Re: Ah c'mon
He could have been, but never had the inclination to study.
Back when he owned his own digger, he decided that it 'wasn't right', that the balance of the upper section was off a little bit. He cut it off behind the cab and extended it about 4". That's a monumental welding job...
And yes, the balance was probably off, since the bearings in the join had been damaged once, already.
(On some machines you'll find TWO hitchpoints centered around the turning point. fasten chains there and it should be possible to lift the entire upper half of the machine without it tipping)
He also designed and built wood rowboats and small(up to 28') fishing vessels up until the 70s when fibreglass construction becaame too popular.