Mechanical Drawing Self-Taught.

by Joshua Rose.

PREFACE.

The object of this book is to enable the beginner to learn to make simple mechanical drawings without the aid of an instructor, and to create an interest in the subject by giving examples such as the machinist meets with in his every-day workshop practice. The plan of representing in many examples the pencil lines, and numbering the order in which they are marked, the author believes to possess great advantages for the learner, since it is the producing of the pencil lines that really proves the study, the inking in being merely a curtailed repet.i.tion of the pencilling. Similarly when the drawing of a piece, such, for example, as a fully developed screw thread, is shown fully developed from end to end, even though the pencil lines were all shown, yet the process of construction will be less clear than if the process of development be shown gradually along the drawing. Thus beginning at an end of the example the first pencil lines only may be shown, and as the pencilling progresses to the right-hand, the development may progress so that at the other or left-hand end, the finished inked in and shaded thread may be shown, and between these two ends will be found a part showing each stage of development of the thread, all the lines being numbered in the order in which they were marked. This prevents a confusion of lines, and makes it more easy to follow or to copy the drawing.

It is the numerous inquiries from working machinists for a book of this kind that have led the author to its production, which he hopes and believes will meet the want thus indicated, giving to the learner a sufficiently practical knowledge of mechanical drawing to enable him to proceed further by copying such drawings as he may be able to obtain, or by the aid of some of the more expensive and elaborate books already published on the subject.

He believes that in learning mechanical drawing without the aid of an instructor the chief difficulty is overcome when the learner has become sufficiently familiar with the instruments to be enabled to use them without hesitation or difficulty, and it is to attain this end that the chapter on plotting mechanical motions and the succeeding examples have been introduced; these forming studies that are easily followed by the beginner; while sufficiently interesting to afford to the student pleasure as well as profit.

NEW YORK, _February, 1883_.

MECHANICAL DRAWING

SELF-TAUGHT.

CHAPTER I.

_THE DRAWING BOARD._

A Drawing Board should be of soft pine and free from knots, so that it will easily receive the pins or tacks used to fasten down the paper. Its surface should be flat and level, or a little rounding, so that the paper shall lie close to its surface, which is one of the first requisites in making a good drawing. Its edges should be straight and at a right angle one to the other, and the ends of the battens B B in Figure 1 should fall a little short of the edge A of the board, so that if the latter shrinks they will not protrude. The size of the board of course depends upon the size of the paper, hence it is best to obtain a board as small as will answer for the size of paper it is intended to use. The student will find it most convenient as well as cheapest to learn on small drawings rather than large ones, since they take less time to make, and cost less for paper; and although they require more skill to make, yet are preferable for the beginner, because he does not require to reach so far over the board, and furthermore, they teach him more quickly and effectively. He who can make a fair drawing having short lines and small curves can make a better one if it has large curves, etc., because it is easier to draw a large than a very small circle or curve. It is unnecessary to enter into a description of the various kinds of drawing boards in use, because if the student purchases one he will be duly informed of the kinds and their special features, while if he intends to make one the sketch in Figure 1 will give him all the information he requires, save that, as before noted, the wood must be soft pine, well seasoned and free from knots, while the battens B should be dovetailed in and the face of the board trued after they are glued and driven in. To true the edges square, it is best to make the two longest edges parallel and straight, and then the ends may be squared from those long edges.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 1.]

THE $T$ SQUARE.

Drawing squares or T squares, as they are termed, are made of wood, of hard rubber and of steel.

There are several kinds of T squares; in one the blade is solid, as it is shown in Figure 5 on page 20; in another the back of the square is pivoted, so that the blade can be set to draw lines at an angle as well as across the board, which is often very convenient, although this double back prevents the triangles, when used in some positions, from coming close enough to the left hand side of the board. In an improved form of steel square, with pivoted blade, shown in Figure 2, the back is provided with a half circle divided into the degrees of a circle, so that the blade can be set to any required degree of angle at once.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 2.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 3.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 4.]

THE TRIANGLES.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 5.]

Two triangles are all that are absolutely necessary for a beginner. The first is that shown in Figure 3, which is called a triangle of 45 degrees, because its edge A is at that angle to edges B and C. That in Figure 4 is called a triangle of 60 degrees, its edge A being at 60 degrees to B, and at 30 degrees to C. The edges P and C are at a right angle or an angle of 90 degrees in both figures; hence they are in this respect alike. By means of these triangles alone, a great many straight line drawings may be made with ease without the use of a drawing square; but it is better for the beginner to use the square at first. The manner of using these triangles with the square is shown in Figure 5, in which the triangle, Figure 3, is shown in three positions marked D E F, and that shown in Figure 4 is shown in three positions, marked respectively G H and I. It is obvious, however, that by turning I over, end for end, another position is attained. The usefulness in these particular triangles is because in the various positions shown they are capable of use for drawing a very large proportion of the lines that occur in mechanical drawing. The princ.i.p.al requirement in their use is to hold them firmly to the square-blade without moving it, and without permitting them to move upon it. The learner will find that this is best attained by so regulating the height of the square-blade that the line to be drawn does not come down too near the bottom of the triangle or edge of the square-blade, nor too high on the triangle; that is to say, too near its uppermost point. It is the left-hand edge of the triangle that is used, whenever it can be done, to produce the required line.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 6.]

CURVES.

To draw curves that are not formed of arcs or parts of circles, templates called curves are provided, examples of these forms being given in Figure 6. They are made in wood and in hard rubber, the latter being most durable; their uses are so obvious as to require no explanation. It may be remarked, however, that the use of curves gives excellent practice, because they must be adjusted very accurately to produce good results, and the drawing pen must be held in the same vertical plane, or the curve drawn will not be true in its outline.

DRAWING INSTRUMENTS.

It is not intended or necessary to enter into an elaborate discussion of the various kinds of drawing instruments, since the purchaser can obtain a good set of drawing instruments from a reputable dealer by paying a proportionate price, and must _per force_ learn to use such as his means enable him to purchase. It is recommended that the beginner purchase as good a set of instruments as his means will permit, and that if his means are limited he purchase less than a full set of instruments, having the same of good quality.

All the instruments that need be used in the examples of this book are as follows:

A small spring bow-pen for circles, a lining pen or pen for straight lines, a small spring bow-pencil for circles, a large bow-pen with a removable leg to replace by a divider leg or a pencil leg, and having an extension piece to increase its capacity.

The spring bow-pen should have a stiff spring, and should be opened out to its full capacity to see that the spring acts well when so opened out, keeping the legs stiff when opened for the larger diameters. The purchaser should see that the joint for opening and closing the legs is an easy but not a loose fit on the screw, and that the legs will not move sideways. To test this latter, which is of great importance in the spring bow-pencil as well as in the pen, it is well to close the legs nearly together and taking one leg in one hand and the other leg in the other hand (between the forefinger and thumb), pushing and pulling them sideways, any motion in that direction being sufficient to condemn the instrument. It is safest and best to have the two legs of the bow-pen and pencil made from one piece of metal, and not of two separate pieces screwed together at the top, as the screw will rarely hold them firmly together. The points should be long and fine, and as round as possible.

In very small instruments separate points that are fastened with a screw are objectionable, because, in very small circles, they hide the point and make it difficult to apply the instrument to the exact proper point or spot on the drawing.

The joints of the large bow or circle-pen should also be somewhat stiff, and quite free from side motion, and the extension piece should be rigidly secured when held by the screw. It is a good plan in purchasing to put in the extension piece, open the joint and the pen to their fullest, and draw a circle, moving the pen in one direction, and then redraw it, moving it in the other direction, and if one line only appears and that not thickened by the second drawing, the pen is a good one.

The lead pencil should be of hard lead, and it is recommended that they be of the H, H, H, H, H, H, in the English grades, which corresponds to the V, V, H, of the Dixon grade. The pencil lines should be made as lightly as possible; first, because the presence of the lead on the paper tends to prevent the ink from pa.s.sing to the paper; and, secondly, because in rubbing out the pencil lines the ink lines are reduced in blackness and the surface of the paper becomes roughened, so that it will soil easier and be harder to clean. In order to produce fine pencil lines without requiring a very frequent sharpening of the pencil it is best to sharpen the pencil as in Figures 7 and 8, so that the edge shall be long in the direction in which it is moved, which is denoted by the arrow in Figure 7. But when very fine work is to be done, as in the case of Patent Office drawings, a long, round point is preferable, because the eye can see plainer just where the pencil will begin to mark and leave off; hence the pencil lines will not be so liable to overrun.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 7.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 8.]

In place of the ordinary wood-covered lead pencils there may be obtained at the drawing material stores pencil holders for holding the fine, round sticks of lead, and these are by far the best for a learner. They are easier to sharpen, and will slip in the holder, giving warning when the draftsman is pressing them too hard on the paper, as he is apt to do. The best method of tr.i.m.m.i.n.g these leads, as also lead pencils after they have been roughly shaped, is with a small fine file, holding the file still and moving the pencil; or a good piece of emery paper or sand paper is good, moving the pencil as before.

All lines in pencilling as in inking in should begin at the left hand and be drawn towards the right, or when triangles are used the lines are begun at the bottom and drawn towards the top or away from the operator. The rubber used should not be of a harsh grade, since that will roughen the face of the paper and probably cause the ink to run.

The less rubbing out the better the learner will progress, and the more satisfaction he will receive from the results. If it becomes necessary to scratch out it is best done with a penknife well sharpened, and not applied too forcibly to the paper but somewhat lightly, and moved in different and not all in one direction. After the penknife the rubber may sometimes be used to advantage, since it will, if of a smooth grade, leave the paper smoother than the knife. Finally, before inking in, the surface that has been sc.r.a.ped should be condensed again by rubbing some clean, hard substance over it which will prevent the ink from spreading.

The end of a paper-cutter or the end of a rounded ivory handled drawing instrument is excellent for this purpose.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 9.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 10.]

It is well to use the rubber for general purposes in such a way as to fit it for special purposes; thus, in cleaning the sheet of paper, the rubber may be applied first, as in Figure 9, as at A, and then as at B, and if it be moved sideways at the same time it will wear to the form shown in Figure 10, which will enable it to be applied along a line that may require to be rubbed out without removing other and neighboring lines. If the rubber is in the form of a square stick one end may be bevelled, as in Figure 11, which is an excellent form, or it may be made to have a point, as in Figure 12. The object is in each case to enable the rubber action to be confined to the desired location on the paper, so as to destroy its smooth surface as little as possible.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 11.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig 12.]

For simple cleaning purposes, or to efface the pencil lines when they are drawn very lightly, squares of sponge-rubber answer admirably, these being furnished by the dealers in drawing materials.

A piece of bread will answer a similar purpose, but it is less convenient.

For glazed surface paper, as Bristol-board, the smoothest rubber must be used, the grade termed velvet rubber answering well.