pin within the pen just touches the drawing
surface. Tighten the locknut when the desired
height is reached. To prevent blotting, you should
make this rough adjustment before you put ink
into the pen.
11. Remove the scriber from the template.
12. Remove the cleaning pin from the pen.
NOTE: To prevent the ink from flowing
straight through the pen, you should not remove
the cleaning pin of a Leroy pen No. 4 or larger
from the pen.
13. Fill the reservoir of the pen with drawing
ink. The Leroy pen should be filled with ink
in the same manner as any common drafting
inking instrument. The reservoir should be kept
from one-fourth to three-fourths full; too low an
ink level results in irregular lines.
14. If the cleaning pin was removed, reinsert
it into the pen.
15. Wipe the lower tip of the pen with a cloth
to remove any excess ink that may have been
pushed through by the cleaning pin.
16. Draw a test line on a piece of scratch
paper to ensure that the ink will flow smoothly.
17. Gently lower the pen to the drawing
surface after inserting the tail and tracer pins in
their proper grooves.
18. Proceed with the lettering by moving the
tracer pin in the grooves of the characters,
keeping the tail pin in the straight-guide groove.
If the ink does not flow properly, turn the
cleaning pin inside the pen and wipe the tip with
a cloth; also, make any necessary minor adjust-
ments to the adjusting screw to allow the ink to
flow properly. Tighten the locknut. When you will
not be lettering for short periods of time, place
the tip of the pen, still in the socket of the scriber
arm, on a piece of moist cotton. This will
prevent the ink from drying around the opening
of the pen and will help the ink to flow properly
when you begin lettering again.
SPACING AND CENTERING
The rules for freehand letterspacing and word
spacing also apply to mechanical lettering.
Guidelines are not necessary for mechanical
lettering; however, when you are making more
than one line of lettering, you may draw
horizontal base lines at intervals to help you
maintain the proper spacing between the lines.
Spacing between lines of mechanical lettering is
the same as for freehand lettering.
When lettering must be centered above a
certain part of a drawing, or within a certain
space, use the scales along the bottom edges of
the templates. Each space on the scale represents
the center-to-center distance of normal-width
letters. For example, to center the words LEROY
LETTERING about a certain line, proceed as
follows:
1. Count the letters in each word and the
spaces between words. Result: 15.
2. Considering the letter I and the space
between the words as half value for each, reduce
the total by one. Result: 14.
3. Divide the result of No. 2 above by two.
Result: 7.
NOTE: If there had been an odd number of
half values, you would use the next lower number
and allow more space between words than
normally required.
4. Set the zero of the scale at the vertical line
about which the lettering is to be centered and
mark off seven spaces to the left and right of zero.
5. Start the L of the word LEROY in the
title at the left mark and continue to the end. The
right edge of the G should fall on the mark to the
right.
MAINTENANCE OF MECHANICAL
LETTERING EQUIPMENT
Pens should be cleaned thoroughly with water
after use and stored properly in the lettering set
case. Never wash them under running water in a
sink. The pen and cleaning pin may accidentally
be washed down the drain. If water does not clean
a pen satisfactorily, a diluted solution of ammonia
may be used. Commercial pen cleaning solutions
and pen cleaning kits are available. Caked or dried
ink can be removed by soaking the pens overnight
in a cleaning solution; however, the pens may
corrode if soaked longer. Cleaning pins should
be handled with care because they are fragile and
easily bent, especially the smaller ones.
The screw that holds the pen in the scriber
should never be screwed too tightly, as the fine
threads tend to strip very easily.
Templates should be cleaned after every use.
Dirt and dried-on ink are very easily transferred
onto an otherwise clean drawing. You must
ensure that the template grooves are kept free
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