Accuracy

Of course the dimensions on a drawing must be accurate. It is, however, a very easy matter to make errors. To insure accuracy a figure must never be put down carelessly, and a constant watch must be kept that scaled figures add up to over-all dimensions. It will not do to rely upon scaling alone, as a very slight variation from exact scale may throw two dimensions out with each other. In spite of all the care that can be exercised errors will creep in, and a final thorough checking must be given a drawing before it is pronounced complete. A good rule to follow in checking up is to "assume everything wrong until it is proved to be right".

Clearness

As in the line drawing itself, there must be absolute clearness of instruction by the dimensions. Any doubt as to what a figure is, or what it means, rules out that figure as part of the drawing. If a piece is made wrong because doubt of this character is transmitted to the workman, the draftsman is always held responsible for the error.

Figures should, in all cases, be placed where they can be most clearly read. They should be bunched on a single view as far as possible, but not when greater clearness demands that another view be used. It hinders the reading of a drawing materially if the eye is forced to jump over large spaces of the sheet from view to view, to catch the several dimensions of a small detail. Usually it is easy to so group figures as to avoid this.

It is a good plan to keep dimensions off the body of the drawing, when it can be done so conveniently. It is not worth while, however, to go out of one's way to do this, as figures in the open spaces of a detail do not at all destroy its clearness.

Extended notes on a drawing to make it clear should not be required, but they should be used without hesitation if any doubt exists. An explicit note of instruction is the final resource for clearness when the art of drawing fails of its purpose, as it sometimes does.

Completeness

A detail is completely dimensioned when it shows all the figures necessary for the workman. Anything short of this is incompleteness. As modern shops hold the draftsman solely responsible for the design, the mechanic is not allowed to modify it by filling in any omitted dimensions. The only way to be sure that all the dimensions are on is to systematically go all around a piece inside and out, according to the method suggested under the paragraph on "System".

It is a good plan to always bear in mind that not only the machinist is to use the drawing, but also the pattern maker. For the benefit of the latter, special attention is desirable in figuring the cores. This saves him some addition and subtraction. In general, it has been found that less chance of error exists if mathematical work is not required of the shopman, all necessary data being furnished on the face of the drawing.

Character

By character in figures and letters is meant uniform style, height, and slope, and a certain boldness peculiar to the work of the expert draftsman. The last is difficult for the novice to acquire. The student should not be discouraged because his efforts do not look like impressions from printers' type. Artistic excellence is the result of long experience, but is based on character. If the student can once get character into his work, the artistic feature will, with careful and constant practice, gradually develop. It is safe to say that there is no one element of a drawing which more positively stamps it as the work of an amateur than the character of the lettering, and every attention should be paid to getting out of the apprenticeship stage in this respect. Freehand lettering only is permitted in the drawings illustrated herewith. Ruled letters are seldom found on any working drawings, as the element of time involved is so great that few shops are willing to pay for it.

Uniform style requires that if capitals only are used in titles, they only must be used in notes and elsewhere on the drawing. If lower-case letters are used, they must be used in every part of the drawing. One style should not be mixed with another. The height of the letters should be limited by two horizontal lines, and though practice may render the upper line unnecessary, it takes but an instant to draw it, and uniform height is then assured. A good height for titles of details such as are illustrated is 7/32 inch. The height once chosen should be adhered to throughout the whole set. A medium, not a hard, grade of pencil (3H) will give the hand greater freedom. A great temptation exists to omit titles from the pencil drawing, simply inking them on the tracing. This is false economy of time, for in the end it will be found that enough time will be saved by the certainty with which the tracing can be made to more than pay for the labor on the pencil drawing. Again, it permits the tracing, in regular shop practice, to be made by cheaper labor than that which produced the pencil drawing.

Uniform slope is most easily acquired by the use of guide lines put in at frequent intervals. A small wooden triangle can be made, giving the required angle. The angle of the letters shown on the plates is 9 degrees, or about 1-inch slope in 6 inches. The question as to whether letters should incline backwards, forwards, or stand vertical, does not enter this discussion. Character is not affected by the slope. The student may choose whatever comes most natural to him, but having chosen, the character of his work will be spoiled if he varies it. The most difficult of the three is the vertical style; hence most draftsmen incline their letters. The backward slope is used on the plates of this shop drawing paper, thus giving the student opportunity to compare with plates in the earlier books, and follow his preference.

The effect of change of style, height, and slope is shown in Fig. 122. Attention is called to Fig. 123, which is a sample title, in which these points are corrected.