PJ01 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 (edited) I have been reading an architectural AutoCAD book, and it names Layers and line thicknesses as follows: Outline 0.35mm Dim 0.25mm Construction - nothing shown for thickness Hidden 0.25mm No other explanatory notes given Can anyone please suggest the different uses of Outline and Construction lines. Also, I thought 0.25mm was the standard ( default) width for drawing in AutoCAD. In which case, what thickness should I use for Outlines and Dimension lines? All help and suggestion very much appreciated Edited October 5, 2017 by PJ01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukecad Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 It all depends on what ouput you are trying to achieve, and what if any CAD standards are in use in your particular office. To start with the layer name does not have to specify a line thickness, but it can if you want to remind people to use that thickness for that part of the drawing. Outlines are usually drawn to print/plot thicker (heavier) than dimensions, leader lines, and the like. This is so whatever component, or building, you are drawing stands out from the dimension lines when printed. Text is usually drawn the same thickness as outlines, but may be the same thickness as dimensions. You may want some outlines to be thicker than the rest so that they stand out more when printed. (Or thiner so they don't stand out as much). You get the idea? It all depends on just how you want to present your printed drawing which lines you make thicker or thiner. Construction lines here I suspect are not what you are thinking about as 'construction'. As they are not allocated a thickness then I would say that they are 'drafting construction' lines, also called 'Reference Geometry'. i.e. Lines that are used for draughting only, to make sure objects and views line up, to set out offset distances, and so on. They are mainly used to set out the shape you want to draw before you draw your outline over them. They were used all the time on board drawing, and can be used in CAD but they are very rarely taught about these days. (A loss of a draughting technique in my opinion). They are never plotted and are usually removed after use. The AutoCad command XLINE draws draughting construction lines of infinite length. There are various options, horizontal, vertical, angled, offset, through 2 points, etc. I use them all the time when draughting, but there again I learnt on a board before CAD, even before offices had computers. Here's the Autodesk short article about Xlines: https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/autocad/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2016/ENU/AutoCAD-Core/files/GUID-40650DCE-E8CA-483C-8E25-7FA9AB6992C1-htm.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJ01 Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 nukecad, many thanks for this very helpful information, that accurately answered my questions. I really appreciate you taking the time and effort to share it. I think I will go with the Outline drawings on 0.35, and the dimensions on 0.25 to start with. I am not in an office any more, and of the same drawing board vintage as yourself, designing electrical ( 66/11kV) zone substation control panel drawings and wiring, steel support structures and civil footings etc I am learning AutoCAD so I can get woodworking templates done on my nephew's CNC machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danellis Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 PJ01, one thing to note is that those layer suggestions are based around the final presentation of your drawing. It's more usual (and much more useful as drawings get more complicated) to assign layers based on what they represent: You might have a layer called "Walls" with a thick line, and one called "Plaster" with a thinner one; or you might have one called "Cuts" with a thicker line and "folds" that's thinner, etc. dJE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJ01 Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 Thanks danellis, that makes sense. I recall our teacher showed his private AutoCAD architectural business drawings, and there were heaps of layers, all representing different items, as you indicated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 I think you should consider creating 1) a custom workspace and 2) a custom template file. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chilidawg Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 Every now and then, I'll get an older CAD file given to me where the layers are set: Light, Medium, Heavy, based on the lineweight, regardless of what the actual object is. This irritates me and I have actually wasted time selecting and reassigning objects to new layers, just because I can (and because I know there is a chance Ill re-use that drawing in the future.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 Many of our older CAD drawings (going back to 1982-1985) are sort of set up that way. It appears that someone associated the layer names 1 thru 8 with the AutoCAD colors that correspond to the numbers. Lighter color layers plot relatively thin compared to darker colors that plot much heavier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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