reference ever IMO, & experience.

 

[zkling]

Haters gonna hate.

People with mechanical engineering degrees do everything from wrench on equipment to design and test products and yes some ride a desk.

I've done all those and more in 31 years in the car and heavy truck business. The digital caliper is the perfect suggestion. Most any mechanical engineer needs one at some point even if, God forbid, he dresses well.

Yes, but for a student of a real bsme program. No tools outside of a not too powerful calculator are needed for the curriculum.

I would recommend a good dmm, 6" calipers and a 0-1" mic. Although a tig welder could be super handy.

 

[logical]

Yes, but for a student of a real bsme program. No tools outside of a not too powerful calculator are needed for the curriculum.

I would recommend a good dmm, 6" calipers and a 0-1" mic. Although a tig welder could be super handy.

I can't tell if you are agreeing, disagreeing, or just quoting me by mistake. Regardless, a tig welder is not the answer here.

Get a digital caliper, don't engrave it unless you're having ******* with the guy, if you want to personalize it have a trophy shop make a plaque with "presented to "his name" by "your name", the date" and fix it to the case.

 

[justanengineer]

Any measurement equipment not metric capable will likely sit unused in the back of a drawer if he intends on pursuing a career in the auto industry.

I disagree, within a year or two most engineers can convert these small distances in their head just as a tradesman would. Realistically, distance conversion is pretty easy compared to what most do daily with pressure, flow, power, etc.

If you want someone to keep and cherish a measuring tool, dont get them anything digital. Digitals get used and tossed, dials like verniers get used and rebuilt virtually forever. I've got several dial calipers that are likely older than most posting on this forum.

 

[zkling]

I can't tell if you are agreeing, disagreeing, or just quoting me by mistake. Regardless, a tig welder is not the answer here.

Get a digital caliper, don't engrave it unless you're having ******* with the guy, if you want to personalize it have a trophy shop make a plaque with "presented to "his name" by "your name", the date" and fix it to the case.

I don't understand why you are confused. In a modern bsme program a pair of calipers or even a mic is no more useful than a welder. The fact the guy is a bsme student is basically irrelevant. What we need to focus on here is his hobbies.

The best thing he could buy a newer student short of a lap top or tablet is a ti-89 and a gift card for books. IMHO that comes from rather recent experience.

 

[goodysgotacuda]

I don't understand why you are confused. In a modern bsme program a pair of calipers or even a mic is no more useful than a welder. The fact the guy is a bsme student is basically irrelevant. What we need to focus on here is his hobbies.



The best thing he could buy a newer student short of a lap top or tablet is a ti-89 and a gift card for books. IMHO that comes from rather recent experience.

Ti-NSPIRE is where it's at, Ti-89s are out of date.

 

[logical]

I don't understand why you are confused. In a modern bsme program a pair of calipers or even a mic is no more useful than a welder. The fact the guy is a bsme student is basically irrelevant. What we need to focus on here is his hobbies.

The best thing he could buy a newer student short of a lap top or tablet is a ti-89 and a gift card for books. IMHO that comes from rather recent experience.

His hobbies? This is a gift to commemorate his engineering internship. I understand that a calculator will get more immediate use but it will also be outdated in 10 years or less and I'm willing to bet the kid already owns one. I understand that not all engineers will use a caliper often but most mechanical engineers I know use one often enough that they own one or occasionally need to borrow one.

I assume by now the OP has purchased a digital caliper for the young man, presented it and they have both moved on with their lives. I think I will as well.

 

[rlitman]

I understand that not all engineers will use a caliper often but most mechanical engineers I know use one often enough that they own one or occasionally need to borrow one.

Even if you're not using a caliper to measure objects with regularity, you can use the inside measuring points to measure distance between points on scaled drawings. I'll bet it would see this use more than anything.

 

[logical]

Even if you're not using a caliper to measure objects with regularity, you can use the inside measuring points to measure distance between points on scaled drawings. I'll bet it would see this use more than anything.

That may still happen, I'm sure it does in many industries but I haven't seen a full size (or even reduced size) scalable drawing of an automotive or heavy truck body panel since the late 1980's. In the early dates of CAD design, full size (or maybe 1/2 scale) drawings were still done and plotted on heavy Mylar stock, mainly because at that time many tool shops and manufacturers were not yet fully capable of using CAD data directly to cut models, cut tools or do inspection. These days, drawings are just a reference document to call out tolerances, hole sizes, material, performance & finish specs, etc. CAD data can be pulled up on a laptop, tablet, or in limited cases even a phone and dimensions can be pulled in seconds.

Again, no doubt it varies by industry and admittedly my role today is to manage engineers & program managers, but I also train and mentor them so I haven't drifted too far into the clouds of management....... but the most likely time for me to pull out my calipers are just to measure a small part or fastener. If we are having a build issue I might measure hole sizes or distances between features on several parts to try to understand what isn't right. We often need to designate around existing carryover parts or standard fasteners and we might take some rough dimensions of a sample to sketch up a few concepts. The other time I use mine or see my engineers go for theirs is at a tool trial, measuring sample part thickness, molded features, etc. to give direction for the initial tune in of the tools and equipment.

Its just one of those things at least in the automotive business. Nobody asks an engineer "do you have calipers?". Of course he does, maybe not with him (or her. Could be a chick I guess) but any good one has one, and a steel rule, in his desk or laptop bag.

 

[Adam.C]

I use my digical weekly. I have used it recently to scale vendor drawings. Beats using a proper scale. I've used it to reverse engineer parts, templates, etc so I could draw them in CAD. I also use mine to convert units. It's nice to have a sense for the actual size we are working with. Yes, you become familiar with certain sizes. But this method still beats using a calculator in my opinion (for some stuff).

Last, I really recommend my Wiha plastic digital caliper. The plastic jaws can't damage the finish on a delivered or finished part. The electronics are made in Switzerland (by Tesa?, I think so they do not eat batteries like the Chinese calipers). They are also light enough for a blazer pocket and raise no eyebrows thru airport security. These can be expensive ($50-60) but I paid less than $20 for mine. They don't deliver the same accuracy proper steel calipers so, but they can be good for some jobs.

 

[404]

Anything in Machinery handbook can be found online.

Software goes out of date the day it is bought.

I mostly use a 12 inch Starrett dial caliper and much more rarely micrometers 0-1, 1-2, 2-3.

I would not bother with a digital caliper since the basic design of any caliper is just not that accurate. Don't pay extra for the wood case, no one has enough room for all those cases.


http://www.starrett.com/metrology/product-detail?k=120-12

I don't have the depth rod, I think it gets too long and floppy. My caliper is from before the stylish black bezel ring.

 

[DonPowers]

Another ME here, have calipers and micrometers but use a 6" Starrett rule for most measuring and tool setup. Another thought would be a machinist square or combination square for setting up tools. Or tap and die set if he is into building things.

 

[Outlawmws]

Anything in Machinery handbook can be found online.

Sorry, but I disagree with that statement. There is more to MHB than specs and tables, and you can't easily get to those things by Google surfing.

Sometimes it's good to have THE BOOK, so you can just skim through sections to get to what you may never even think of look for on the internet. The computer geek concept that "books are obsolete", is pure arrogance IMO.

MHB is nearly 2500 pages of fine print data, formulas, recipes, explanations and information that cannot be had anywhere else so compactly.

 

[hangfirew8]

Anything in Machinery handbook can be found online.

Software goes out of date the day it is bought.

Really bad advice.

I've seen the consequences of pulling data off the net. Quoting Wikipedia at an after action, audit or investigation is worse than saying you pulled it out of your ***.

Online... without authority can be deadly. A paid subscription is OK.

All the major Design software comes with updates included for the term of the license or life of the major version. So much for your "day it is bought".


-HF

 

[logical]

So OP... did ya go with the welding helmet or the Taco Bell gift certificate?

 

[404]

Sorry, but I disagree with that statement. There is more to MHB than specs and tables, and you can't easily get to those things by Google surfing.

Sometimes it's good to have THE BOOK, so you can just skim through sections to get to what you may never even think of look for on the internet. The computer geek concept that "books are obsolete", is pure arrogance IMO.

MHB is nearly 2500 pages of fine print data, formulas, recipes, explanations and information that cannot be had anywhere else so compactly.

I do not think books are obsolete. MHB does indeed have lots of stuff. Question is, how much of that stuff is relevant for a generic starting out ME?

Will he be generating spiral bevel gears?

 

[404]

Really bad advice.

I've seen the consequences of pulling data off the net. Quoting Wikipedia at an after action, audit or investigation is worse than saying you pulled it out of your ***.

Online... without authority can be deadly. A paid subscription is OK.

All the major Design software comes with updates included for the term of the license or life of the major version. So much for your "day it is bought".


-HF

Design software in my experience mandates paying a yearly "maintenance" fee in order to qualify for upgrades. The university or employer will have a system in place already, and the new ME will be training on and using that system.

 

[Outlawmws]

I do not think books are obsolete. MHB does indeed have lots of stuff. Question is, how much of that stuff is relevant for a generic starting out ME?

Will he be generating spiral bevel gears?

How Much? You want to quantify it? That's not the point. It is the defacto standard of useful information for anyone in the ME field, or they are not really doing any real engineering, and they got the degree as a path to a different career.

What is useful is that almost anything is available for any ME that is taking his job seriously. Will they use it all? No, and no engineer will ever use everything in the book. Just as no engineer ever really uses every feature in a CAD system, or even something a basic as Excel, but every engineer will need to look something up, do research on a topic, you name it.

Heck I gave a duplicate copy to my son, and without being an engineer or even studying to be one, he's found uses for it.

 

[dr_clyde]

Well, I think we've decided on a 6" Mitutoyo dial caliper, a StrongHand 4 in 1 F clamp and a copy of Tom Lipton's book Metalworking: Sink or Swim.


I was torn about the digital versus dial caliper, and I decided that I would rather have something that didn't require batteries and could be an heirloom. I have my great grandfathers Mitutoyo 6" dial.

He's already got a a copy of machinery's handbook I gave him when he started working for me.

 

[Outlawmws]

Good choices!

 

[hifi_hokie]

Sorry, but I disagree with that statement. There is more to MHB than specs and tables, and you can't easily get to those things by Google surfing.

Sometimes it's good to have THE BOOK, so you can just skim through sections to get to what you may never even think of look for on the internet. The computer geek concept that "books are obsolete", is pure arrogance IMO.

MHB is nearly 2500 pages of fine print data, formulas, recipes, explanations and information that cannot be had anywhere else so compactly.

I have a MHB in PDF format. There is no way searching the hard copy is easier than Alt-F'ing around it.

I prefer reading hardcovers for pleasure, but for reference materials, I harbor no nostalgia

 

[Outlawmws]

I have a MHB in PDF format. There is no way searching the hard copy is easier than Alt-F'ing around it.

I prefer reading hardcovers for pleasure, but for reference materials, I harbor no nostalgia

That works great if you know what you are looking for; if you are stumbling around surfing then that has the same issue as Google and the internet.

I have a particular Service manual in PDF. I never use it for that reason.

 

[leg17]

Sorry, but I disagree with that statement. There is more to MHB than specs and tables, and you can't easily get to those things by Google surfing.

Sometimes it's good to have THE BOOK, so you can just skim through sections to get to what you may never even think of look for on the internet. The computer geek concept that "books are obsolete", is pure arrogance IMO.

MHB is nearly 2500 pages of fine print data, formulas, recipes, explanations and information that cannot be had anywhere else so compactly.

What he said in spades.

 

[hangfirew8]

I have a particular Service manual in PDF. I never use it for that reason.

Indexed, full text searchable PDF's are fabulous.

PDF's of image scanned pages are worse than paper.

 

[IndyGarage]

I'm an ME. Within an arms length of where I am right now:

1. HP 12C and 15C calculators - no fancy graphing stuff for me
2. Browne and Sharpe 6 inch digital calipers - probably 20 years old, but still work fine.
3. No fewer than 4 computers - Mac Laptop, desktop and Raspberry Pi - color printer and fujitsu scansnap scanner
4. Tivo
5. Enco Master catalogue - 2011 version, Northern tool sale catalogue
6. Safety glasses - about 4 pairs.
67 Leatherman wave set with AAA LED light and bit kit
7. Zoom H4 Handy recorder
8. Sony Digital camcorder
9. Heavy duty Bostich stapler - circa 1983 - accidentally absconded from engineering school lab - 3 hole punch and tape dispenser.
10. Neosporin for my many busted knuckles
11. Make Magazine - about 4 issues.
12. Bosch 12V impactor with Milwaukee bit kit and 1/4 inch socket adapter plus Stanley 1/4 socket set
13. Fluke multimeter
14. About a dozen multitools, small knives etc
15. Silhouette Cameo vinyl cutter plus several rolls of vinyl and accessories
16. Small can of Wd40
17. 1 shot Lettering enamel - Bright Red
18. Superlube synthetic grease
19. Medical shears, two pairs of scissors
20. Super glue - satellite city + accelerator, epoxy stick, household goop and fiberfix epoxy tape, permatex ultra black
21. Small tool kit for fixing watches and cell phones
22. Canon digital camera
23. Stanley 4 way screwdriver, several tape measures, milwaukee fastback
24 Various flashlights
25. About 2 dozen notebooks, sketchbooks, engineer notebooks.
26. About 100 pens, pencils, sharpies, highlighters and other marking tools.
27. Various glasses, magnifying glass, etc.
28. About 5 projects I'm working on right now.
29. Easy button
30. about 5 books I'm reading
31. about 2000 pieces of paper - most of which will never get looked at again.

Of that list here are the ones that I think might be a good idea:

Digital caliper is a good idea, but honestly my $20 harbor freight model works just as good as the $250 Browne and Sharpe does.

A good Fluke multimeter is actually a very necessary long-term tool. They are durable, useful and you can get a nice one in a $200 budget - plus a kit of extra wires and probes.

I also like the idea of a 12V impact tool plus a 1/4 inch socket adapter plus a small socket set - I use these all the time for taking things apart and putting them back together. I have a Bosch here at my desk, but I also have an identical Milwaukee and also a Makita version at various places, all used about the same way - driving screws and taking things apart with 1/4 inch sockets.

Another tool, which I have in my truck is a zyklop 1/4 ratchet and bit set - I also use that all the time in conjunction with a 12v impact tool.

That leatherman wave set - with the bit drivers and small AA LED flashlight in a nylon belt pouch is an incredibly useful tool set. It's not as fast as power tools, but you can get a lot done with it. I found the whole set on clearance, but I think the original price was about $89.

Hope this is helpful

 

[Spudland_Dave]

Indexed, full text searchable PDF's are fabulous.

PDF's of image scanned pages are worse than paper.

+1

If I have any choice...I buy PDF Manuals exclusively...As mentioned, easy as pie to search & find. Some are coming Full Color where the paper book is B&W. But another almost better feature is if I'm working on something I usually print out the pertinent pages...then just use em while I'm working on it with no regards to cleanliness...so what if I get grease smears or tears on a page I can re-print with ease.

When I'm using an old fashioned book,...take my nitrile gloves off, run over to my "Clean bench", flip around with care...run back to the car/truck/tractor/etc...

The "genuine" Searchable/indexed PDF's are the slickest things yet...but even scans of older manuals are better then a paper manual.

 

[Tallboy]

Good on you for getting him something to remember the internship by.

I get the desire to give something that will be cherished forever and dials fit that bill better than digitals. For practical use, as an engineer working in a production environment on equipment of mixed SAE/Metric, I find my digitals to be indispensable.

MHB is a good gift - cool that you got him one from the get go.

I talked the grad student teaching an intro to design class in our ME curriculum (after I'd taken the class) to require MHB to be the textbook, that way everyone had one for later life use.

I bought a kid that interned for us a set of Snap On screwdrivers for his gift. We hired him after graduation about 8 years ago - still uses the screwdrivers at home.

 

[GirchyGirchy]

+1 on a Mitutoyo digital caliper...perhaps one of the sealed versions like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CHR9YK6/?tag=atomicindus08-20