diff --git a/gpkitmodels/tools/qstr.py b/gpkitmodels/tools/qstr.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b0f14d81
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gpkitmodels/tools/qstr.py
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+from gpkit.small_scripts import mag
+
+def qstr(qty, fmtstr="%-.4g"):
+    'Converts a number/pint quantity to a nice string for display'
+    if hasattr(qty, "magnitude"):
+        magstr = fmt % qty.magnitude
+        unitstr = u" {:~}".format(qty.units)
+        if "dimensionless" in unitstr:  # boring and long way to put it
+            unitstr = ""
+        return magstr + unitstr
+    else:
+        return fmt % qty  # it's just a number