Basic Technical Drafting

Tools & Basic Drafting

DRAFTING TOOLS
 T Square
• A t-square is one of the
most basic drafting tools
• The primary purpose of
the t-square is to create
horizontal parallel lines
• T-squares are typically
wood with clear plastic
edges, but they can be
made of metal for cutting
 Instrument Drawing
Drawing Horizontal and Vertical Lines
To draw a horizontal line, press the head of the
T-square against the working edge of the board
with your left hand. Lean the pencil in the
direction of the line at an angle of approximately
60º and draw the line from left to right. While
drawing the line, rotate the pencil to distribute
the wear uniformly on the lead to maintain a
symmetrical point.

To draw a vertical line, press the head of the T-square

against the working edge of the board with your left hand
and place a triangle against the blade of the T-square.
Lean the pencil in the direction of the line at an angle of
approximately 60º and draw the line upward, rotating the
pencil to distribute the wear uniformly on the lead to
maintain a symmetrical point.
Parallel Straightedge/
Parallel Bar
• Replaces the t-square for
most applications
• Because it is wired down,
it cannot move
• The angle can be
adjusted and locked to
created parallel lines that
are not at the horizontal
 Compass
• Used to draw circles
and arcs
Using a Giant Bow Compass
Instrument Drawing
1. Set off the required radius on one of the center
lines.
2. Place the needle point at the exact intersection of
the center lines.
3. Adjust the compass to the required radius
4. Lean the compass in the direction that you are
going to draw the circle. Draw the circle in a
clockwise direction while rotating the handle
between the thumb and forefinger.
 Divider
• Used to transfer
dimensions
 Drafting Tape
• A specially-prepared
tape used to adhere
drawing media to
the working surface
Dusting Brush
• Used to brush loose
graphite and eraser
dust from a drawing
 Eraser
• Used to remove
pencil lines and
graphite smudges
from a drawing
Erasing Shield
• A metal plate with
various slots and
openings used to
protect line work
when a portion of
the drawing is to be
erased
 Irregular Curve
• Used to lay out any
noncircular curve
 Flexible Curve
• The flexi-curve is used as
a last resort when a
French curve cannot
approximate the curve
• Flexi-curves can also be
used to approximate a
curve in a rough drawing,
and then a French curve is
used to make the curve
accurate
 Protractor
• Used to measure
angles
 Triangle
• A thin, flat, right-
angled piece of
plastic or metal
with acute angles of
45, or 30 and 60
used for drawing
vertical or inclined
lines that are
multiples of 15
 Instrument Drawing
Triangles
Most inclined lines are drawn at standard
angles using the 45º x 45º triangle and
the 30º x 60º triangle.
In addition to drawing angles of 90º, 45º,
30º, and 60º, triangles can be combined
to draw angles of 15º increments.
 Template
• A thin, flat, plastic
tool with various
size openings of
different shapes
used to expedite
the drawing of
standard features
• Templates come in a variety of
scales and shapes
• Templates are used for common
shapes in design and can be found
to represent circles, ellipses,
squares, etc.
• Templates are typically done in
plan view, but can also have
section or elevation views
 Fixtures Template
• Templates indicate the scale in which
they are intended to be used
 Scale
• Used to measure
the length of a line
 Instrument Drawing
Scales
Scales are instruments
used in making technical
drawings full size or at a
given reduction or
enlargement.
The scale of 1:1 (read as one-to-one) implies the
object has been drawn to true size. A scale of say 2:1
(read as two-to-one) implies that the object has been
enlarged twice its true size. A scale of 1:2 (read
as one-to-two) implies that the object has been
reduced to its half size, etc.
Lead Pencil/Mechanical
Pencils
• Lead widths run from 0.03mm to
0.07mm
• Not as much control as the lead holder
• Pencil leads run from 10B (the softest
lead) to 10H (the hardest lead)
• 9B, 7B, 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB,
F, H, 2H, 3H, 4H, 5H, 6H, 7H, 8H, 9H
• Hard leads make very light lines, last a
long time, and also groove your vellum (9H
are 41.5% graphite, 53.5% clay and 5% wax)
• For more detail about pencil grade,
refer the following webpage:
http://www.jetpens.com/blog/picking-the-perfect-pencil-
hardness-grade/pt/475
Drawing Pencils
Instrument Drawing
High-quality drawing pencils should be used in technical drawing, never ordinary writing pencils.
Many makes of mechanical pencils are available together with refill leads in all grades. Choose a
mechanical pencil that feels comfortable in your hand.
 Instrument Drawing
Drawing Leads
The first consideration in the selection of a grade of lead is the type of line work required. For
light construction lines and guide lines for lettering use a hard lead. For all other line work, the
lines should be BLACK. The lead chosen should be soft enough to produce jet black lines but
hard enough not to smudge.

HARD MEDIUM SOFT

9H 8H 7H 6H 5H 4H
Hard leads are used where extreme
accuracy is required. Generally
these leads are used for construction
lines.
3H 2H H F HB B 2B 3B 4B 5B 6B 7B
Medium leads are used for general Soft leads are used for various kinds
purpose line work in technical of art work. These leads are too soft
drawing. to be useful in mechanical drafting.
 Rules for Maintenance and
Care of Drawing Tools &
Equipment
• Keep hands and • Do not hit scales and
equipment clean triangles on edges
• Keep all instruments • Do not overextend
clean and dry compasses and dividers
• Do no bend templates • Clean plastic tools with
sharply soap and water only
• Do not use templates or • Do not stick compasses
scales as straight edges and divider points into
for cutting tools scales and triangles
• Do not use templates as • Never sharpen leads
eraser shields over drawing or table
surface
BASIC DRAFTING
• Line work
• Lettering
• Sketching
• Sheet Layouts
• Dimensioning
Drawing Lead Applications
1. Line work
TASK LEAD GRADE LINE WEIGHT
CONSTRUCTION LINES 3H, 4H, 6H THIN, LIGHT
VISIBLE OBJECT LINES H, F, HB THICK, DARK
HIDDEN LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
CENTER LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
DIMENSION LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
EXTENSION LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
LEADER LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
CUTTING PLANE LINES H, F, HB THICK, DARK
PHANTOM LINES 2H, H THIN, DARK
LETTERING H, F, HB THIN, DARK
Pencil Drawing Techniques
1. Line work
A quality drawing is characterized by crisp black line work and lettering.
All finished pencil lines should be very dark. Construction lines should be made very light so
that they need not be erased when the drawing is completed.
Contrast in pencil lines should vary in the widths of the lines. Visible object lines should
contrast strongly with the thin lines of the drawing.
.
Lettering Techniques
2. Lettering Technique
Most engineering lettering is single-stroke
Gothic font. Lettering is drawn freehand
and are drawn within light horizontal
guidelines.
All lettering uses upper case letters. Lower
case letters are rarely used in technical
drawings. .

There are three aspects of good lettering:

proportions and forms of the letters,
composition and spacing, and practice.
There are six fundamental drawing strokes
and their directions in basic lettering.
Horizontal strokes are drawn from left to
right, vertical strokes are drawn from top to
bottom, and curved strokes are drawn
downward.
Upper-case letters &
Numerals
 Lower-case letters &
Numerals

The text’ s body height is about 2/3 the height of a capital letter.
 Can’t produce good
freehand lettering??
• USE : LETTERING
GUIDELINE DEVICES
• More details:
http://www.artoft
hecomicbook.com/
materials/lettering
-amesguide.htm
 4. Sheet Layouts
• Electrical/electronic draftsmen prepare the
following drawing for engineers, contractors,
manufacturers & other

Electrical & Electronic Drawing

/ schematic
diagrams

perspective
 4. Sheet Layouts
• Example: a complete set of electrical construction
drawings for an electrical system in a new building
consist of:
1. A plot plan showing the location of the building on the
property and all outside electrical wiring.
2. Floor plans showing the walls and partitions for each floor
level.
3. Block wiring Diagrams & schematic wiring diagrams
4. Control wiring schematic diagrams
5. Schedules, notes and large-scale detail on construction
drawings
A plot plan
Floor plan
Block wiring Diagrams & schematic
wiring diagrams
Control wiring schematic diagrams
Schedules, notes and large-scale
detail
 Paper size
-The ISO most recommended
paper sizes for technical
drawings are known as A-
FORMATS.. In the A-Format
series, the largest size is A0.

-The size of an A1 paper is half

the size of A0 while A2 is half the
size of A1 and so forth.
For technical drawings A4 is
considered to be the smallest
paper size.
 Title block

PAPER : A3, 297 x 420

LINE Type : h, hb