Dimension Line distance from a reference point?

[Jason]

Dear All Reviteers,

Some of you may think I am picky but I would like to have my dimension located at a certain distance from a reference point and I would like to have this setting for all the floor plans and elevations. I have tried to draw a reference line or simple line to snap the dimension lines to these reference line, but it wouldn't snap to the reference lines. Anyone know of a way to accurately place the dimsion lines?

J

[Scott D Davis]

In the dimension properties, there is a setting for Dimension Line Snap Distance, which should do exactly what you are looking for. It keeps the dimensions a set distance apart from each other, and from geometry.

[beegee]

To use this the Dimension Line Snap Distance ( Settings - Annotations- Linear Dimensions ) , first set the Witness Line Control parameter to Fixed to Dimension Line.

[adegnan]

Correct me if I'm wrong-- there is no way to set the location of the "first" dimension automatically, right? Everyone at our LUG conferred that we just "eyeball" its location "close enough" so that it looks good, and then most of us use the offset snap distance after that.

However, it would be nice if there was some type of snap that offsets from an object... it would have to "look" for any object that it is near, really there would be multiple snap locations to choose from depending on how many different bump-outs and things were on a facade. But if you hovered over the wall that bumps out the furtherst, for example, it should provide a consistent offset distance.

[beegee]

Try it in 7.0. I get snaps for the first dimension.

[tonyisenhoff]

Try it in 7.0. I get snaps for the first dimension.

Mine doesn't... Is there a setting I'm missing? I've never been able to get it to work for the first dimension.

Also, by setting my witness line control to "Fixed to Dimension line" from "Gap to Element", my witness lines simply don't extend close to my object that I'm dimensioning... It has no effect presetting the distance for the first dimension.

[Paul P.]

I'm running into the same problem as Tony, I was wondering if anyone had a solution to this or what I'm doing wrong.

Regards, Paul.

[tonyisenhoff]

I'm glad I'm not the only one with the problem! No offense Paul...

I thought I was doing something wrong.

[Paul Monsef]

How about placing the Dimension at the location you would like it offset from, then move the dimension 16'-0".

Just a thought

[rjjlee]

Can someone outline all the settings? I'm with Paul and Tony. My dimensions don't snap to anything or to any particular distance.

[crullier]

Has anyone come up with a solution? Im on revit 9 and I was asked the same question and I do not know what to answer... someone please help me

[Steve_Stafford]

[medicated Evil Steve mode on]

Not wishing to offend the neat minded among us I often wonder if we aren't missing the forest for the trees on such issues?

No, there is no snap to preset the first or any dimension line from model objects that we reference. We have a snap setting for adjacent dimensions to permit us to layout neat strings of dimensions based on where we put the "first" string, whether it be the outermost or the innermost.

Having worked for a firm that had a nice graphic of a typical floor plan stating that no dimension string shall be closer to any building line than 2" on the paper...stemming from the days when we laid this stuff out by hand on paper I understand the intention...to make neat clear consistent documents that are easy to read and have room for tags, notes, section marks etc. That the dimension shall be no closer than 2" is a rule of thumb that often was mistaken for law and when these notions start to distract from the goal...neat clear consistent documentation...it defeats the purpose of defining it in the first place.

I did the attached quick example using a "law" of 6' from the most extreme edge of my building. I placed reference planes and dimensioned them so you'd see them. I then laid out my dimensions ignoring my "law" and then dragged them, together, until they sure looked like they were on top of the reference plane. By the time this gets plotted on paper and goes through that hot plotter and squeezed through rollers it might get stretched by as much as 1/100th of an inch completely messing up the accuracy I was striving for in the first place.

The only way you'd ever be able to prove that I was sloppy is to export the file to dwg and check my work. In which case I'd be toast, my dimension is off the "law" by 7/100 of an inch. Check the dwg attached. Is this really important? Is this what architects are really most interested in? I sure hope not.

Would I object if Revit offered a way to snap said dimensions to other references, no certainly not. Do I lose sleep over this...not in the least. Just my late night cranky two cents :smile:

[MESMO]

[crullier]

this is exactly what i came up with today, and one i noticed the the chains did not snap to the ref planes i began to think I was doing something wrong. - so in once sentece, there is no way to do this accurately like in ADT for example, however we can use ref planes and do the best be can to "aling" our chains to them. =)

[Steve_Stafford]

...accurately like in ADT for example...Is this accuracy important? If the dimensions all line up with each other accurately and the drawing is neat clear and consistent does it matter if they are not exactly 6 feet from the building? Does it affect the contractor in the field if they are really 5'-11 45/256" away from the building? If he spills coffee on the sheet and then wrinkles it when he folds it up and tucks in his back pocket does it make a difference? If I design something accurately to within 1/1000th of an inch in cad and the object is normally ultimately cut with a torch in the field did my effort pay off?

Gosh I'm testy tonight :smile: I guess my tolerance is low eh? (pun intended)

[DoTheBIM]

Is this accuracy important?
Gosh I'm testy tonight :smile: I guess my tolerance is low eh? (pun intended)
I'm with you, Steve. I say there are much more important things to be worked on and this offset feature is of no importance to us... but then I don't have a degree in Architecture either, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.