Guides
How to read a pallet drawing
Reviewed
A pallet drawing shows the pallet in three orthographic views (top, front and side), each dimensioned to the actual size of every part, with nail positions drawn as dots and hidden edges as dashed lines. A title block gives the drawing number, revision, units and scale, and a parts list gives each component's thickness x width x length and quantity.
On this page
A pallet drawing is a small engineering drawing. Once you know where to look, you can check a mill's quote against it in a few minutes: board counts, sizes, gaps, stringer positions, notch geometry and nail count.
What views does a pallet drawing show?
Most pallet drawings use three orthographic views plus, sometimes, a 3D picture:
| View | What you are looking at | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Top view (plan) | Looking straight down on the top deck | Number, width and spacing of top deckboards; nail dots; stringer or block positions shown dashed underneath |
| Front view | The long face, e.g. the 48 in side of a 48 x 40 | Stringer profile, notches, overall length and height, deck thicknesses |
| Side (end) view | The short face, e.g. the 40 in side | Stringer widths and positions, the fork openings between them, overall width |
| Bottom view (sometimes) | Looking up at the bottom deck | Bottom board layout, openings for pallet-jack wheels, chamfers |
Third-angle vs first-angle projection
US drawings normally use third-angle projection: the top view sits above the front view, and the right-side view sits to the right of the front view. European drawings often use first-angle projection, where those positions are swapped. The projection symbol in the title block tells you which one you are reading. If a side view looks "backwards", check the symbol before you assume an error.
How dimensions are given
Pallet drawings dimension actual sizes at the time of manufacture, not nominal lumber sizes. A deckboard called out as 5/8 x 3-1/2 x 40 is 5/8 in thick, 3-1/2 in wide and 40 in long. See nominal vs actual lumber.
Component sizes follow a fixed order:
- Deckboards and stringerboards: thickness x width x length
- Stringers: width x height x length
- Blocks: width x height x length (some software draws them width x length x height)
Positions are usually given as dimension chains or as cumulative offsets from one end. Both describe the same thing.
Worked example: reading a 48 x 40 GMA-style drawing
Here is what each view of a standard 48 x 40 stringer pallet shows.
Top view
Seven top boards across 48 in: two 5-1/2 in lead boards and five 3-1/2 in interior boards, with 3.25 in gaps. The leading edges, measured from one end, fall at 0, 8.75, 15.50, 22.25, 29.00, 35.75 and 42.50 in. A quick check: 42.50 + 5.50 = 48.00, so the last board ends flush.
Each board shows a row of nail dots over each stringer: 3 on each lead board, 2 on each interior board. Count them: 7 boards x 3 stringers gives 21 joints, and (2 x 3) + (5 x 2) = 16 nails per stringer line, so 48 nails in the top deck.
Front view
The front view shows the stringer in profile, 48 in long and 3-1/2 in tall, with two notches. The dimension chain along the bottom reads 6 / 9 / 18 / 9 / 6: 6 in of solid stringer, a 9 in notch, 18 in solid in the middle, another 9 in notch, 6 in solid. The notch depth is 1-1/4 in with a 3/4 in corner radius. Overall height is 5/8 + 3-1/2 + 5/8 = 4.75 in.
Side view
The side view shows three stringers, 1-3/8 in wide, across 40 in. Their left edges sit at 0, 19.31 and 38.63 in, which leaves two clear fork openings of 17.94 in each. You can check it: (40 - 3 x 1.375) / 2 = 17.94.
Bottom view
The bottom has five boards. The two leads sit flush at the ends; the three interior boards are clustered in the middle at 15.00, 22.25 and 29.50 in with 3.75 in gaps. The 9.50 in openings between the lead boards and the cluster (5.50 to 15.00 in) sit under the notches, so forks entering from the side are not blocked.
Hidden lines, section marks and nail dots
- Solid lines are visible edges. Dashed lines are edges hidden behind something nearer, such as stringers under the top deck in the plan view.
- Dots are nails (drawn at their actual positions); staples are sometimes drawn as short bars.
- Chamfers on bottom lead boards appear as a sloped edge in the side view and a note giving depth and length.
The title block
The title block, usually bottom right, identifies the document:
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Drawing number and pallet ID | Ties the drawing to the quote and the purchase order |
| Revision and date | Tells you whether you are quoting the current version |
| Units and scale | Inches or millimeters; drawings should be to scale, but always read the dimension, never scale the paper |
| Projection symbol | Third-angle or first-angle |
| Customer, prepared by | Who owns and who issued the drawing |
| Notes | Lumber, moisture, treatment, fastener spec, tolerances |
The parts list and cut list
The bill of materials groups identical parts, for example "5 - 5/8 x 3-1/2 x 40 top interior". The cut list multiplies by the order quantity: 1,000 pallets need 8,000 pieces of 5/8 x 3-1/2 x 40 (5 top plus 3 bottom per pallet) and 3,000 stringers at 1-3/8 x 3-1/2 x 48. Fastener count per order is 84 x 1,000 = 84,000.
Common reading mistakes
- Mixing up length and width. Length is the stringer direction and is stated first. A 40 x 48 is not the same pallet as a 48 x 40. See pallet dimensions explained.
- Reading nominal sizes. A "1x4" in conversation may be 5/8 or 3/4 in thick. The drawing governs.
- Ignoring the revision. Quote and build to the latest revision only.
- Missing the notes. Species, moisture, heat treatment and nail spec often live in the notes, not the views.
palletdesign.ai generates this kind of drawing directly from the parts list: third-angle views, dimension chains, nail dots, a title block and the BOM on one sheet. Allowable variation is covered in pallet tolerances.
Questions
- Which view is the front view on a pallet drawing?
- Usually the long face, the side you see when looking along the deckboards at the stringers, for example the 48 in face of a 48 x 40. It shows the stringer profile and notches.
- Are pallet drawing dimensions nominal or actual?
- Actual. Pallet drawings and spec sheets give the actual size of each part at manufacture, so 5/8 x 3-1/2 means 5/8 in by 3-1/2 in, not a nominal 1x4.
- What do the dots on a pallet drawing mean?
- Nail positions. Each dot is one nail at a deckboard-to-stringer or deckboard-to-block joint, so you can count them to check the nail schedule.
- How do I know if a drawing is third-angle or first-angle?
- Check the projection symbol in the title block. In third-angle (US practice) the top view sits above the front view; in first-angle it sits below.