ALVIN AL666 Lettering Guide And Rule Template, Multipurpose Tool For Drafting, Design, And Architecture, Great For Students And Professionals - 3.88 L X 2.38 H

When I first learned calligraphy back in the eighties my teacher recommended this. I bought one and absolutely did not regret it. Unfortunately through the years and several times of moving residences, I've lost track of it. Fortunately for me though, I've found it on Amazon. Very cool tool! I like to write my poetry on unlined pages with old english calligraphy using Rotring Calligraphy Pens - this tool is Perfect. All you do is place a ruler on the page below the area you want to write, insert a mechanical pencil into the desired hole(s) and lightly draw the tool from one side of the page to the other. When you're done, just erase the lightly drawn line. If you draw a heavy dark line, no erasing will remove the indent from your pencil mark.

As an interior design student, hand drafting is a requirement, and this little tool is of course very handy! At first I had no idea what I was looking at or how this would help us with lettering, but once we learned what it was used for it was very easy to use and was very helpful. It seems to be good quality, although I admit that as a student I don't have a lot of others to compare it to. Overall I was definitely pleased with my purchase.

Upon receiving this item, my first thoughts were that this thing is unsightly and hardly a finished item. The surface was riddled with scratches. After using, I had to humble myself and be reminded that the purpose of this item is to aid in drawing uniformed lines. This item does it well and there is not much to say against a time tested design.

I have used this product for nearly thirty years, and eventually I lost my old, faithful version. Amazon had the same model from the same company available for less than $10. It seemed like a no brainer to order it. I did, and the product works fine. The quality has declined a bit in the last three decades, but this is not shocking. I found the wheel was a little stiff when trying to spin it to change the spacing of the lines drawn. (Please see the enclosed video.) All in all, this is a useful product.

I wanted to like this. The first time I used it, it worked perfectly. The second time however, the circle did not want to stay put. I would do my first 2 lines, but if I tried to use the holes for my 3rd line, I'd get half a straight line then the circle would move. I can't really letter if the circle is moving on me. I wish I could exchange it for a better one. :(

This is one of my favorite tools, a time saver to trace accurate guidelines for calligraphy. The only downside is the small size of the numbers on the dial, it's difficult to set the x-height.

Poor quality — not a professional-grade product — and the item is non-returnable! See photos. In the first photo, the triangle on the package points to one hole that is not punched through. The other holes are so small that only the thinnest lead will fit: Even a well-sharpened pencil point does not fit! The hole size requires mechanical pencil leads which break often when using the tool. The second photo shows the rough edges of the circular element. When turning, the circle either binds or else turns too smoothly. The accuracy varied. The product is more awkward to use than online videos led me to believe. The difficulty is trying to hold a t-square steady, move the lettering guide horizontally, and keep the pencil upright. The pencil leads break either due to the sideways motion or because the holes are so small that the lead must be held nearly vertical while simultaneously moving it sideways. Snap! Try again. Snap! Now there are several tiny pencil lead pieces rolling around, marring my drawing surface and falling onto the floor. What a mess. The results might improve with practice. Accuracy would probably require a piece of tape on the circle to keep it from shifting. Does any manufacturer still make a quality version of this type of lettering guide? Even the products from other manufacturers look similar in the photos online. Beware.

I had one of these for many years (drafting class requirement) and now I wanted to use it again, went to look for it and whammo it was no-where to be found! so its off to amazon we go and here it is the exact same lovely little lettering guide I used 20-30 yrs ago, blows my mind that its STILL MADE WELL TOO!!! they didn't scrimp on the materials all these years.... wow

Product is is good and essential. Price could be kept lower to emcourage more buyers. Surely, it can be made in India too.

Ótimo👍

Unlike Ally Mckenzie I did have a use for this as I am still a complete dinosaur producing illustrations with hand lettering. This is a marvellous little gadget that allows you to produce regular, even guidelines for hand lettering and calligraphy. To get the best from it you need a board with a firmly fixed horizontal rule to slide it along and a well sharpened, reasonably hard, long pointed pencil to put in the little holes. Practicing on a bit of scrap paper first is advisable as you want to smoothly make light but legible lines that erase easily and do not score the surface. Once you have got the hang of you can produce the same guidelines again and again in whatever dimensions you please. It is very good for when you need an extra line for the tops of lower case letters and centring capitals.

Great for what I needed in my drafting class super helpful to completing assignments

Easy to use