7 tools every mechanical engineer should have

As computer programs and mobile apps take over our lives, one of the great things about being a mechanical engineer is that there are still aspects of the job that allow — and sometimes require — us to do things by hand, the “old fashioned” way.

Image credit: ABB Motors and Mechanical

Granted, drafting boards and T-squares have been replaced by CAD programs, complex modeling and analysis is done in a matter a minutes with FEA software, and plug-and-play configuration programs have greatly reduced the number of iterations it takes to size and select a ball screw or linear bearing. But you can’t disassemble a gearbox without a bearing puller (at least, not easily and efficiently), and you can’t measure the ID of a radial bearing without a set of calipers.

So, for those times when you get to step away from the computer and phone and get back to hands-on engineering and design, here are seven tools that will make the job easier.

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