> We seem to be leaving the Industrial Age in the dust. I wouldn't say that. My take is that producing small metalic pieces is such a trivial task nowadays tha

> We seem to be leaving the Industrial Age in the dust. I wouldn't say that. My take is that producing small metalic pieces is such a trivial task nowadays that it makes far more sense to subcontract this instead of maintaining a full blown factory. I know people in aerospace that can order custom pieces with tight tolerances in whatever alloy they choose, choose the production method and treatments, and get those pieces delivered to their doorstep in a matter of days. A Meccano set doesn't even come near regarding demand and tolerances, and I'm sure that it can be as expensive to assemble as plain old nails, and requiring far less specialized equipment.