A bit of pre-AutoCAD drafting history

1972 it was in jr. high school, a 1/3 semester of mechanical drawing. We had a pencil sharpener that would cut just the wood off of the pencil. Then you would use a pointer to put the point on the lead.

I also remember not to long ago going into an office when cad first came out and watching the pen plotter. I thought that was awsome.

I still use my Leroy EVERY DAY, I got that Knotted up fingers from holding the bug and the Hunch on my back from doing hours and Hours of LEROY every day. I wish I could find a LEROY font that will plot from Autocad to my pen plotter with real Rapidograph pens, and mimic LEROY, so I could Quit doing it by hand and yes I still use Rapidograph pens in my HP Pen Plotters

A long time ago there was a Leroy font available for AutoCAD. I'm sure that with a bit of sleuthing it could be uncovered.

Remark

Doug found the Leroy font for me and it looks kool now comes the hard part, I got to put together a Standard of font Size to pen Size I'm going to be playing with my plotter and pens for hours tonight :) :) :) :) :)

I'd be willing to send this font to anyone that wants it. Is there a place where I can upload it to the forum?

I'd be willing to send this font to anyone that wants it. Is there a place where I can upload it to the forum?

Boy do I remember Leroy. Talk about cramps, the bug was difficult to hold for sure.

I would love to get the font ...

teeds at whiterockstudio dot com

Boy do I remember Leroy.

REMEMBER ??? you mean no one else still uses LEROY? God I've been searching or years for a Leroy font for years. Ohh and you cant complain about cramps until you hunch in the back from 5-7 hour Leroying sessions

I still have my original boxed Leroy set with "stylus". A bit dusty but if the power ever goes out permanently I could still create a darn good drawing with that, a few technical pens, a couple of triangles and a "T" square!

TeedsQuote:

Originally Posted by Doug_P

I'd be willing to send this font to anyone that wants it. Is there a place where I can upload it to the forum?

 

Boy do I remember Leroy. Talk about cramps, the bug was difficult to hold for sure.

 

I would love to get the font ...

 

teeds at whiterockstudio dot com

It's on it's way.

Rickard, How did the font workout?

It's on it's way.

 

Rickard, How did the font workout?

Doug_P:

If you sent it, I may have accidentally deleted it. I get 250~300 spam email a day.

Please resend it and be sure and write CAD font in the title.

Tony

Tony,

I sent it again.

Tony,

I sent it again.

Thanks Doug!

It is safely downloaded to my hard drive!

I may have to change the font in the current project I am working on. It will be like old times!

I have a set of templates somewhere that are from 60 to 400, a frog and a bunch of pens ... I did throw out the double arm drafting machine though.

 

I have a set of templates somewhere that are from 60 to 400, a frog and a bunch of pens ... I did throw out the double arm drafting machine though.

Teeds If you have some old K&E prns I'd be interested in buying them! I use K&E pens in my Plotters. I HATE HATE HATE Kooh-i-nor Mickey Meter Junk. I'm always on the Hunt for Real K&E Pens

Back about 1975 or so, a firm that I was with at the time was using a Wang computer (don't remember the software) and we had a big flatbed plotter. It would only work good in pencil. Thus we had to do the work on plan paper, in pencil, then when finished get the job photographed and printed on to mylar. Main thing I remember was that the flatbed plotter was rather large and slow and consumed most of an entire room in the building.

About 1980, I was off work again, and applied to some newpaper classified. There were like 50 applicants, and I was only one who knew how to use a keyboard. Last one to be reviewed, but got the job anyway. Circa 1980, we used home brew software on a Alpha-Micro computer, and Calcomp plotters and digitizers.

Both of the above before the general release of Autocad or the IBM home computer.

Wm.

When I mentioned working on blow-back mylars, reverse printed to a coworker the other day he just had this weird blank look on his face. Then I hit him with pin-bar registration and he ran from the room screaming. Poor guy.

I started with Koh-i-nor tech pens but quickly became a big fan of the Mars-Staedtler series. Worked a lot with triple and quad "0" pens. Had to be really careful cleaning them. Anyone here remember using ultrasonic cleaners?

Then I hit him with pin-bar registration and he ran from the room screaming. Poor guy.

LOL :lol:

Remark...

I began in the Civil Engineering world back in the 1960's and was quite common to show all "Existing" linework on backside of a mylar, and the "proposed" on front side. We did this as this permitted erasures, without damaging older, just done work my another person.

Wm.

Coos: Yep, same here. I was used to doing this for sewer plan and profile sheets. Plus we had to freehand letter all the existing and Leroy in all the proposed items so there was a clear distinction between the two. The existing topo was taken from contour maps prepared by an aerial surveying firm. Had to trace over their work to produce our individual plan and profile sheets using a light table. Many hours of back breaking, tedious work. I got so used to working with a reverse image I can sit across from someone and read their newspaper upside-down and I can also write upside-down (right to left) so the person can read the words in a normal fashion. What a great skill to possess!

ReMark....

I used the double sides of the mylar sheets to advantage. As one side had all the new ink (proposed) on it, I then would just grab a bottle of Formula 409 and hose everything new off.Wipedown with a sponge, and mount the dried mylar up in the plotter and go. With out Pre Autodesk software, it was actually faster to just go in and plot a whole new side in ink than to fix what was shown. The grids for the profile was on backside, so they did not get affected, and new work was shown on front then, in fresh ink.

One firm I knew used the PIN system. They were quite proud of it too. But, when the time came forward on the caution involved, it was simplier and faster to ignore it, and hope no one complained as to some change then. The PIN system was gone before another 1/2 year was over.

Wm.