Topic: Would you say that drafting rules taught in classroom still apply?

[CADaver]

My my, the moderators have been busy  :kewl: . . .

Yes, sinc had an excellent suggestion . . .

Yup, excellent... LOT better than the food......

[Josh Nieman]

We HAVE at last minute before scanning in full size prints, noticed a problem, and used white-out tape, or cut out and taped a correct detail/note text/whatever on to the sheet... which I don't see a problem with, these days (so long as you take proper steps to make sure that error is fixed in the DWG as well) because it helps meet those deadlines that loom at mere minutes away at times when you can't wait for more full size prints.  But in schooling, the drill sergeant would have had our heads if we tried cutting a corner like that.  I believe that's the best way to learn, though... learn the hardest way, so you're prepared for any situation you may be hired into.

Around here a corner cut like that will get you knee-capped.  If you don't have time to do it right, you certainly won't have time to "fix" it later.  Doing it "wrong", then doing it right later, takes a lot longer than just doing it right.

Sorry, have to disagree there...  Just because I don't have time to do it the proper way at a certain moment (as in having to get the plans in the mail before 5pm pickup while it's 4:55pm already) it does not, at all, in any way, mean that I won't have time to stay late, after the "rigged up" drawings are sent out, to go and make the proper and necessary changes to ensure the drawings are done properly.

I agree it's not ideal... but I don't know how your life goes, but most of the time "ideal" doesn't describe mine 

[Dinosaur]

I understand your dilemma there Josh.  Sometimes there is nothing you can do except hold your nose and choose one undesirable choice over others that are all worse.  At some point any furher debate will render all choices moot.  In a perfect world the project would be finished well in advance, but if it WERE so there would be one less way to measure how well we do when the well known substance hits the porcelain convenience.

[Josh Nieman]

I do have to say though... the more memories of my hand drafting classes I have... the more I wish that I could have been born maybe 20 years earlier to be able to experience the career during those times.  I still, to this day, think I got more satisfaction out of the measly single-part mechanical hand drawings I did through my education, than I do any CAD drawing.  I get more satisfaction out of the design, and the 3d models, I would say... but when it comes to looking at the next-to-final product (paper drawings) I still get a feeling of "good enough" nowadays rather than an explosive burst of pride and exuberance that I did when I finished a good hand-drawn sheet.

[Bob Garner]

Careful what you wish for there, Josh,

I was born into early board drafting, and while it can be very satisfying using the tools, it was also a pain to prepare full note sheets.  Then discover a major error in the notes.

Bob

[Josh Nieman]

I understand the pains with the pleasures, which is why I wouldn't wish to have to do it for my whole career... it's just an experience I think I would get a lot out of.

[Dinosaur]

Ah . . . "fond" memories of one of my more interesting hand projects.  We were platting a half section minus 4 parcels for substations adjoining the old Denver airport.  Everything surrounding had special deed calls.  This plat was 4 plan sheets with a fifth dedicated to the description and dedications and it ALL had to be original ink on mylar with all annotation using a Leroy set with the prescribed size and slants.  That notorious fifth sheet was to be composed entirely using the140 template at maximum slant with sentence style capitalization.  I was quite happy to take the 4 plat sheets and leave the other to my Leroy hating coworker who spent an entire week cussing and fuming about his assignment.

I actively resisted the idea of switching to AutoCAD through the early versions because the only results I had seen were these sterile looking drawings of only one pen weight and that hideous txt font.  They had none of the qualities I had learned and maintained up to that point.  I finally saw a drawing whose creator had taken the time to duplicate the quality of work I was accustomed to and was hooked.

[LE]

What a good memories those days were! - I did from 1972-1981 all about hand drafting production, then pc came and spent 50-50% drafting parts in the cad program and the other finished by hand until 1986 if I remember right... since 1986 it is all about using the CAD stuff... But I still do some of my work by hand drafting... the rules of drafting today as has been said are more of personal style, dedication and love of what you do... In the early days when I started I did a lot of Civil work, and a letter size drawing including a single lot layout, that was used for the sales persons, was paid at 20 US dollars it was a lot of money back in 1976 (at least for me)... a sheet including a residential subdivision project with the lots and all the dimensions was paid at 800-1200 us dollars, if you were doing sections for road designs or streets, the kilometer was paid at 60 dollars, I used to do 10-12 kilometers a week, all the work in a millimeter paper, using the 60-80-120 Leroy lettering rules and the graphos...

Here are some of the tools I used on those days:

[CADaver]

(as in having to get the plans in the mail before 5pm pickup while it's 4:55pm already)

I've been doing this a long time, so humor me here.  What is it you can do by hand in five minutes you can't do fatser with the computer and re-plot??

[Josh Nieman]

(as in having to get the plans in the mail before 5pm pickup while it's 4:55pm already)

I've been doing this a long time, so humor me here.  What is it you can do by hand in five minutes you can't do fatser with the computer and re-plot??

We have to send out 24x36 prints out.  We don't have a large format printer.

I understand you have a great deal of experience and I tend to listen and learn from it.  Just sayin' that this is probably an exception case.

[CottageCGirl]

I'm just glad I don't have to tape pennies to the bottom of any of the tools I use now.......

[Dinosaur]

I'm just glad I don't have to tape pennies to the bottom of any of the tools I use now.......

Those are much to thick . . . I always used strips of Chartpack tape underneath the templates

[CottageCGirl]

I'm just glad I don't have to tape pennies to the bottom of any of the tools I use now.......

Those are much to thick . . . I always used strips of Chartpack tape underneath the templates

in college...pennies were cheaper...

[Krushert]

I suck at lettering and my "drill sergeant" was very particular on the lettering.  I was getting killed in grade point wise.  What save me was that I was my linework that in it self was excellent with being one of the faster students.   

All I have to say is thank god for cad or I would be wash cars.  I am glad that those days are gone.

Anyhow, I dont measure distance to the dimension but I keep them close to the objects.

Our text is all caps and RomanS.  I keep my text and leaders neatly spaced which I can not say for my office coworkers.  Me Pappy always said "Stack the wood pile straight and neat no matter if that wood pile is along side the road or 300 yrds in the woods where no one can see it."

Interesting that you stated Archies use lowercase in their drawing notes.  One of the archies and I butted heads recently.  He stated that drafting standards across all disciplines stated that all text had to be caps.  I said bull and hauled out trusting drafting manual and showed him lowercase and he said that did not count becuase that was an instructional book not a "standard".  He was just being pain Knotheaded.  Any body have an industry standard (or point me to one) so that I can shove up his *cough* nose?    :pissed:

[Maverick®]

  I had a very grumpy framing foreman who set me straight on the difference between a lumber "pile" and a lumber "stack".  I thought he was a major tool but..... I remembered it.