Office of Steam Forum for Model & Toy Steam Gas & Hot Air Engines

    I have always liked the old truism , that perfection is the enemy of good enough , or is it the other way around ? Anyway , I have found that truism to be true in the case of my hobby pursuits. When I was much younger, I would strive for perfection , but usually when I would get a project close to my satisfaction , I would work on it a little bit more to make it perfect , and end up worse off for it . Nowadays, at my advanced age , I no longer strive for perfection , but instead am satisfied with a high grade of good enough . I don't think that I have given up , but have just gotten wiser . Any thoughts ?

D. E. Jones

This June I will reach the 3rd time "full aged"... have I gotten wiser...? I'm not shure... 
As I'm collecting and restoring mainly vintage cast metal workshop accessories, I always strive for a high grade of autheticity and originality.
I have seen and I own some "perfect" restored workshop model machines... stripped down to bare metal, sanded, new paint, new nickel plating, polished... with one word "overrestored".
Most manufacturers back then did a good job, but they never invested time and effort to offer "perfect" models, it would have been too expensive and time wasting to get out this result.
If I wanted to collect "new" model machines, I would buy brandnew boxed WILESCO or MAMOD accessories... I don't own even one of them!
I like the vintage appearance and patina of the 100 to 150 years old model machines, the look of a machine that got a good maintenance over all the time but shows its history.
Restoring an old model machine I go into details, but no further than the manufacturer would have done.

Greetings from Solingen,Germany
Rainer