Module 3: Lettering

Skill in lettering is a basic requirement for a student in drawing. He must be exposed to

the lettering activities to orient him on the quality standard in printing letters.

Lettering is used as a form of communication. As applied in drawing, it adds beauty if it

is well-printed. Likewise, it can destroy the appearance of the drawing once it is not done well.
In engineering the inclusion of lettering/captions or labels in each technical drawing is a must, as
it makes the drawing more understandable.

The Four Group of Letters

1. Gothic Letters. They are the most simple and readable among the four group of letters. It
has a uniform stem. It should be applied only for poster and advertisement purposes.

Two forms of gothic letters:

 Commercial Gothic. It is printed with heavy stem. It is used for advertisement

purposes only.

 Single Stroke. It is printed with thin stem. It is used for engineering drawing
purposes.

2. Roman Letters. The thickness of these letters is not uniform. they have pointed stem
which is called “serif”. They must be used for books, magazine, newspapers, and text
matters.
 The Three Classics of Roman Letters:

 Old Roman Letters. They are printed by means of layout form using the flexible
lettering pen. The thickness of the thin stem must be ½ from the thickness of the
heavy stem.

 Modern Roman Letters. They are printed in single stroke using the speedball pen.

 Modified Roman. Similar to Modern Roman, they are printed in single stroke using
the speedball pen. However, this style must be printed in the absence of serif.

3. Spanish Script. It is considered as artistic letters. It is purposely used for certificates,

diplomas, citations, greetings and invitation cards.

4. Text or Old English. This style is the most artistic among the four groups of letters.
Similar to Spanish script, it is also used for certificates, diplomas, citations, greetings and
invitation cards.
The Rule of Stability of letters

This refers to the standard rules to be considered in printing the letters particularly on the
following:

1. Upper Case letters. They are letters which are printed in capital form. Three guidelines
are cap line, waist line, and base line.

Example

2. Lower Case Letters. These are the letters which are printed in small letters printed with
the use of four guidelines such as cap line, waist line, base line, and dropped line.

Example:

The General Proportion of Letters

1. Compressed or Condensed. This particular proportion should be applied only when the
space is limited. The letters are printed with closer distance and its width is narrower than
the normal size.
 Example:

2. Extended. This proportion is applied when there is a more space. The width of the letter
is wider than the height.

Example:

3. Normal. This proportion is applied when there is normal space. The letter is printed in
the normal size.

Example:

NORMAL
The Two Proportion of Thickness

1. Boldface. This refers to the letters which are printed with heavy stem.

Example:

BOLDFACE
 2. Lightface. This refers to the letters which are printed with thin stem.

Example:

Below are the suggested lettering tools and instruments and their uses:

1. Speed Ball - used in writing different various styles of letters

2. Lettering Brush - used for sign painting

3. Felt Point Pen - used for sign painting

4. Letter Template - used as guide for letter transfer

5. Letter Transfer - used to direct letter transfer

6. Pencil - used for lettering and sketching

7. Technical Pen - used for Gothic letters

8. Leroy Lettering Pen - used for engineering and architectural lettering

Order of Strokes in Lettering

The first letters that should be studied are I, L, T, F, E, H. These letters are the easiest to
draw because the basic strokes are vertical and horizontal. You should practice making these
letters according to the models.

The next group P, R, B, U and J requires close study because of the introduction of the
curved line aside from the three already given.

The last group of letters is C, G, O, Q, D and S which are based on the circle. The M and
W must be printed wider than the other letters. It is suggested therefore that its width should be
greater than the other letters by 25 percent. The letter I is the thinnest letter.

Making Numerals

All mechanical drawings involve the use of numerals; hence, they should be studied
closely. Notice that in the figures below are all 6 units and 5 units wide except 1. All figures are
composed of the essential strokes found in the letters which are straight and curved. See Figure
1.1