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Are there rules for crafting/modifying gear outside of the fabrication chambers from the CSC?
In the Core Rulebook under the Mechanics skill it says that "Unlike the narrower and more focused Engineer or Science skills, Mechanic does not allow a Traveller to build new devices or alter existing ones". This gives us an idea of which skills would be used for this purpose, but what about the time it takes, what it costs in materials, the equipment required, etc?
I'm curious if these rules are floating around somewhere that I've missed, or if anyone has hombrewed a crafting system for MgT2?
The 1e CSC suggested a cost for a first prototype of 2d6 times base cost with following items at base cost, but was silent on time increments. And no real discount for doing it yourself versus buying, but the 1e trade table was generous enough that if the GM let your party broker buy you parts out of speculative goods you'd still be okay if you could use the whole lot.
That x2d6 number comes out of an interesting but little used section on custom designing equipment, weapons or vehicles. The idea was you'd start with a base book design, then roll (separately) in each of four categories: cost, bulk, reliability and performance (though performance could rate several or many things, i.e. speed, range, and acceleration might all be checked separately for a vehicle). So your version could be better, worse or both than the standard book item.
Modifiers were +best relevant skill (solves the multi-skill requirement anyway), -1 per additional accessory, -3 per +2 applied elsewhere (so you could target an improvement you were after, likely in performance, but you might pay everywhere else), and there's a chart that gets you positive or negative percentile modifiers of those base numbers.
It might be worth tracking down if that sounds up your alley. Or if not, the very simple approach would be "prototype cost + tools + downtime = first working model."
Or you could go a completely different direction for a tinkerer type. Half base cost in parts, some considerable time requirement, and limit the number of weapons/drones/things they can keep functional at any one time to something like skill rank in Mechanic (or Electronics, or some other skill).
There are professions.
I'd say a gunsmith probably could customize guns, though you probably need mechanic and electronics, as well as a well stocked workshop.
If someone thought to take Profession - Gunsmith I'd certainly give them that skill for any use directly in their lane, even if it could fall under Mechanic or Electronics. Though it wouldn't give them the breadth those latter skills would. I'd even take a custom Science skill if someone thought to ask - bionics or cybernetics would be interesting on a doctor with decent Medic for instance.
The one time gunsmithing came up I went another direction entirely and used lower of Mechanic and Gun Combat - Slug Thrower. That worked for us because it qualified someone in the group without having to add any skills or retcon any skill choices. At the same time I thought laser weapons might be lower of Laser Weapon and Electronics (might by Electronics specialties totaled now in 2e), but we never went there.
