Hiya Ronnie, the skills can all be learnt, same as the ones needed for roadster building. Lots of colleges do evening classes, a lot of lecturers seem to be keen model engineers. I don't know if a magazine called "model engineer's workshop" is still around but if it is it's a great place to start as it's aimed at beginners and has lots of very good photos showing workshop practices. My first love is steam, I would love a full size engine but my garage aint big enough
I would like to build a 3 or 4 inch Burrell one day but deep pockets are required.
All the best and all that