Before retiring my father was an engineer in Polytechnic University of Bucharest for most of his life. Since I was a little kid I knew how to solder electronics and how a resistor or a capacitor or a transistor or a transformer works but even so I never got to much in to it, just very small projects like converting microwave transformers to spot welders , working with ready made PCB kits like transformers, sound amplifiers, radio emitters and some other small hacks, so I can say that I can fallow steps as long as are documented enough and don t require other advance circuit design skills.
First time I ve got electrocuted at 220V was when I tried to fix a mechanically temporized extension socket we used for the TV before year 2000....I was about 12-14 years old at that time
About my father I can say that I remember now that wen I was little I used to go at the university were he had a big shop with mills and all kinds of tools and about 7-8 people working for him for all of his projects, about 18 years ago I ve seen there a human shaped robotic arm , drive by servos , that had also some sorts of fingers to catch things with, the thing was as big as a human arm and looked very heavy, I wish I wasen t a 12 years old dude at that time and preocupied more to improve my driving skills on the streets inside the campus
PS: I ve found an amazing video on youtube and I must say just watch it: