Optimizing Drawing Details in AutoCAD: Scale Factors, Layers, and Annotations

Optimizing Drawing Details in AutoCAD: Implementing Scale Factors, Layers, and Annotations for Precision Drawing.

This article provides detailed instructions on how to modify a drawing using specific software commands and tools, such as Insert, Save, Move Window, Erase Window, and Modify Rename. The writer discusses how to scale and position details, use layers, adjust color, create and modify leaders, work with OSNAPs, and execute a purge command to remove unnecessary elements.

Key Insights

  • The article covers the process of modifying a drawing, starting with opening the file and saving it with a new name; it then explores the insertion of a 1x1 title block at a scale factor of four, equivalent to 3 inches equalling a foot.
  • The writer explains how to adjust and position details using various commands like Move Window and Erase Window; they discuss how to work with layers and set their color, as well as how to create and modify leaders using M Leader.
  • The piece also discusses how to use running OSNAPs for precision, execute stretch crossings, check text dimensions, and perform a purge command to eliminate unnecessary elements or layers from the drawing.

Note: These materials offer prospective students a preview of how our classes are structured. Students enrolled in this course will receive access to the full set of materials, including video lectures, project-based assignments, and instructor feedback.

For this drawing, let's go File, Open. Let's slide down and choose Detail 6, Original. Let's go File, Save As.

We go into the name, we keep 06. We get rid of Dash, Original, and I go Save. Okay, now the question is, what do we do? Check out right here, Not to Scale.

Our details want to be at a scale. So I'm looking at the drawing and saying, Okay, what is this? Here is a wall. Here is roof.

Here's a reglet. Here's some flashing. So I'm going to try to say, Insert the 1x1 title block at a scale factor of 4, which means 3 inches equals a foot.

So I'm going to go to Insert, over to Insert, More Options, go to Browse, slide down, choose VDCI Border, 1 Horizontal, 1 Vertical. I go Open, pop it into 00, give it a scale factor of 4, make sure it's a uniform scale, make sure it is not exploded, go OK. I'm going to change the scale factor for now to say 3 inches equals a foot, and I will just type in the value, two-piece waterproofed flashing, and go OK.

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Where is it? Well, it's probably off the screen. Who knew where they drew this? Zoom extents. And there it is, and you can look at the drawing, and you can see that they're about the same size, so this scale works.

I'm going to say Move Window, from over here down to here, just get it in the area. I'm going to Erase Window this out. Zoom extents.

I'm going to say LT Scale, line type scale factor of 4. Again, 3 inches equals a foot, 3 is to 12, 1 is to 4. I'm going to list this guy. I see that it's on the layer A text, list this guy. It's on text.

I'm going to go into Layers. I'm going to go, ooh, we have some layers we're going to have to purge out of here. You can see that we have some bound XREFs that are in this drawing, but A text, I will make it my current layer, and I will make its color 120.

  1. Close it out. Now I'm going to look at my leaders, so I'm in the Insert tab.

I'm going to go over to Annotation. I'll go over to Leaders, M Leader. I'm going to modify it.

I want it to be M text. I'll go to Leader Format. I want it to be straight, color by layer, by layer, by layer, eighth inch is fine, leader structure, number of points, a scale factor of 4. Delete it out.

Go OK. Right button, Modify Rename. Give it an M Leader of value of 4. Set current, close, and we're there.

Now I'm looking at my polar. I see that it's set on 5 degrees. It's turned on.

What I can do is I can go M Leader. I can just go from here over to here, make it say 60, over to there. It looks fine.

I'm just going to say Escape. So what I'm doing right now is just comparing to see how a properly sized leader looks compared to what we have over here. I'm going to back off.

I'm going to erase window and then remove window in through here. Save the drawing. I can now erase this guy out.

I'm going to check my running OSNAPs. I'm just going to type OS for OSNAPs. I have endpoint.

I'm going to say node and perpendicular. I'm going to turn off perpendicular, but I think that node is pretty good. So I have node and I have insertion base point, so I have intersection insertion.

I'm going to turn off intersection, turn off endpoint for right now. I'm going to zoom in. So I realize that, again, my leaders are going to work pretty well relative to where they are.

So I'm going to say move the text from F3, insertion to node, text. Again, pick off a little bit, insertion to node, text. Pick off a little bit to node.

I'm going to say insertion to node. These guys will be close. From insertion to node, insertion to node.

And we're all fine there. Control S. I'm going to go to OSNAP, just OS. I'm going to go clear all and turn on endpoint and intersection, but I'm going to turn off the OSNAP so it doesn't get in my way.

And I'm just going to go M leader from here, again vertical, over to let it say 60, pull it up so that it bisects the text, drag it over, keep it straight, escape, delete that guy. And now I have to also delete the little arrowhead because before I had a leader line and an arrowhead is a separate entity. I see where it's pointing.

I'm going to erase this, erase this, M leader. I'm just going to say nearest, so I touch on the item, go up, let it say 90, over, let it say 60, go over to the text just a little bit horizontal, escape if need be. I can go stretch crossing just up a little bit.

I can go to here, go to here, erase that, M leader nearest to here, again let it read 60, so I'm looking for it to say 60, come down so it's perfect, pick escape, I have the flashing at the back, erase that, erase window, this guy too, M leader nearest to here, up and over, pulling it down, letting it say 60, bisect the text, go over to there, escape, erase this guy beside stucco, erase that, M leader nearest to here, up and over, bisect the text, confirm 60, over, escape, erase window, erase this, M leader nearest to here, up and over, bisect the text, let the line read 60, pick and go over, escape, it's looking good, I'm going to draw a line from here to here, straight down, I'm going to go back into OSNAP, clear all, I'm going to say end and perpendicular, and be careful when you're using perpendicular, go okay, so stretch crossing from the end of here, perp, stretch crossing, I did press F3 to turn my running OSNAP on, stretch crossing, be careful that you don't get the base point of the text from the end perpendicular, and now I can erase that, zoom extents, save the file, and I have one more thing to check, I'm going to go list the text, you can see that it says it's a 3 eighths of an inch high, so let's see, if we say 3 eighths of an inch, I'm on my calculator, 3 over 8 times 4 is the value of 1.5, that's good, I'll accept that, and I've saved the file, and we've gotten everything on the proper layers, we have the proper line type scale factor, and we're golden, what I would like to do is to type in purge, I'm just going to say, what do I have in there, tick tick 48, I'm going to purge that, I have these layers that came in with the previously bound block, I want to get those, I can just say purge those, I can also say purge nested items, go to purge, purge this, I didn't really have to say confirm, and I close that, go back, purge, I'm just going to say purge all, I'm going to deselect confirm, purge all, it's all out of there, you see that dimension style is in there, the reason it didn't purge the first time was because that dimension style was inside that embedded xref, so we purged it out, and we've zoomed extents, we've saved the file, and there we are. So enjoy this one, and talk to you soon.

photo of Al Whitley

Al Whitley

AutoCAD and Blueprint Reading Instructor

Al was the Founder and CEO of VDCI | cadteacher for over 20 years. Al passed away in August of 2020. Al’s vision was for the advancement and employment of aspiring young professionals in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industries.

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