That kind of thing is a lot less likely with modern software. When drawing
on paper, the dimensions are written in by hand. If the draftsman puts in
the wrong dimension, it's wrong. The way I do it (and the way the
engineering world is going) is to draw each part in 3D. Assemble everything
into the finished product. If it all fits, disassemble and dimension the
parts. Since the dimensions are given by measuring the parts rather than
entering them manually, these types of mistakes are far less likely. 3D work
takes more time learning (and the software certainly isn't cheap) than most
hobbyists are willing to put into it but the results are great.
To the OP. The idea of learning first on the board is a good one. There is
no better way of getting the basic skills than with pencil and paper. It
will be a great foundation for any further work. There is a local college
here that teaches a drafting course. It is a ten month full time course. The
first two months are entirely on the board. They then move on to CAD. So, it
is not entirely dead but finding a teacher may be hard.

"Old Nick" wrote in message
...
Yeah. I remember starting out I had my faith on designs warped because
spome stup[id WW magazine had made a chair with legs that were _drawn_
OK, but the dimension shown was too short. Being a newbie and "trying
to do the right thing" and having no idea, I simply followed the
plans.