True Color layers changing Colors when XREF

Currently using AutoCAD 2010 and do use the Plot with style. I have a base file with layers set to true color. Printing directly from the base file is fine. Colors show correctly and prints correctly. BUT when I xref this BASE file to another file, CERTAIN (NOT ALL) layers set to true colors changes to a gray color and prints gray, other layers are shown correctly and print correctly, even certain layers set to true colors are shown and print correctly. Layer management still shows the correct colors on both files (xref & base). NOTE: all my layers that have the true color setting are layers using the solid hatch pattern.

Hi RSantos,

I don't have a lot of experience plotting XRefs... but I wonder if the layer that the XREF is on has any influence over the plot colours. Just a guess really though.

Without the drawing we have to start making guesses. Are you using STB or CTB when you plot?

Posting the drawing or a sample of it that exhibits that behavior is the best way to get it resolved here.

NOTE: all my layers that have the true color setting are layers using the solid hatch pattern.

I'm thinking that this specific combination may be the culprit here. I have not played with true colors but I do know that plotting solid hatches can be buggy at times. Add in the fact that we are dealing with an XREF may even be compounding the issue. Try different combinations like change the "true" colors to "index" colors and see if that helps or change the solid hatches to solids if they are simple enough. If solids are not an option then try a pattern hatch that has parallel lines. Set the hatch scale so that the lines are close enough so that the line weight makes the plotted hatch lines overlap.

I am a rookie at posting here and have no idea how to add files. I am using a ctb plot file. Also I have used the true colors/hatching solid so many times before and it works fine. I have only experience this problem twice. I have tried copying the colored elevations over to a file that have worked for me in the past but no luck. The same colors still changes. I do noticed under the layer management list that even with the true color showing correctly under the "COLOR" column there is the "PLOT STYLE" column that has a different color assigned (both files show the same pen color). The xref files displays the color showing under the "PLOT STYLE".

I think that it worked in the past was just luck.

How do you control the plot settings for true colors? It's not in the .ctb.

Personally, I would attempt to find a similar color from the index colors and see if that solves your problem.

Truecolor objects are not affected by plot styles at all, so presence of and or configuration of CTB/STB files should not be a concern here.

Are the objects hardcoded to a truecolor or is their color BYLAYER and the layer is set to a truecolor?

If the latter, check the xref layer in the parent drawing to make sure the color was not changed.

Colors (and other properties) of xref layers can be changed in the parent drawing.

And more to that point, can be changed on a per-viewport basis too.

To eliminate that - start a new, empty, no template drawing and xref in the problem drawing and test that.

Try "visretain" value 0 and then reload xref and plot. If layers has any overrides here in this drawing, it will go away.

The true colors setting have not change on either file. The xref file still has the true color set to. BOTH files have the "PLOT STYLE" set to a an index color. So i'm guessing that there is no such thing as a TRUE COLOR in autoCAD when it automatically sets the "PLOT STYLE" to one of the 200 and something index colors available in autocad. What i'm noticing too is that the layers with True color that are changing on me are layers that have a pen setting under "PLOT STYLE" set to a pen that we have specific settings to it. I will try changing the settings to that specific pen (253 to be exact) back to default and see if it works.

When you're viewing/plotting the base file, are you doing so from Modelspace, or from a Layout/Viewport. Do the lines in question change color in the base file when you switch between Modelspace and a Layout tab?

Yes, I did try the "ViSRETAIN" but did not work

On the base file the plotting/viewing works fine. The colors are fine on both modelspace & layout/viewport. When it is XREF in to another file, certain layers change on Modelspace, layout & viewport. It is certain layers only....NOT ALL LAYERS.

I thought the issue was with solid hatches assigned to layers using true colors, not entire layers.

If the drawing(s) do not contain any sensitive information, I suggest using ETRANSMIT to create a .zip file containing the drawing, the xref's and the .CTB file. As long as the zip is under the size limit ( 1MB I think) , you should be able to add it to your post as an attachment using the "Go Advanced" button at the lower right of the Quick reply window.

The truecolors are affected by the settings/configuration of the CTB/STB files. Somehow I still can not see the right colors on the xref but NOW it is printing correctly. I change my ctb file to have pen properties color set to "use object color".

The truecolors are affected by the settings/configuration of the CTB/STB files.

Care to elaborate?

Are you certain you're not using "Index colors"? TrueColors have values such as 106,102,90. Index Colors are 0 thru 255.

Yikes, my animated gif software doesn't like 16M colors... lol