which mechanical drawing book is better?
I Just finished reading my college guide for mechanical drawings but i still feel like there are some gaps that my college material doesn't fill and i'm looking for a more in deep source of knowledge. Also, i think that the field of engineering drawings have change a lot since the last century so even when we still using some of the same standards, the tools and methods have become more technology oriented. Having that on mind, i would like the most to date book i could find that could take more in consideration the use of CAD software.
I look over some books and the two more appealing titles i could find are "Engineering Drawing and Design (6th Edition)" by Madsen & Madsen and "Technical Drawing with Engineering Graphics (15th Edition)" by Frederick E. Giesecke. I would appreciate any additional recommendations.
Accepted answer
https://archive.org/details/fundamentalsofen00fren : The fundamentals of engineering drawing and graphic technology Circa 1978.
Above is one of the best drafting books I've seen. Most standards make use of the fundamental data found in this (and other) drafting books from the paper and pencil era. None of these books really show you how to do anything in CAD. Whether a drawing is made with a pencil or a computer, the same fundamental rules apply.
I have all three books (fourth edition, 5th edition, and 15th edition). Why not start with the free one, then get another if you feel they offer something you are missing? The content between the books is similar. Obviously the 1970's book does not have a section on 3D printing... But the other books cover 3D printing in about 10 pages, so not a lot of content is being missed.
If I had to pick one of the two books you've suggested, I choose Technical Drawing with Engineering Graphics (15th Edition). But, I've not seen the 6th edition of Engineering Drawing and Design to compare it to (I have the 5th edition).
I prefer the illustration / drawing style used in some of Technical Drawing with Engineering Graphics. It also has some examples in it of realistic production drawings.
