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A talk with a retired architect made me question my default line weights
I ran into a retired architect, Frank, at the local hardware store last week and we got to talking about old drawing sets. He said something that stuck with me: 'We used to make a whole sheet readable from across the room with just three line weights. Now I see kids using eight and the drawing still looks flat.' It hit different because I've been using a complex template with seven weights for years, thinking it was more professional. I'm going to try a project this week using just a bold, a medium, and a thin line to see if it forces better drafting discipline. Has anyone else simplified their line weight system and found it actually improved their drawings?
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wadebailey1mo ago
if you can't see the wall from the pipe" is exactly it. @alex_taylor10 though, I'd push back a little on using thin dashed for hidden stuff - unless your plotter is dialed in perfect, that thin dash can look like a smudge when it prints. I keep my medium for hidden lines and it saves me from getting yelled at by the print shop.
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david_hayes2mo ago
Yeah that "if you can't see the wall from the pipe" thing is so true. I did the same thing, cut down to three weights last year and suddenly my sections stopped looking like a plate of spaghetti. It just works.
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alex_taylor102mo ago
Ever try reading a set of prints where every line is shouting at you? I had a foreman who'd take a fat red pen and just circle the mess on a plan. He'd say if you can't see the wall from the pipe with a quick glance, you've drawn it wrong. Cutting back to three weights forces you to pick what actually matters on the page. My old template had a special line for hidden stuff, but now I just use the thin one dashed, and it's way clearer.
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